Preview

What do we learn about each of the main characters and the relationships and power dynamics that exists between them in the opening chapter?

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
786 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What do we learn about each of the main characters and the relationships and power dynamics that exists between them in the opening chapter?
What do we learn about each of the main characters and the relationships and power dynamics that exist between them in the opening chapter?
Throughout the opening chapter of the novella, Steinbeck introduces George and Lennie. Both characters are portrayed in opposite ways through their physical appearance and mentality, which is developed further through the novella.
Steinbeck portrays Lennie as a very simple minded character who doesn’t know how to control his actions. When Steinbeck introduces Lennie he describes him as ‘a huge man’, this suggest that he is large in weight and height. The word ‘huge’ suggests he’s abnormally tall compared to average height. Lennie is said to have ‘walked heavily’ this shows that he’s walking slowly like he can’t be bothered. It also suggests that where he’s going doesn’t interest him, and that he is only going because he has to. ‘Heavily’ shows that he hasn’t got proper posture, it suggests that his shoulders are curled inwards, giving the sense that he is sad or tired. It also shows that the way he moves is un-elegant. Steinbeck refers to Lennie as an animal and states that he drags his hands ‘the way a bear drags his paws’. Bears are perceived as dangerous animals, which have immense strength. However, bears can come across as cute, simple and calm, but in defence they will turn and will hurt/kill anyone due to them panicking. This foreshadows what is to happen further on in the book. Furthermore bears are one of the largest mammals on land which relates to Lennie being ‘huge’. Lennie is again referred to as an animal when they come to the river. ‘Snorting into the water like a horse’ this suggests that Lennie isn’t apprehensive about any of his actions and he doesn’t think about the consequences of them either. ‘Snorting’ suggest that he is drinking the water without hesitation and breath.
Steinbeck has made a distinctive contrast between the two characters, and when he introduces George, it is apparent that George is the

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Lennie is hard to handle, but George took on the responsibility and was able to manage it for a while. George and Lennie ended up having a bond like brothers. They would do anything to help the other. The relationship that Steinbeck builds between George and Lennie at the beginning of the book, and continues to strengthen throughout the book, helps the reader except that George had to be the one to kill Lennie. Steinbeck showed that it is necessary to make sacrifices for the well-being of close…

    • 993 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Lennie has a large connection with mice and rabbits, Lennie is innocent as are the rabbits and mice too. Just like animals Lennie can not be socialised because he is considered as a pest towards the society, Lennie was once said by George (page 14), “Jesus Christ, somebody’d shoot you for a coyote if you was by yourself”, the perusers are being told that Lennie is considered like a coyote by a stranger, because of the incident in Weed he is considered a pest just like coyotes are. (Page 10), “Slowly like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master, Lennie approached, drew back, approached again.” Terriers are very loyal and good workers, Lennie is also very loyal to George, George is portrayed as the master of Lennie, we read about George talking to Slim about what Lennie can do for George and we find out that once tells Lennie to jump in the river, “An’ he jumps in. Couldn't swim a stroke. He damn near drowned before we could get him. An’ he was so damn nice to me for pullin’ him out”, this shows the readers the unconditional love Lennie has for George. John Steinbeck captures the readers attention and allows them to understand the concept of the imagery…

    • 1620 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    OF MICE AND MEN

    • 412 Words
    • 2 Pages

    As he introduces the two characters, George and Lennie, Steinbeck instantly notes the difference in both the appearance and attitude of the characters. Within the novel, even when the characters reach an opening that allows the pair to walk together, Steinbeck portrays one to stay ahead of the other. This is George, who is the obvious leader. George “was small and quick, dark of face with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined”. Steinbeck presenting him in this way hints that George is intelligent with a strong personality. However, him having “restless eyes”, could suggest not only that he is aware of possibly danger around him, but unhappiness. Also, “strong” suggests that George is a character who may not have physical strength, but, mental strength which he may have used to get him and Lennie out of trouble in Weed. George described in this way shows that George is more dominant through his description. In comparison, Lennie, the follower, was 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”. Lennie’s “shapeless face” suggests that he has no meaning…

    • 412 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    A small, wiry, quick-witted man who travels with, and cares for, Lennie. Although he frequently speaks of how much better his life would be without his caretaking responsibilities, George is obviously devoted to Lennie. George’s behavior is motivated by the desire to protect Lennie and, eventually, deliver them both to the farm of their dreams. Though George is the source of the often-told story of life on their future farm, it is Lennie’s childlike faith that enables George to actually believe his account of their future. George is small, intelligent, dark of face, has restless eyes and sharp, strong features with every part of him defined. (2, Steinbeck)…

    • 883 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Through the phrases “bear drags its paws” and “snorting...like a horse” Steinbeck connects Lennie’s actions to an animal. Steinbeck also shows Lennie as a beast when he could not control his strength while crushing Curley’s hand. Curley attacks Lennie thinking that Lennie is laughing at him when Lennie is just dreaming about the rabbits on the farm.…

