Of Mice and Males Dreams
Of Mice and Men is set in Salinas, California inside the 1930s 1930s. Life was hard and men could be cruel. Expect might be the only escape from hard actuality. This links to the American Dream – represented in George and Lennie’s dream of working hard and getting their own area and farm, and control of their own lives. But it was harder than ever to achieve because of the tough monetary conditions of the Depression.
After Lennie’s fatality, it might be possible for George to grasp his desire, but the anxiety at the end of the novel implies that financial achievement is nothing at all when you are lonesome. So the fantasy is not just some thing to own, or possess, but also anything to share. ‘Compassion and love’, to Steinbeck – as outlined in the Nobel Award speech are the most important things, as is ‘hope’ – possessing a dream.
Lennie and George have a reasonably simple desire: to own a little farm, and be their own bosses, which clashes with the significant factory type farm they may be on, wherever men are treated like machines, that are frequently cracked (Crooks and Candy), and isolated by each other.
George repeats his and Lennie’s dream like a mantra: ‘we acquired a future’, suggesting that they are different to others. ‘Future’ this is the metaphor to get something dazzling, and greater than what they have – such as the American Aspire to ‘live from the fatta the land’.
The phrase ‘fat of the land’ almost suggests a biblical promised land after the hard, ‘wilderness’ years. The function of the wish therefore is always to help them to endure hardship and not give in to hopelessness. They want control over their own lives: ‘we’ll just say the hell with goin to work’. This can get them to seem naive however , as farmers need to work whether or not they want to or not – specifically smallholders. When ever George aims the wish, he then says that this individual and Lennie are ‘not like individuals other guys’.
The desire sets George and Lennie apart from the others; they make themselves special: in the inclusive ‘we’ against the unique ‘those other guys’. The juxtaposition of ‘us’ and ‘them’ verbally bonds the protagonists with each other in contrast to the other guys – although they are all, George, Lennie, Crooks, Candy, in the same scenario. Still, George and Lennie separate themselves from the other folks by using the third person to explain farm hands
while, ‘the loneliest guys on the globe. ‘ The superlative ‘loneliest’ and hyperbole ‘in the world’ exaggerates the harshness of the world from the Depression since shown in the novel.
This seems that George ‘owns’ the dream – as he may be the one who tells it to Lennie, just like a child’s going to bed story, plea or mantra, in keeping with his role as ‘parent/protector’ to his child-like companion. This is certainly emphasised by the simple, mantra-like structure, exactly where Lennie keeps filling in the gaps in the event George hesitates, and reproducing short keyword phrases after him as if he knows this by cardiovascular, even though – as George says frustratedly, Lennie usually ‘forgets’ the rest. It is not usually certain in the event George feels the wish is possible or if he can saying this to keep Lennie quiet. At times, George seems sceptical, saying they will have ‘every coloring rabbits’ including ‘red and blue’. He is patronising to Lennie, stating ‘good boy’, keeping him safe from his own ignorance. In these moments the wish seems more of a spell or perhaps placebo to keep the main character types safe than something that is very possible. Various other characters are incredibly cynical about the desire.
The reader is made to question how realistic these dreams happen to be. Curley’s better half dreams of when ever she put away to be able to become popular, but you observe that her dream is known as a sham. Of George and Lennie’s dream, Crooks says: ‘every really one of them’s got a bit piece of land in the head’. Crooks’ final reasoning is that ‘never a God damn one among ’em at any time gets that. ‘ The repetition from the absolute ‘never’ and ‘ever’, as well as the strong slang ‘God damn’ emphasises how anxious life is. However , it is not particular whether Steinbeck shares Crooks’ negative view.
Crooks can be an extreme persona. His vocabulary is affectation – extremely extreme and relentlessly negative. Crooks’ key phrase ‘God damn’ suggests that God has abandoned these men, in contrast to the biblical image of wish in George and Lennie’s dream of living ‘off the fatta the land’. The biblical symbolism continues negatively when Crooks compares the dream of area to staying ‘like Heaven’ – the Christian thought of perfect happiness, not deemed a physical fact – and which Crooks says is just as impossible to get like a piece of land. Really hard for George to hold Lennie away of trouble and keep these people on track for dream. Nevertheless they notify Candy, this starts to seem as if it could be possible. [needs evidence/ quotation/ vocabulary analysis] In an instant
Candy’s hope (and money) take them close to the ideal/dream turning out to be real. While the desire is shared, or observed by more people, a lot more it seems that together they might help to make it becoming reality. Even the extra negative Crooks starts to believe.[needs evidence/ quotation/ language analysis]
But at all times, Steinbeck has built up a foreboding feeling, that this community is hard and horrible certainly nothing good may live in this. We think that the gentleness of Lennie and George’s friendship, and the shared dream, will be smashed by the terrible world – even simply by Lennie’s desire to have gentle, very soft things. ‘I like gentle things’ Each and every time he eliminates an animal – mouse or puppy, Lennie’s biggest, dark fear is that he will not allowed ‘to tend the rabbits’. The dream is very precious to him that he wants it at any cost. Curley’s better half is depressed and would like someone to tune in to her dream. [needs evidence/ quotation/ language analysis] Once she discovers Lennie in the barn, she lets him stroke her hair.
When ever she begins screaming, Lennie screams for her to stop or ‘George won’t let me tend the rabbits’. She is so scared that the lady can’t stop and Lennie accidentally gets rid of her. In such a way, Lennie’s prefer to keep the dream (by keeping Curley’s wife quiet – and smothering her) is the thing which includes destroyed it. The irony of this makes it more poignant.
When Candy finds what features happened almost all he would like to know is the fact he and George can easily still get the farmville farm. [needs evidence/ quotation/ language analysis] This individual loses view of individual decency – the woman is dead and Lennie will soon die also. Steinbeck makes us request whether any dream of economical prosperity ought to be more important than human your life? Should we all try to get this at any cost? By the end, George tells Lennie the ‘fairy story’ of the desire again – to make him happy at this time he has to kill the dream of togetherness by firing him inside the head. He almost can’t speak as they is so upset. [needs evidence/ quotation/ language analysis] Though George may still have the farm with Candy, he is deeply miserable that he couldn’t maintain Lennie alive. Because the fantasy isn’t well worth much if he doesn’t have his old friend to share that with. Lennie loved the dream a lot more than anyone and he never gets it.
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