Title Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

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Title Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

 

Type of document Research Paper 

Number of pages/words 3 Pages Double Spaced (approx 275 words per page)

Subject area   American Literature 

Academic Level Undergraduate

Style MLA 

Number of sources/references 2

Order description:

The student will write a Literary Research Paper in MLA Format over the novella _Of Mice and Men_ by John Steinbeck. The paper should delve substantially into a thesis which addresses plot, theme, style, form, symbol(s), AND/OR characters/archetypes. Possible thesis examples could include various forms of discrimination depicted in the work, the portrayal of friendships, the role of foreshadowing, the depiction of loneliness, etc.

The student must use a minimum of one quote EACH from two (2) secondary sources (full text articles from GAILEO) and one (1) primary source (the primary source for this paper would be the novella _Of Mice and Men_). All quotes should be properly cited using in-text citations along with a correctly formatted Works Cited page. The ‘Literary Research Paper in MLA Format Folder’ contains links and information on writing in MLA Format as well as a multitude of other resources to assist you with this assignment.

Secondary sources MUST come from full text articles found in GALILEO. Use of secondary sources such as Wikipedia, blog posts, message boards, and web pages are inappropriate for this level of research and will not be considered a secondary source.

note:

Running head: MICE AND MEN BY JOHN STEINBECK 1

Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

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Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

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The novel of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is set in the Great Depression times. The period of Great Depression occurred in the period of 1939 due to the collapse of the economy. The Great Depression period leads to the evolution of a lot of migrants’ workers in the country. The author of the book diverges with a lot of themes in the novel. One can’t help noticing friendship between George and Lennie and one wonders if there idealized male friendship will last (Lemon, 2014 pp. 13).

At the beginning of the novel, we are introduced to George and Lenny. Lemon, 2014, pp. 13 states that “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 statement shows that the two do not equal since one is walking behind the other. However, the two are dressed in similar clothing making one to wonder if their relationship is of equals or if indeed friendships are based on inequality.

Lennie is a childlike migrant laborer because of his partial mental disability and is forced to depend on his friend George completely who becomes his traveling companion and friend who willingly offers protection and guidance. George who is Lennie’s’ friend is the quick witted man who is devoted to caring for Lennie. George is motivated to care for his friend who made them to land the job in a firm of their dreams but insisted on being the one doing all the talking since he feared how that farm owner will react upon seeing Lennie (Lemon, 2014 pp. 13).

John, (1965), states “Now, look- I’ll give him the work tickets, but you ain’t gonna say a word. You jus’ stand there and don’t say nothing. If he finds out what a crazy bastard you are, we won’t get no job, but if he sees ya work before he hears ya talk, we’re set. Ya got that?”(pp. 4). The two share the same vision of owning their farm in future as Lennie believes in their dream wholeheartedly. George, however, complains how his life would be better if he didn’t have to take the responsibility to care his friend and he openly speaks about it even in the presence of Lennie (John, 1965, pp. 4),

George even confided with Slim who is a skilled mule driver and knowledgeable about his relation with Lennie that they were not cousins but rather have been friends since their childhood age. George explains to slim that his friend has been getting them to trouble and this had forced them to run away from their last job since Lennie had tried to touch a woman’s dress and was accused of rape. Slim goes ahead to give Lennie one of his puppies to signify the beginning of their friendships (Lemon, 2014 pp. 13). The puppy symbolizes the victory of strong over the weak since Lennie, in the end, kills the puppy accidentally because he failed to identify his strength. Although Lennie had the unmatched strength he, later on, encountered the fate similar to that of the puppy. This is evident since Lennie is not able to recognize his strength including his predatory powers that led him to even kill Curley’s wife.

Curley wife who is the only female character portrays the corrupt nature of women who uses their looks to flirt with men. She is also used to depict the lack of freedom since she is mostly referenced after her husband and she is being constantly sought by the husband who is jealous. Curley also depicts the theme of loneliness which made her to constantly flirt with men to fill the void. She gets killed while trying to comfort Lennie who is addicted to soft things (Lemon, 2014 pp. 13).

Optimism is also depicted by Candy who wishes to join Lennie and George in their farm idea. Candy is an old ranch handyman who lost his hand during an accident but is worried sick of his future in the ranch. Candy overhears Lennie and George discussing their farm plan to own land then goes ahead to offer his life’s savings to be part of the plan. This symbolizes optimism and desperation at the same time since he views the duo to be part of the solution for his worries. Candy also owned a dog that was shot by Carlson to foreshadow Lennie’s death. The dog was shot in the back of the head an act described as an act of mercy. Candy, George, and Lennie made a pact to keep the plan of owning land a secret from other people. The three aims at living together like brothers in order to have each other’s interest at heart. The loneliness forces George and Lennie to stick together in their idealized men friendship (John, 1965, pp. 4).

The idealized friendship is faced with challenges due to the world predatory and harsh conditions. Lennie is the first one to snap his puppy but becomes upset prompting Curley wife to want to comfort him by allowing him to stroke her hair to feel the softness. Despite Curley’s wife knowing what Lennie is capable of allows to put herself in danger to comfort Lennie. Lennie fails to controls himself and ended up killing her and run away. George being certain where to find Lennie goes ahead to look for him and shoots him in the back of the head bringing to an end their friendship (Lemon, 2014, pp. 13).

References

John, Steinbeck.1937 of Mice and Men. Viking Penguin: Penguin Books USA Inc. 1965, pp. 1. Retrieved from

http://www.nhc.ac.uk/media/2840/steinbeck-john-of-mice-and-men

Lemon, Of Mice and Men: Reviews: Theatre: Financial Times; London (UK): 2014. pp. 13.