Preview

Theme Of Loneliness In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
448 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Theme Of Loneliness In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men
The novel “Of Mice and Men” is a story that tells of two traveling partners who experience different life situations that makes them stronger as a whole. George, the leader of the two, takes on all responsibility for their actions and things that they would have to do. Lennie is the second in the duo. He is special needs and is always using his sense of touch. He picks up things such as mice, velvet, and rabbits to help satisfy his need to touch things.

In the book the most talked about theme is loneliness. In the time of the Great Depression people traveled around California looking for possible work to help earn money due to the loss of jobs and the crashing of the stock market. During this time most people became homeless. Due to this
…show more content…
He takes care of Lennie because he promised Lennie’s aunt, Aunt Clara, that he would protect and look after him. So when the Aunt dies, George steps up and keeps his promise to take care of lennie. While venturing through the different cities he is the person who speaks to their employers to help them obtain different jobs. Even though George tries to keep a positive mind, he can still be pressed with future thoughts when he is upset. When Lennie gets caught up in trouble they flee before things get to worse. The most important event like this occurred in Weed, the town they lived in before. In the town of Weed, Lennie was touching a girl's soft dress. After while she began to feel uncomfortable, so when she tried to pull away, Lennie would not let go. Then the girl yelled. So George and Lennie had to run away to save their lives. This began the start of their life on the run. This experience is told by George in chapter 3. "Jus’ wanted to feel that girl's dress—jus' wanted to pet it like it was a mouse—Well, how the hell did she know you jus' wanted to feel her dress? She jerks back and you hold on like it was a mouse. She yells and we got to hide in an irrigation ditch all day with guys lookin' for us, and we got to sneak out in the dark and get outta the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    George could be very successful and would be able to have a life if he wasn't so "tied down" with Lennie. George states numerous amounts of times that if he didn't have Lennie "he could live so easily" and "have a regular job and not have any of this mess". Although he does have a tragic role in the book George does say that he doesn't want Lennie to leave. I would also have to make the inference that George is a rather smart person, because he constantly thinks ahead and knows what's best for Lennie and himself. He told Lennie to stay away from Curley's wife and Curley, and Lennie got in trouble when he got around either of them. He might have been able to go to school (college) or teach somewhere. Even if George didn't go to teach or do something with his life, he could still have a bit of fun he says that "If I didn't have you (talking about Lennie) I could go at the end of the month and blow my pay at a cat house". Most of the time he…

    • 702 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the book George says this, “I knowed his Aunt Clara. She took him when he was a baby and raised him up. When his Aunt Clara died, Lennie just come along with me out workin’.” This is important because it shows that George took care of Lennie when no one else did. When Lennie “attacked” a lady by holding on to her dress. He got both of them safely out of Weed and got a new job. He works for both of them while Lennie does little of the work. He fed him…

    • 563 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Because every person has a different perspective, there should be an equal amount of people willing to see the world from each others eyes. In Steinback's Of Mice and Men, there a five very different but equally significant views of the lives of the characters. These themes include: the loneliness each one feels or doesn't feel, the oppression by Curley's wife, the social responsibility of George having to take care of his friend, the hopes of the two main characters, as well as the innocence of the gentle giant everyone calls Lennie.…

    • 597 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Have you ever felt lonely or isolated before? In the story “Of Mice And Men” by John Steinbeck these characters Candy, Curley's wife and Crooks are all on the look for the American dream during this they all experience loneliness and isolation in their own way.…

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    George needs Lennie for his physical prowess, also just so George can feel like someone depends on him. Although George might seem like he hates Lennie, he enjoys being around him and he would be devastated if anything bad happened to Lennie. “…He Damn near drowned before we could get him. An’ he was so damn nice to me for pullin’ him out. Clean forgot…

    • 900 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men George Milton and Lennie Small are on their way to work on a ranch in Northern California after Lennie’s childlike brain and his odd fetish for petting things like mice, rabbits, puppies, and women get him into trouble. One of the major themes in John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men is having a dream creates hope, friendship, and determination.…

    • 859 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the 1900’s, there was a large division between males and females. Women were stereotyped as weak and passive, with little to no freedoms not to mention they were unable to attain work as easily as men. In Of Mice and Men and Flowers for Algernon both Curley’s wife and Fay help further the point that women didn’t have it simple in the 1900’s. Through their levels of loneliness, their mistreatment as women, and their image of only being an object, it is apparent that these women faced many challenges during their existence.…

