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A* REVISION NOTES ON GCSE ENGLISH LITERATURE "OF MICE AND MEN"
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A* revision notes on John Steinbeck's novella "Of Mice and Men"
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"Of Mice and Men" comments on the elusiveness of the American Dream and thefalse hope of material prosperity that is often dangled in front of the lower and middle
classes. Steinbeck took the title of his novel from a line in Robert Burns' poem "To a
Mouse":
The best laid schemes o' mice and men
Gang aft a-gley,
An' leave us naught but grief an' pain,
For promised joy." (Burns)
It is a tale of companionship that triumphs against all odds. The novel reveals a
lot about the society in which it is set. The novel examines many of the prejudices
at the time: racism, sexism, and prejudice towards those with disabilities. The
power of John Steinbeck's writing is that he treats these issues in purely human
terms. He sees society's prejudices in terms of individual tragedies, and his
characters attempt to escape from those prejudices.
On the face of it, "Of Mice and Men" is a pessimistic novel, devoid of hope. The
novel shows the dreams of a small group of people and then contrasts these
dreams with a reality that is unattainable. Even though the dream never becomes
reality, John Steinbeck does leave us with a glimmer of hope. George and Lennie
do not achieve their dream, but their friendship stands out as a shining example
of how people can live and love even in a word of alienation and cruelty.
Steinbeck explores man’s propensity for cruelty and the converse side of this is
how friendship and kindness can endure this.
George and Lennie are introduced as they walk to the pool in the opening scene.
The path they follow is heavily travelled. Lennie drops to his knees to drink from
the pool and is quickly chastised by George, who warns him that the stagnant
water may be bad. This immediately establishes George’s paternal relationship
with Lennie, who is mentally challenged. The remainder of Chapter 1 reinforces
the roles of each character. George decides they will finish their walk to the ranch
the next morning after sleeping under the stars; he tells Lennie to get rid of the
dead mouse he’s been carrying around in his pocket because it is old; he prepares
their meal, warns Lennie about what to do if they face trouble at their new job,
and prepares Lennie for sleep by sharing with him, once again, their dream of the
little house they will someday own, complete with cows, pigs, rabbits, and a
garden.
, Of Mice and Men tells the story of how George and Lennie’s friendship is tested
by the isolating and predatory reality of life for poor migrant workers in
Depression-era America. George and Lennie are the protagonists, and their
friendship is unique in the world of the novella: almost every other character
comments that they have never seen such a close partnership between two
migrant laborers before. George and Lennie’s biggest struggle is centred around
surviving their oppressive, impoverished circumstances and becoming financially
stable enough to own land together. This dream of one day purchasing a farm is
complicated by Lennie’s inability to stay out of trouble on the job, and George’s
inability to stay angry at Lennie long enough to leave and find work on his own.
From the beginning, the reader learns George and Lennie have stayed together
since childhood, and their relationship has been tested often—most recently by
the trouble in Weed that sent them searching for new employment—but to date
has survived the tests that they have encountered.
Their friendship is so long-standing that their conversations are almost ritualised,
the most important ritual being George’s description of the farm they will one day
acquire, down to the fine details of the vegetable garden and rabbits. More
important than the ultimate goal of owning the farm is the fact that the goal is
shared between George and Lennie. This shared dream sustains them and helps
them through adversity; it is what they turn to for comfort and escape. As the
novella progresses, we learn that almost every worker dreams of owning land, but
only George and Lennie dream of owning land together. The rarity of their
relationship is elevated, making Lennie’s death that much more tragic since
George not only loses his friend, but his dream of a better life.
The animal imagery used to describe Lennie is an indication to us that all may not
end well; how will Lennie with his animalistic nature, his mental impairment, his
dependence upon George survive amongst humans. Steinbeck uses animal
imagery as a foreshadowing technique; he is hinting at how things may transpire.
(animal imagery: hand like paws; snorts like a horse; circles like a terrier). By
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