In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses events surrounding Candy’s dog to foreshadow that George and Lennie have a close bond that ends tragically. One example of the scene with Candy’s dog that foreshadows the relationship George and Lennie have, is when Carlson explains what Candy does for the dog. Carlson states the many imperfections of the dog and tells Slim that, “‘Candy feeds him milk. He can’t chew nothing else’” (36). This is meaningful to the plot because it shows the close connection Candy has with his dog and also the close connection George has with Lennie. George is constantly watching over Lennie. The close relationship that Candy has with his dog that is deteriorated is foreshadowed to the end of the book. George made a promise to take care …show more content…
It is a lot of work for Candy to care for his dog and it also becomes too much effort for George to watch over Lennie. This creates meaning to the plot because it shows that caring for another person can be stressful. It soon becomes too much work for George to constantly be on the watch over Lennie. Just as Candy’s dog is killed, Lennie is killed later in the novel. Another example of the scene with Candy’s dog that foreshadows the relationship George and Lennie have, is when Candy explains that he does not see the imperfections in his dog. When Carlson talks about how the stench bothers him, Candy states, “‘I been around him so much I never notice how he stinks’” (44). Candy explains that he doesn’t realize the problems that his dog has. To Candy, taking care of the dog is not a problem. The others staying with Candy realize the many problems the dog has. This emphasizes the bond George and Lennie have because it shows that George doesn’t view Lennie's problems as major imperfections. It shows George is oblivious to the impacts of Lennie's actions. It creates meaning in the story by showing that killing Lennie was very tough on
Steinbeck describes Candy right after the men hear the shot that kills the dog. Candy's loneliness over the loss of his dog is short lived as he becomes part of George's and Lennie's plan to get their own farm. In fact, Candy makes the dream seem almost possible because he has saved $300 which he will contribute to the price of the property George can buy. The three men believe that one day they will up and leave the ranch and go live on their own "little piece of land." In the end, however, Candy is plunged back into despair and loneliness after he discovers Lennie has killed Curley's wife. The dream is shattered. He poignantly communicates his feelings over the loss at the end of chapter five: “You done it, di’n’t you? I s’pose you’re glad. Ever’body knowed you’d mess things up. You wasn’t no good. You ain’t no good now, you lousy tart.” He sniveled, and his voice shook. “I could of hoed in the garden and washed dishes for them guys.” He paused, and then went on in a singsong. And he repeated the old words: “If they was a circus or a baseball game .
In the book it reads “Got no teeth, damn near blind, can’t eat. Candy feeds him milk. He can’t chew nothing else” (Steinbeck 36). This evidence supports my argument because it shows Candy’s dog being in pain. Candy’s dog deserves to be put out of his misery because of his suffering. In the novel, Of Mice and Men, it reads “And at his heels there walked a drag footed sheep dog, gray of muzzle with pale, old eyes. The dog stuggled lamely to the side of the room and lay down, grunting softly to himself and licking his grizzled, moth eaten coat” (Steinbeck 24). This shows the dog has been in agony and is very old with his suffering self. This evidence supports my argument because Candy’s dog needs help getting around how Lennie needs help when he gets in trouble. By shooting Candy’s dog, Carlson offers mercy to his dog. Mercy killing can also happen in real life
Foreshadowing plays a large role in indicating that Lennie isn't going to last long in this harsh world. The beginning introduces this world in such a great way, raising your emotions with a happy tone in a wonderful peaceful scene and then sends that scene plummeting over a cliff into a dark unhappy environment. The strong characters in this environment attack the weak and the weak attack the weaker. An example of the strong against the weak is when Carlson compels Candy, "I'll put the old devil out of his misery right now," (p.47) to let him shoot his dog. An example of the weak attacking the weaker is when Crooks teases Lennie, "jus' s'pose he don't come back," (p.72) Lennie is the weakest because of his mental disability and his lack of thinking for himself. He would either run away or be eliminated through death. Candy and his dog mirror the image of George and Lennie. Candy being George and his dog being Lennie. When the dog dies, it foreshadows his death because the dog represented him.