    • 1743 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the beginning of the story, George escaped with Lennie from Weed to prevent Lennie from getting lynched. George did absolutely nothing, he had nothing to hide from. Also George warned Lennie about Curley, he told him that he has seen people like that before and demanded Lennie to stay away from Curley (Steinbeck 29). In addition, in order to make sure Lennie got the job, George talked for him (Steinbeck 21). George is like a parent to Lennie, from the beginning we see how he told Lennie that the water he was drinking from didn’t seem potable. He told Lennie to throw the mice away, not to be mean but because it was already dead, it wasn’t fresh. Lennie acted acted like a child and George acted like a parent, he said and did stuff similar to what a parent would. He did all that because he cared for…

    • 755 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The novel, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, tells the story of two migrant workers, George Milton and Lennie Small, who move from place to place in search of new job opportunities during the Great Depression in Soledad, California. George is a small man and Lennie is a mentally handicapped giant. The two men have to move from place to place more than other men because Lennie doesn't understand certain things and causes trouble without knowing what he did. However, they share the dream of owning their own ranch. Many obstacles stand in the way of this dream but one of the biggest obstacles is Lennie and his mental disability. In this novel the theme of friendship emerges. It appears in the novel when George and Lennie are making their way…

    • 860 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “Ain’t many guys travel around together,” he mused. “I don’t know why. Maybe ever’body in the whole damn world is scared of each other” (Steinbeck 35). Not many people travel together during the Great Depression thus creating many examples of isolation and loneliness. John Steinbeck demonstrates loneliness and the need for companionship through the characters Crooks, Candy, and Curly’s wife in his novel Of Mice and Men.…

    • 694 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Loneliness and isolation is a dominant theme in Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck during the great depression. The reason why Candy was isolated was because he was old and handicap. The only thing that kept him happy was his dog but no one liked him since he was old and stinked. Crooks has always been isolated because he is black. Being black during this time people didn't really like you they were afraid that since you're a different color you're going to cause a crime. The main character of the story was George he was isolated from everyone that was equal to him. Lennie was the only one he had to talk with but all he did was agree with him since he was retarded. Many of the characters in of mice and men are isolated and lonely, which echoed the feelings during the great depression.…

    • 639 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In the United States, there are over 44 million people who are lonely and longing to connect with another living soul. Loneliness is a psychological disease that gradually consumes you, until you are left feeling empty and rejected from society. Psychologists believe that physical isolation, the death of a loved one, or low self-esteem are all contributing factors. Those who struggle with this disease may experience depression or drastic personality alterations. In the novella Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck conveys how adversity shapes character by illustrating that loneliness influences individuals to appear cold-hearted or detached.…

    • 1189 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    The loneliness of Crooks, Lennie, Candy, and Curley's wife is shown in many different ways. The first person that is lonely is Crooks. Crooks is lonely because he is the only black man on the ranch, and he cannot go in he bunkhouse because it is filled with white people, so he cannot talk to anyone before bed. For example, nobody is allowed in Crooks room because he is not allowed in the bunkhouse therefore Crooks has books in his room to read. Another person who is lonely is Lennie. Lennie is lonely because all he has is George, and when George leaves Lennie has no one else. He is also lonely because he cannot talk to people because they do not understand him. For example, when George went into town, Lennie had no one to talk to so he went…

    • 298 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Loneliness is the theme of the novel Of Mice and Men. The shadow of loneliness follows the majority of the characters. Loneliness is the meaning of the and the end of the novel. Everyone seems to deal with their loneliness is different ways. Loneliness can be the beginning of people having serious problems. Everyone in life needs and deserves to have someone to talk with, that’s just how life is. How could you possibly live being an extremely lonely person?…

    • 494 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are several themes present in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, among them powerlessness and the impossibility of the American dream. Although these two themes definitely make up a fair portion of the story, they are not the subject of this paper. Nay, for standing prominently alongside these themes is loneliness, which is indisputably one of the most major concepts explored in the duration of the story. The theme of loneliness is thoroughly fleshed out through both characters – specifically Lennie and Curley's wife – and the involvement of migrant workers in general.…

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays