47 pages • 1 hour read
John SteinbeckOf Mice and Men
Fiction | Novella | Adult | Published in 1937A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
The Fragility of Dreams
Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, this novella demonstrates the fragility of dreams and the ease and speed with which dreams can be lost. George and Lennie dream of owning their own farm, and this dream keeps George motivated in the face of hardship. George understands the importance of dreams and their connection to hope. As Lennie’s caretaker, he dreams of a life for Lennie and himself where they can have agency over their own days and their futures, and when Lennie is in a particularly needy place, George relies on stories and descriptions of their dream to soothe him.
The dream farm also impacts other characters in the novella, Candy and Crooks in particular. Candy is old, and he feels his usefulness on the ranch is diminishing, so the dream farm that he can help purchase gives him a sense of peace in the thought that his last years on earth might actually be pleasant. As well, Crooks enjoys a brief hopeful moment, offering Candy his services for free, just as long as he can partake in the upkeep of the farm and live comfortably and as an equal among men who don’t disrespect him for being Black.
Curley’s wife also dreams of the life she could have had as an actress. Twice in her life she was told she could become a star in the pictures, and in her unhappy condition living with her mother, she put significant weight into those dreams no matter how unlikely they were to come true. Only when she realized that her dreams of becoming an actress were futile did she commit a desperate act to escape her mother. She married an unkind man like Curley as a distraction from the fact that her dreams were no longer a possibility.
Of these dreamers, Steinbeck suggests that there is only hope for George Milton, a non-disabled white man. Lennie’s death frees George from his moral obligation and permits him to live a more stable, albeit possibly lonely, life. The other characters—Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife—will not achieve their dreams due to their age, race, and gender, respectively. Steinbeck’s social commentary on Depression-era injustice sympathizes with the ordinary working-class man and aims to highlight social inequality.
Depression-Era Loneliness and Isolation
Due to the Great Depression, the characters in the novella experience one kind of isolation or another due to the difficult conditions in which they live and the choices they all feel forced to make. Steinbeck’s depiction of life during the Depression in drought-stricken California is grim and lonely.
Candy is alone in his old age, especially without his dog to accompany him after Carlson’s insistence that the dog be put down. Only the dream of the farm with George and Lennie brings Candy some relief, and even that evaporates with the death of Curley’s wife. Maimed and elderly, Candy can clean the bunkhouse to uphold some sense of responsibility on the ranch, but as more able-bodied men arrive in search of work, the boss may need to think practically about Candy’s position and replace him. The inevitable reality of Candy’s future is one of displacement and loneliness.
Crooks is isolated due to his race, but his isolation is most vividly depicted by the narrator’s descriptions of his room in the barn and the emotions he feels when Lennie and Candy visit him. Even though Crooks may be envied for his privacy, such living conditions are only a gift when they are chosen, not enforced by racial discrimination. Crooks describes himself as “ain’t wanted” by the other men due to his skin color, and he self-isolates. However, his sense of rejection is grounded in the looming reality of racial violence. Without a thought, Curley’s wife threatens to have Crooks lynched; afterward, Crooks submits to his station in life and withdraws further.
Even the behaviors of Curley’s wife, though unsympathetic in their rendering, can be explained by her isolation on the ranch as the only woman living with no friends or family; she flirts and makes eyes at the men inappropriately, but her gestures are desperate and sad. Curley is unlikely to be a loving husband, so when she invites Lennie to stroke her hair, she displays her loneliness and a craving to be touched tenderly more so than vanity. The emotional neglect of Curley’s wife—whether real or perceived—leads to her death.
By the end of the novella, George too is alone, and the story ends abruptly, giving the reader the choice to think optimistically or pessimistically on George’s behalf. On one hand, Lennie’s death frees George to work and to earn money without fear of being run out of town due to one of Lennie’s misadventures. He may even be able to meet a woman and settle down with her once he has earned enough money. On the other hand, without Lennie, George is like any other traveling worker, and he could easily become embittered and heartless like the other men he encounters regularly.
Related Titles
By John Steinbeck
