Reality in George Milton's Life: Of Mice And Men

Balancing reality with expectations people have for their lives is a challenge everyone faces. We have expectations for ourselves, expectations for our careers, and the list continues. These hopes can drive us forward, but it’s also important to keep track of reality. This keeps us in check. In the novella Of Mice and Men, the idea John Steinbeck conveys through the worldview of George Milton is that expectations are needed to keep a man moving forward, but reality must never be forgotten. For George, reality is temporarily set subordinate when he is on the verge of achieving his dream with Lennie and Candy. But reality forces its way back in the very end.

George Milton starts out in the novella as a travelling mid-aged ranch worker in California

He has always had a dream to own a little place with a couple of acres; for him and Lennie to just have a peaceful life and “live offa the fatta the lan’” (Steinbeck 57). Requested yet again by Lennie, George is telling his usual story about the little place when Candy, an old ranch worker with a missing hand, overhears. George is conceptualizing his vision to Lennie, “We’d jus’ live there. We’d belong there. There wouldn’t be no more runnin’ around the country and getting’ fed by a Jap cook” (Steinbeck 57). Both George and Lennie are extremely surprised when Candy buts in to their conversation and shows a great interest in offering to help George and Lennie get there, by contributing whatever he can in terms of money and help. Candy tells George in order to persuade him, “S’pose I went with you guys. Tha’s three hunderd an’ fifty collars I’d put in. I ain’t much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How’d that be” (Steinbeck 59)? George thinks it through, and the reader can tell that he believes his dream suddenly became much closer within reach. Steinbeck adds a sentence to express the emotions of that moment, “They fell into a silence. This thing they had never really believed in was coming true” (Steinbeck

At this point in the novel, it is clear that Lennie is a weight on George’s shoulders. George brings up from time to time a life that he could have had, if it weren’t for having to take care of Lennie. In other words, George brings up expectations. Here is a rare moment in the book where George sees that his dream is coming so close to him. Usually, George’s point of view is often viewing his own life as “a life he never had the chance to live.” This is also demonstrated in the event above, where George adds the fact that getting their own little place would mean less trouble from Lennie, and less dashing around all over the place to find their next job. It is clear George didn’t see himself living a life of wandering; he never wanted to. However, everything about what his does, all his actions, revolve around Lennie. Lennie is his reality. Lennie is what brings him out of a