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John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men (1937)
"We have a dream. Someday, we'll have a little house and a couple of acres. A place to call home."
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1. Write a book review.
2. "Lennie's big fingers fell to stroking her hair" (81)
The pathetic figure of Lennie seems to symbolise mankind in its search for love. Do you agree? How does Steinbeck treat this theme in Of Mice and Men?
3. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck portrays the tragedies and the hopes of real men in real situations. How widely applicable is the story of Lennie and George?
4. "Death intervenes and spoils real life" With reference to incidents where death occurs, show how this claim is illustrated in Of Mice and Men.
5. Consider this passage and answer the question
'Ever' six weeeks or so,' George continued, 'them does would throw a litter, so we'd have plenty of rabbits to eat an' to sell. An' we'd keep a few pigeons to go flyin' around the win'mill like they done when I was a kid.' He looked gingerly at the wall over Lennie's head. "An' it'd be our own, an' nobody could can us. If we don't like a guy, we can say: "Gedt the hell out," an' by God he's got to do it. An' if a fren' come a long, why we'd have an extra bunk, an' we'd say: "Why don't you spen' the night," an' by God he would. We'd have a setter dog and a couple stripe cats, but you gotta watch out them cats don't get the little rabbits.'
What does this novel show about people's tendency to make plans for the future?
Context Exercises Page numbers from the 1974 Pan edition.
1. Outline the incident of Candy's dog (36, 37, 42-44, 45-47). What emotions does Steinbeck evoke here and with what devices?
2. Identify the speaker and context in each of these quotations:
a. "I could pet it with my thumb while we walked along." (10)b. "Guys like us, that work on ranches are the loneliest guys in the world . . . They don't belong to no place." (17)
c. "I don't like this place, George. This ain't no good place. I wanna get outa here." (33)
d. "Guy don't need no scuse to be a nice fella. Seems to me sometimes it jus' works the other way round. Take a real smart guy and he ain't hardly ever a nice fella." (39)
e. "S'pose I went in with you guys. . . . I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How'd that be?" (55)
f. "We gotta house and chickens an' fruit trees an' a place a hundred time prettier than this." (72)
3.
"You guys travel around together?" [Slim's] tone was friendly. It invited confidence without demanding it. "Sure," said George. "We kinda look after each other." He indicated Lennie with his thumb. "He ain't bright. Hell of a good worker though. Hell of a nice fella, but he ain't bright. I've knew him for a long time." Slim looked through George and beyond him. "Ain't many guys travel around together," he mused. "I don't know why. Maybe everybody in the whole damn world is scared of each other." (38)
Steinbeck's novels are pervaded with a general air of 'acceptance'--of taking someone or something in its "is-ness"--that is., his non-teleological methods, as expounded in The Log from the Sea of Cortez, which are "capable of great tenderness, of an all-embracingness which is rare otherwise." Make your observations and comment.
4. p. 18 ". . somebody that gives a damn about us."
- i. Context: Lennie and George camp by a pool. How do they come to be eating beans in the outdoors?
- ii. Character: Why does Lennie emphasise rabbits? Why is 'ketchup' a fuse for George's tirade?
- iii. Prose style: Dialogue is authentic, ungrammatical, colloquial and realistic. Quote some. Why must dialogue be realistic in a novel?
- iv. Theme: George narrating the dream yet again is important for Lennie. Obviously the reader seeks details of their dream and if it is a major theme, it must appear early in the novel.
- Comment on details in it which make it:
- - appealing to them both
- - unattainable by them (at least on present prospects).
- - suitable as a dream.
- v. Impact. Assess this scene for impact on the reader.
- Describe its tone and atmosphere.
- Identify elements of naivete, humour and pathos that appear here.
- Is the writing visual/ cinematic?
- Is this scene realistic/ probable?
- Give your evaluation of this charming scene.
G. Smith 10/5/99
Exercise on Loneliness in Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men Journal Writing Exercises
1. Describe Lennie and George's dream of owning a farm (18, 38, 53, 69, 72)
2. Plot how Steinbeck creates a drama in Carlson shooting the old dog (36-7, 42-47). Describe his craft in making cinematic tension out of the silence of waiting.
3. Summarise Candy's story (54-5). Outline a range of his feelings over the shooting of the dog. What was he so passive? Pick up his regret later in: "I ought to of shot that dog myself, George" (57). Is this another instance of Steinbeck's representation of the oppresssed in society?
4. Profile Crooks (36-7, 42-44, 47, 61-5). What's the tragedy of him being cruel to Lennie (65)? How is his plea against segregation (66) now rather hollow? What is his role in Steinbeck's tableau of the oppressed in society?
5. Give brief character sketches of:
6. What does it mean to be naive? How does Lennie show it?
- unaware of customs
- unaware of consequences when you should know
- not anticipating others' interpretations and misinterpretations
- foolish
- child-like trust
- simplicity where more thought is usual
OMAM Relationships
|
Characters |
Dynamics |
Feelings |
Outcome |
|
George and Lennie |
companionship |
protection |
killing of Lennie |
|
Candy & dog |
affection |
companionship |
death by Luger |
|
Slim & the men |
respect & authority |
control and order |
fairness |
|
Curley & his wife |
suspicion |
unstable new marriage |
strangled |
|
Carlson & Candy |
insensitive |
self interest /disinterest |
death and rejection |
|
Crooks & Lennie |
mental torture |
uncertainty/power |
cruelty |
|
Crooks & Curley's wife |
racism |
power and put down |
rejection |
1. Transform a bunkhouse conversation into Oz language.
2. Outline George's practical philosophy about sex for ranch workers (49). How does he view the situation of having Curley's wife around (48-9)?
3. "We're gonna have green corn . . ." (69) Candy shares the dream of a farm despite Crooks' cynicism. Outline the layers of irony in this scene, the three different viewpoints in the scene and your viewpoint on the scene.
4. Assess Curley's wife's cynicism and cruelty towards the "spindle stiffs" (71) and her "She's right" racism towards Crooks (73).
G. Smith 1998
Abstract of Ms. Atsuko Murao's Congress Paper on Of Mice and Men
Essay Topics
More
topics
1. What makes this novel distinctive? Why has it come to be a universal classic?
2. "Steinbeck's novels are pervaded with a general air of 'acceptance'-- (they) are "capable of great tenderness, of an all-embracingness which is rare otherwise." John Skelton. Give instances of its sense of immediacy and say how this is appealing in it.
3. Complete the revision sheet and provide a full evaluation.:
"This lesson defines seven different types of conflicts for the student to learn and use to identify excerpts of dialogue representing conflicts. Types of conflict include: man against self, against man, against society, against his environment against nature, against fate, and against the supernatural. Students explain instances of conflict involving George and Lennie."
See also GCSE Exam Topics and model answer
June Exam topics for Year 11 Classic Novel elective 1999
OR
With its very appealing elements of naivete, humour and pathos, Of Mice and Men is Steinbeck's tableau of the oppressed in post-Depression US society. It has strong imagery, decisive action, authentic dialogue and cinematic tension. Would you say this novel is a classic and successful? Why?
OR
OR
Earlier eras' classic literature celebrated heroes and legends, and last century novels mirrored the educated middle classes who read them. But now in our century Steinbeck in Of Mice and Men celebrates the honesty, courage and dreams of ordinary people, by drawing public attention to itinerant farm workers, and eminently empathises with Lennie, a mentally handicapped man. How successful do you think the novel is?
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Contact webmaster and page author. First written 5/12/98.Revised 23 February 2003.
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