In the novel, Of Mice and Men John Steinbeck used George and Lennie's relationship and the theme of hope to point out the loneliness in the novel. The novel starts off and is set in Soledad which means lonely. At the beginning they get a job working on a farm together. Lennie is a little retarded and has great physical strength that isn't too controllable. As they work from ranch to ranch, Lennie relies on George for guidance and help. Rather than wasting their earnings, they try to save it in the hope of buying a place of their own. While working at one ranch they meet a worker named Candy who tries to help them financially. Before their dream can be fulfilled, Lennie kills the wife of the boss's son. As the novel concludes George must kill Lennie for his own benefit. Later Lennie goes into town and abandons his dream by spending his money.
As the novel continues on we are introduced to another pair whose relationship is just as strong as George and Lennie’s, the two being Candy and his old pup. Candy and his pup have been together for years on end and have formed a indescribable love for one another. However, as the years have rolled past, age has caught up with the Candy’s best friend causing many to suggest euthanasia. Regretfully, Candy agreed, afterwards uttering, “I ought to of shot that dog myself George. I shouldn’t ought to let no stranger shoot my dog” (Steinbeck 61) Often with age, humans and animals alike become impaired and quite sentinel. In the case of Candy’s pup, his age had progressed to the point where life was too difficult and pain was more relevant than pleasure. It would only be fair for Candy to place his feet where paws lay and imagine if he could go out peacefully rather than through heavy slow breathing every day. Although Candy recognized this and allowed this procedure to be completed who showed he had the best intentions for his pup, he did not take manors into his own hands. Rather than stand shoot his pup out of love, he remained inside and allowed the dog to be killed without emotion, almost as though there was no meaning. Sadly, the past cannot redo itself so Candy is forever regretful of the loss of his canine friend, yet by
As Mark Twain once stated, “The more I know about people, the better I like my dog.” This sentiment is often echoed by general society; people seem to have lost faith in humanity. However, John Steinbeck illustrates his more optimistic opinion about “the perfectibility of man” by suggesting how man can improve. In his novel, Of Mice and Men, two tenants called George and Lennie go through many hardships all while chasing their dream of possessing their own farm. While they work at a farm, they meet an old swamper called Candy who offers to help them achieve their dream; he does so to ensure that he will have a future after he is fired for being too old. On page 60, Candy discusses the recent death of his dog and asks to join in on George and Lennie’s dream. Through this passage, Steinbeck proves that humans have an animalistic tendency of eliminating those who are weaker than them. This is depicted through the details connecting Candy to his dog as well as Candy’s diction when describing his potential future life. Steinbeck’s negative attitude towards man’s predatory nature implies that society needs to improve and prevent such oppressive behavior from occurring.
Soon after they arrive at the ranch, George and Lennie meet some new and delightful people that they will be living with, until they earn enough money to buy a place of their own. One of the new people that Lennie and George meet was Candy and his old dog. Candy was an old swamper, and was missing one hand, his dog was just like him, very old and in poor shape. The poor old dog was blind, deaf, had no teeth and everyone complained about it smelling horrible, “we can’t sleep with him stinkin’ around in here.'; (Steinbeck:47) All the farm ...
and says he will shoot him at the back of his head so he won't feel it
Candy and Lennie become two of the most similar characters in the book. Both of them are treated as if they aren’t as important on the ranch. Because of this, Candy finds comfort in spending time with George and Lennie. Like Lennie, Candy ends up finding friendship and purpose with George. As George and Candy’s characters evolve, so does the idea of symbolism in the
This is the piece of speech, when Candy is trying to persuade George to let him in on the ranch their going to get. The language Steinbeck uses here, makes Candy seem overly eager to get in with George and Lennie. Mainly because, he’s dog dies so now he doesn’t have anybody, and he feels he might get canned. So as soon as he hears the opportunity to break away from being lonely, he jumps at it. I feel extremely sorry for Candy because he has nobody to turn to. He really does try to find friendship in people, but sometimes tries to hard.