    • 396 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    By looking at the main characters, George and Lennie individually, one can see the contrast between them in both physical appearances and their nature. For George, “every part of him was defined”, while Lennie is the exact opposite as he was “a huge man, shapeless of face, with large pale eyes and sloping shoulders” (Steinbeck,2). Their differences help create an idea that together they can achieve anything put across their path, especially the American dream. With George being the leader of the pair, his desire to keep Lennie…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    George and Lennie are two very different characters. George is described as a "slim, small, quick, dark-featured, and restless man with sharp, strong features" (Steinbeck 2). Lennie is the exact opposite, described as a huge man with a shapeless face, with large, pale eyes, and with wide, sloping…

    • 617 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    omam notes Essay Example

    • 1640 Words
    • 7 Pages

    (c) How does John Steinbeck present the relationship between George and Lennie throughout the novel?…

    • 1640 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lennie Character Analysis

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Also describing his eyes as ‘pale’ could be indicative of the knowledge behind them, or more accurately the lack thereof. Suggesting that in reality he has a tendency to be absent-minded. Within this description of Lennie, we come across the first piece of animal imagery, where Steinbeck presents Lennie as a bear who ‘drags his paws’. Using the verb ‘drags’ gives connotations to slowness, and could be suggestive of Lennie’s slowness, both physically and mentally. Lennie also has other similarities with bears, they are conceived as dangerous, yet they only become so when they feel threatened, in self-defence. As is true when Lennie attacks Curley, here Steinbeck is subtly foreshadowing this event. After being described as a bear, he is later described as a horse ‘snorting into the water’. This can again tell us a few things about Lennie. It could be suggestive of his relationship with George, and how Lennie, as the horse is able to be controlled by his owner. It also reinforces his strength and power, and how it is only utilized when he feels vulnerable. The use of the verb ‘snorting’ shows hurriedness in his actions, but also could be referring to the way he acts from instincts rather than acting from intelligence. Later in the chapter Steinbeck uses a simile to describe Lennie as a ‘terrier who doesn’t want to bring a ball to his master’ that again talks of George’s control over Lennie, speaking of him as a ‘master’. The phrase also alludes to Lennie’s subservience to George, and indicates the lack of control he has over his own…

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Omam Essay Questions

    • 2424 Words
    • 10 Pages

    What do Steinbeck’s first description of George and Lennie tell us about their characters? Discuss this in the regards to the role/relationship of Itinerant workers in the 1930’s Great Depression:…

    • 2424 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lennie is a comical character in this tragic tale of two best pals. Lennie is the more childlike one of the two. Steinbeck proves this through Lennie's words, "'Tha's good,' he said. ,You drink some, George. You take a big drink.' He smiled happily". Lennie shows that he is childish and unintelligent in this quote. Also, he is immense in size. He is described as being so when Steinbeck mentions, "…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." He is described as being a huge man in this quote as I had stated earlier. Lastly, Lennie is publicized by Steinbeck as weak minded and forgetful in the following quote, "Lennie said gently, 'George… I ain't got mine. I musta lost it.' He looked down at the ground in despair." Lennie is a gargantuan, childish, weak minded and forgetful man, however he is an excellent friend.…

    • 413 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To begin with, Steinbeck describes Lennie as an animal. This is because whilst he is drinking from a river and this shows that he has a wild personality as he is drinking from a dirty river. He drank using his ‘big paws’. ‘Paws’ implies that he hasn’t got hands like a human but paws like a bear or a dog. This would link back to the time period as people used dogs to heard sheep. ‘Big’ suggests that he is quite large which contradicts his partner as George of small. George respond to this by saying ‘you’d drink out of a gutter’. ‘Gutter’ suggests that he is quite animalistic as animals don’t have much sense to drink clean water. This also puts a lot of emphasis to his wild personality and simplicity. Therefore, through the use of the theme of animalistic and his disability, Steinbeck shows the importance of animals.…

    • 620 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Of Mice and Men

    • 2277 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Can a book with impure values be considered a classic? Of Mice and Men speaks about the anger within the American society. Steinbeck’s straightforward way of expressing his opinion appeals to many readers who like to see life as it really is. This well-known novel has influenced many people, and continues to influence people today. Despite some impurity in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the book should be considered a classic due to it is honesty, truth, loveliness, justice and good report.…

    • 2277 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Steinbeck uses many different descriptions of Lennie Small in the novella. Often compared to animals, one of the first descriptions of him is him being compared to a bear. ‘He was dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws’, is a line which portrays an image of how physically large Lennie is while also suggesting the extent of his strength. Lennie is also described to be ‘shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes’ which compares easily to a small innocent child who doesn’t understand his surroundings. The imagery created in this scene begins to imply that Lennie, even though a grown man, does not have a mind of his own, almost childlike, while always having someone to direct him through life. Despite his age, Lennie acts and speaks with immaturity due a mental disability. ‘Slowly like a terrier, who doesn’t want to bring a ball back to his master’ is a line Steinbeck wrote to emphasise Lennie’s immature personality. By comparing him to a terrier he becomes viewed as irrational with a very instinctive side to him. Steinbeck uses the word ‘master’ which signifies how Lennie, unable to make sensible decisions, needs a…

    • 2184 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Steinbeck starts the book with verbal person vs person conflict between George and Lennie during the orientation of the characters. "When I think of all the swell times I could have without you, I go nuts." As this is said, the audience realises George feels that Lennie needs constant attention.…

    • 262 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays