Of Mice and Men Exposes the Lives of Migrant Workers in 1930s America

Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, is a story about two migrant

workers, George Milton and Lennie Small. They travel around with each

other, during the Depression, looking for work. In the first chapter,

George and Lennie are portrayed like tramps, who wander the streets

looking for a place to live and work. They get both of these as the

agency 'Murray and Ready's' find them work at 'Buck Barley'. George is

very dependant on Lennie throughout the book, as George is mentally

immature. They both, however, rely on each other for companionship, as

they travel around together, and they need someone to talk to in the

ranch. Lennie does say, though, in section one, how he could've had a

girlfriend, and go into town to spend his wages every month.

The story is set on a ranch, where the two men eventually find work at

'Buck Barley'. Many people, during the Depression, migrated to states

like California in search of work on farms and ranches. This is what

George and Lennie did, but we later find out exactly why they come to

California. Migrant workers are people who travel the country looking

for work on farms or ranches.

During the Depression, black people were not treated fairly at all,

and left southern states, hoping to find work in the big cities of the

north, such as Chicago and New York. This is shown, in the book, by

Crooks, who everyone treats differently and no one really talks to

unless they have to.

In the 1930s there was a lot of unemployment, and in 1932 one out of

four Americans wanting work couldn't find any. There was a lot of

poverty, and family life was threatened, as not much money was coming

in. There wa...

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... they will eventually get their

land. We can't tell this when they say, "We got a future".

Steinbeck uses simple language and double negatives to describe life

on the ranch, "I ain't got no people".

He also uses slang to show how the American accent would actually say

it if spoken. This makes is easier to read. "A guy on ranch don't

never listen nor he don't ast no questions".

Steinbeck describes the men on the ranch to be very lonely, most of

the time, and we see this with the types of games they play. The men

also look out for each other. George describes Lennie as "a hell of a

good worker" to the boss, as he doesn't want Lennie to ruin their

chance of getting a job. By using the slang and expletives, Steinbeck

portrays the men to be simple American guys, who just want to get on

with earning a healthy living.