... means a lot to him. They believe that since it is old, weak, and useless, it should be killed. Candy also knows that he himself will be removed from the ranch after he becomes old and weak. This causes Candy to be very interested in the new farm he overhears George and Lennie talking about. Becoming weak is one of Candy’s biggest fears because he knows that it is inevitable, and it will mean that he will have nothing to provide for himself with. At the end of the book, Lennie is killed. Although Lennie is strong physically, he is not strong mentally. Because of Lennie’s mental weakness, he is unable to survive in society or on the ranch. He is constantly getting himself into trouble, such as the time he accidentally kills Curley’s wife. Lennie’s mental weakness ultimately leads to his death, much like the downfall of other weak links on the ranch and in society.
Towards the end of, Of Mice and Men George had to make a very significant decision of ending Lennie’s life. As a friend everyone has had to sacrifice something in order to make each other happy. And in this incident the only way to fulfill Lennie’s happiness was to exhume him from all of the worlds harm. And Lennie fulfilled George’s happiness by always being there for him, understanding his frustrations and complications of life. George and Lennie are the best of friends because they’ve gone through many difficulties and have stuck with each through
In John Steinbeck’s novella ‘Of Mice and Men’, George and Lennie, who are the main characters of this book. They are camping for the night by the Salinas River and on their way to work on a ranch. Before they go to sleep, Lennie gets George to talk about their plan to have a little ranch of their own someday. The next morning, they go to the ranch. They meet the Boss in the bunk house while the old swamper, Candy showing them around. In addition, they see angry Curley and his wife. They also meet the other bunkers, Carlson, Whit and Slim. Around evening, George talks to Slim regarding what Lennie has done in Weed which makes them have to run away. Candy let Carlson shoot his dog hesitantly. Curley gets into a fight with Lennie, and his hand is smashed by Lennie. In the barn, Curley’s wife tells Lennie about her dream. However, Lennie muffles Curley’s wife’s face and accidentally killed her. Lennie decides to hide in the brush like George tells him to. Curley was furious and wanted to shoot Lennie immediately. George finds Lennie in the brush and
When they were on the ranch and the boss asked Lennie several questions, George answers them to ensure that he doesn't say anything that will cost them their job. He also always recalls the land that they are aiming to purchase. That land demonstrates a whole new world in which they can live freely with one another. As the novel continues, the men’s dream to own that ranch becomes more determined, that they even draw in Candy to join in. Candy gets attached to the thinking of having freedom and choosing the work he does just like George. He still wanted to continue their dream of going to the ranch even after he found out what Lennie had done. After, Lennie kills Curley’s wife he hides in the brush exactly how George told him to. Lennie said,
George’s relationship with Lennie has made him selfless; his conversations, with and with out Lennie, are generally revolving around Lennie, although in the case of their dream-ranch George seems to find fulfilment for himself as well. Due to these altruistic tendencies that he shows throughout the novel, a danger is bestowed upon George; he tends to care for Lennie far too much, and too little for himself. In occasional moments, he escapes his sympathy and compassion for Lennie, and realises the burden that he causes. This usually results in George taking his frustration out on Lennie, which can often harm his simple mind, leaving Lennie upset and forced to confess to his own uselessness, and George feeling guilty for what he has caused. We can learn very little about George through his actual conversations, which made it necessary for Steinbeck to focus the novel on him in particular, and let the reader gain an closer insight on him through his actions. Generally, he seems to be caring, intelligent and sensible, but is greatly worn by the constant attention Lennie requires. This illustrates a major theme in Of Mice and Men, the dangers that arise when one becomes involved in a dedicated relationship.