Investigating Themes in Of Mice and Men

1.)  What different forms of power exist in Of Mice and Men?  What kind of power does Lennie have?  What kind of power does George have?  What kinds of power or powerlessness do other characters possess?  

Different forms of power is shown in Of Mice and Men. Through characters, power is shown. First, the power the brain exists in the book. Lennie is a character who has power over Lennie because he is smart. Being smart is a type of power. In addition, power of strength is shown in the story. For example, Lennie is a character that has the power of strength. Although he is not smart, he is powerful because he is strong and George needs him to make money. Different kinds of power appear in Of Mice and Men.

George is very powerful character. Although George is small, he is powerful because he has control over Lennie for the most part and is smart. For example, when Curley was in a fight with Lennie, George yelled, "Get 'im , Lennie." (Steinbeck 63) By this example, the reader can tell that George has power to tell Lennie what to do. Unlike Lennie, George is very smart, so he knows what to do, which makes him powerful. George is a powerful character because he is smart.

Some characters from Of Mice and Men possess powerlessness. For example, Lennie can be considered powerless because of he is not smart like George. When Curley tried to beat up Lennie, he let him attack him because he did not know what to do. He lacks in making good decisions, which makes him appear powerless. Also, George can be considered powerless because of his size. For example, when George was being mean, Lennie said, "I could go off in the hills there. Someplace I'd find a cave." (Steinbeck 12) When Lennie said that, George realized that Lennie is actually very powerful because he is the one that makes them money. George needs Lennnie as much as Lennie needs him. George and Lennie may have their strengths, but are also both powerless in some things.

Check out this link I found about the powerful!
http://www.nytimes.com/1982/11/09/science/how-does-power-affect-the-powerful.html



This pictures shows how Lennie and George both need each other.

Chapter 3 Notes

Connections

When George was talking to Slim about Lennie, the way the characters described Lennie reminded me of a friend I had. My friends little brother used to hit him and throw things at him, but my friend never touched him. My friend reminded me of Lennie because George said that he beat Lennie up, but Lennie would not do anything. My friend is just like Lennie because he never wanted to start fights. (Steinbeck 40)

When Carlson and Candy are talking about Candy's dog, it reminded me of my the decision my family had to make about my dog. My dog, Jake, was very sick, and my family had to decide to put him down because he was so ill. Candy's decision to keep his dog or not reminded me of the decision my family had to make. (Steinbeck 45)

Predictions

After reading about Candy's conversation in the bunkhouse, I predict that Candy will end up shooting his dog. Everyone keeps telling him that his dog is so old, and shooting him would be good for the dog because it would take him out of his pain. I believe that Candy will listen to his roommates and take away his dogs pain.  (Steinbeck 45)

I predict that Curley's wife is going to cheat on Curley with George. There is a lot of foreshadowing going on about Curley's wife. It is obvious that she is trouble. Whit told George that she always has her eyes on people and George does not like Curley because he hates his guts. This foreshadowing leads me to predict that Curley's wife is going to cheat.

Summary

Chapter three starts with Lennie being given a puppy from Slim, which he becomes very attached to. George tells Slim about his and Lennie's relationship, how they ended up as a team, and how they had to run away because Lennie was accused of rape. In addition, Candy's dog, who is very old and ill, ends up being put out of misery by Carlson. Although it seemed like a good idea at first, Candy ends up feeling regret. Curley comes into the bunk house, looking for his wife, but the men have not seen her, so Curly asks were Slim is, and goes to the barn to find Slim, followed by Carlson and Whit. When they leave, George tells Lennie about their dream house and Carlson becomes interested in the plan, so they decide that if all of them put their money together, they should be able to move out in a month, but it must be kept a secret. As Slim and the rest of the men appear, Slim gets annoyed by Curley's  accusations, and Curley gets mad. Curley takes his anger out on Lennie,making him bleed, but Lennie does not attack until George tells him to. Lennie ends up crushing his hand, but Curley agrees not to tell the doctor that Lennie did it.

Chapter 2 Notes

Connections

Page 24: When George and Lennie are talking and George sees an old man that he believes is listening in to his conversation, it reminded me of myself. Like George, I cannot stand when people are nosey. It is one of my biggest pet peeves. 

Questions

Page 22: When Lennie is talking to the boss, I did not understand why he lied to the boss. I understand they are desperate for the job but still what if the boss found out they lied? Would the boss fire them?

Page 25: When George and Lennie are in the cabin talking to to the swamper and Curly comes in, I got confused. Why did Curley have such a bad attitude? Why was he picking a fight with Lennie?

Predictions

Page 26: I predict Lennie and George are going to get into a fight. Steinbeck uses the method of foreshadowing to show that a fight will probably occur. Curley was being rude to Lennie and George, which shows that they probably will get into a fight. Also, the swamper said that Curley is always picking fights with big guys like Lennie. 

Naturalism as a Mirror of the 1930s

 Literature is often a reflection of the time period in which it was written or, in the case of historical fiction, of the time period it is focused on.  Authors will often find sneaky little ways to demonstrate the dominant characteristics of the time period by blending in details, that, at a closer glance, reveal these hidden themes.

     In class, we viewed several videos (in the LitByFleming blog video bar) that gave us a look at some major events and common themes or characteristics of the 1930s.  John Steinbeck certainly considered these elements when writing Of Mice and Men.  In fact, it might be said, his writing style intentionally made use of naturalism in order to capture and expose some of the attitudes and characteristics of the American 1930s.
     Let's see if you can make the connection!  Think about some of  the naturalistic elements we identified in class (Chapter 1).  What aspects or characteristics of the 1930s are being demonstrated to us at those moments in the text?  What do you believe John Steinbeck was trying to show us or expose about the way people, life, or society was during this time in American history? 


Through the book, Of Mice and Men, characteristics of naturalism are being demonstrated. For example, on page 2, Steinbeck says, "...he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws." This shows that Steinbeck is trying to prove that the people of the 1930's had animal like actions. They were tired and uncivilized. In addition, Steinbeck tries to prove that people of the 1930's were uncivil by comparing Lennie to a horse. It stated on page 3, "... drank with long gulps, snorting into the water like a horse." The traits of the characters are not well behaved and desperate, as the reader can tell by seeing Lennie's actions. Through moments in the text, characteristics are revealed. 


During this time period, John Steinbeck tries to show his readers about the way of life.We learn by reading that the 1930's was a period of depression, desperateness, and surly people. First, on page 3, it stated, "His huge companion dropped his blankets and flung himself down and drank from the surface of the green pool" This showed that during this time period people were desperate. When  they found water, they acted like desperate, dying for water so bad. Also, the people behaved different. People were more aggravated because of the hard time period they live in. On page 11, the reader sees how angry George gets, and the crazy temper he had. This shows how people behaved in the 1930's. Lastly, we learn that living conditions were hard. In the story, the reader is told that all George and Lennie eat for dinner is beans straight from the can. They do not have a designated home, and do not have a stove, sink, or even clean water to drink. Steinbeck preaches that the 1930's are an unpleasant place to live in.

Check out this link on naturalism!
http://www.naturalism.org/

Chapter 1 Notes

Questions:

Page 4: George and Lennie are involved. This part of the story takes place by river that the two had just come across.
I wonder why Lennie imitates George? Is George his role model? Is George his older brother?

Page 11: When George is screaming about how happy he could be without Lennie, I got confused when he brought up something that happened. He talked about Lennie "touching a dress."
Did Lennie try to steal a dress? Why was Lennie in trouble for touching the dress?
Predictions

Page 12: I predict that Lennie will run away. I believe this because George keeps taking his anger out on him, and Lennie keeps saying that he is going to run off. I believe that eventually, when George pushes him to hard, Lennie will run away.

Connections

Page 9: When Lennie found water, it reminded me of a scene in the book, The Hunger Games. When the main character, Katniss, found water, she was so relieved just like Lennie. Finding water after being thirsty for so long was a relief for both characters.

Page 11: When George exploded with anger, it reminded me of a man I used to know. He would have his anger bottled up, and then eventually just exploded with anger and take it out on someone, like George took his anger out on Lennie.

Picturing the History Behind Of Mice and Men

For a moment the place was lifeless, and then two men emerged from the path and came into the opening by the green pool.
     They had walked in single file down the path, and even in the open one stayed behind the other. Both were dressed in denim trousers and in denim coats with brass buttons. Both wore black, shapeless hats and both carried tight blanket rolls slung over their shoulders. The first man was small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose. Behind him walked his opposite, a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide, sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws. His arms did not swing at his sides, but hung loosely.

     The first man stopped short in the clearing, and the follower nearly ran over him. He took off his hat and wiped the sweat-band with his forefinger and snapped the moisture off. His huge companion dropped his blankets and flung himself. (1.2-4)

Sound familiar? Kind of like the pictures, right? In writing, compare and contrast this opening section from Of Mice and Men to the pictures you analyzed in class. What does the text and the photographs show us about the 1930s?  Be specific!

    The pictures and opening section from Of Mice and Men shared common traits. The second sentence described  men wearing black hats with "tight blanket rolls slung over their shoulder." This sentence paints an image in the readers head that looks just like picture number two. Although the book and picture are similar,  in the book the there is more than one man being described. In the photo there is only one man, strongly symbolizing the loneliness of the man. Also, the author describes that appearances of  the people during this time period which can link with picture three. The author stated that the man was, "dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features." This is similar to picture three because it shows how the appearances of  people were different in this period of time.The woman in picture three looked like she hadn't sleep in months  plus she had strong features, like the men in the story. Although the picture and the reading did have some in common, there were differences between them. In the picture, there is a woman, unlike the reading. In the reading there is a man being described. Even though they are two different totally different types of people, they both share common features. The reading had a big relation to the pictures seen.

  The text and  pictures reveal a ton about the 1930's. They show that the time period was full of desperate working conditions, sadness, loneliness, racism  and of course, depression. People were desperate for jobs, no matter what condition they were in. Also, racism was evident in picture number four. It showed that African Americans were not treated the same way as others. They were referred to a "colored."  Sadness is showed in the reading and pictures because there's shortages of jobs and life is very difficult. The story and pictures show that the 1930's were not a pleasant place to live in