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Great depression immigrant workers
Mice and men research
Mice and men research
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John Steinbeck’s best selling novella Of Mice and Men, published in the year of 1937, revealed the tatical survival methods of two young men during the Great Depression, who wanted to saved every penny for their best laid plans. Mr. Steinbeck, a Californian himself, experienced the terror of going from riches to rags in his lifetime, not only those memoirs gathered admiralty, but the brilliance of manipulation of fusing literature with the harsh conditions of society, foregoing it with his own life. Unlike most authors instead of sitting through college, Mr. Steinbeck spent most of time in the fields after dropping out of college; with his career as a writer and manual laborer, it could be easily alluded that he received the inspiration from this as well as the economic reason. This story took off in the Great Depression in the Wild Wild West of …show more content…
In California, the bright flashes of signs of farms made it a haven for the migrant workers. George and Lennie were migrant workers who constantly looked for jobs, however, they were different than the average migrant worker because they had each other. These migrant workers worked constantly in fields under the severe radiation of heat from the sun causing detrimental effects coupled with the lack of hygiene in the ranches. Their life revolved around depression and bitterness resting on their physical abilities to make a living. The lost of the American Dream due to the restlessness of working laboriously and the lost of hope all contributed to the depression for the migrant workers. In Of Mice and Men, Crooks and Candy, both perked up the to thoughts of the Dream, however, it was diminished by a higher up social class member, Curley’s wife. Therefore the contribution of the unfair treatment by the owners of the land who bullied the men into losing the hope of achieving the American
John Steinbeck, an American novelist, is well-known for his familiar themes of depression and loneliness. He uses these themes throughout a majority of his novels. These themes come from his childhood and growing up during the stock market crash. A reader can see his depiction of his childhood era. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck shows the prominent themes of loneliness, the need for relationships, and the loss of dreams in the 1930s through the novels’ character.
John Steinbeck explores human experience in the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ in friendship, loneliness and marginalisation. He does this through the characters as explained thought the paragraphs below.
In the exposition of the book, George and Lennie are sitting on a river bed a few miles south of Soledad beside the Salinas River. Lennie is a large, lumbering, childlike man with a mild mental disability. Because of this he relies on George for guidance and protection. Lennie is gentle and kind, but nevertheless, he does not understand his own strength and his love of petting soft things, such as small animals, dresses, and people’s hair, later leads to disaster. George was a small and wiry man who travels with and cares for Lennie. George’s behavior is motivated by the desire to protect Lennie with the hopes of delivering them both to the farm of their dreams someday. The author, John Steinbeck describes how the river was warm and on one side of the river, the “golden foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains.” On the other side of the river, there are trees that line the riverbed. Steinbeck describes how the trees were “willows fresh and green” during the spring time and “sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arch over the pool.” In the first chapter of the book, he describes how peaceful the place is that Lennie and George end up staying for a night. In the beginning of the book, Lennie asks George to talk to him about the dream that
"In other periods of depression, it has always been possible to see some things which were solid and upon which you could base hope, but as I look about, I now see nothing to give ground to hope—nothing of man.” (Calvin Coolidge) The Great Depression was a period with high inflation and unemployment, where millions of families lost their savings and their livelihoods. During this time many men moved out west to become ranch hands, one of the few jobs available. Many of these ranch hands were fueled by a false dream, to one day own a piece of land, and start a family. Of Mice and Men is a story set in this historical era and tells the story of two unlikely companions, George and Lennie, who work from job to job to survive only to meet an unfortunate end. Using Symbolism as represented in nature, material objects, and character traits, Steinbeck explores the theme that despite the best efforts of man, sometimes the cruelty and overwhelming power of fate is too strong.
When asked about John Steinbeck’s career, people often refer to Steinbeck as a playwright, journalist, and a well-known novelist. The book Of Mice and Men is a popular novel by John Steinbeck and a required read for most high school students. Most of Steinbeck 's novels have a central theme focusing on the relationship between man and his environment. The American dream for George and Lennie, two of the main characters in Of Mice and Men, is to have a place of their own, to be respected, and to work hard for everything they earn and deserve. In Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, the land and a hope of a better life becomes the talisman of an American dream for Lennie and George that is left unfulfilled.
In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck walks us through the journey of best friends named George and Lennie, who work on a ranch during the Great Depression in California’s Salinas Valley to achieve their goals. Throughout the book, Steinbeck suggest that social hierarchy and classification can lead toward a treatment to lower class workers, different genders and race, and the mentally disabled, when compared to white men workers.
During the presidential reign of Hebert Hoover in the early 1930's, America was hit with a severe economic slowdown which was notoriously known as The Great Depression. During this time of crisis, an estimated sixteen million people were left unemployed and many others were left homeless. Even though it was expected that many industries in the United States would be significantly affected as a result of the crash, it was Agriculture that was destroyed. Many landowners were desperate to employ workers on their farm, whilst workers were anxious themselves to find a job to support their family. In this story, two displaced Anglo migrant ranch workers, George Milton and Lennie Small, travel around America in search for a job. We soon realise their goal to pursue the American Dream, a dream that has equal chance of becoming a reality or a mere fantasy. Steinbeck?s novel shows a concern for these two friends as tension is raised over whether they will reach the Promised Land they cherish so much. Much of this concern can be attributed to the contrasting characters that both George and Lennie possess ?Although George is seen as an intelligent caring individual, his companion Lennie, although physically strong, is a psychologically limited man who has a good chance of inadvertently spoiling their hopes and ambitions, primarily due to his mental incapacity.
In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck reflects the conception of the fleeting American dream in the characters of George, Lennie, and Crooks. Steinbeck depicts the harsh reality that migrant workers, most likely, would not achieve their dream through George and Lennie’s failure to gain
Born 1902 in California, John Steinbeck grew up in a hard time for America. The Great Depression hit in 1929, leaving thousands of American people jobless, homeless, and poor. Along with this, the Dust Bowl occurred in 1931, which also killed and starved thousands. During this time period, many people did not have a home, and moved from farm to farm in order to feed themselves. John Steinbeck was one of the hundreds of thousands of migrant farm workers during this time. All of Steinbeck’s books are based off of American history, and migrant farm workers in the eyes of the people. In his novel, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses the characters Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife to contribute to the overall theme of loneliness.
John Steinbeck was inspired by the line "The best schemes o' mice an' men [often go awry]" by Robert Burns in one of his poems. This line refers to ambitions that went off track during the process. There are multiple examples in the novel that refers to the line in the poem, that inspired John Steinbeck. Those examples are Curley's boxing career coming to an end, Curley's wife not becoming a actress, and Lennie's plans of tending the rabbits, but messed everything up.
Reith, Duncan. “Futile dreams and stagnation: politics in Of Mice and Men: the American novelist John Steinbeck has sometimes been criticized as a sentimentalist. Duncan Reith uncovers the bleak political pessimism behind his novel of ranch life during the Great Depression, Of Mice and Men.” The English Review Nov, 2004: 6+. Literature Resource Center: Web. 29 Nov. 2010.
Conflict, by definition, is a back and forth struggle between two opposing forces. In the literary work, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, it is clear, the protagonist, George Milton, undergoes many conflicts that lead to the novel’s overall purpose. Steinbeck weaves together George’s conflicts with others, himself, and with society to illustrate what the true meaning of friendship is.
Of Mice and Men is a novel written by John Steinbeck. It is set in California during the great depression. The story follows two ranch hands who travel together and are very poor. Throughout the novel we witness many different philosophical references. Many different types of characters from this novel are reused in today’s society. Steinbeck also writes eloquently about the many different emotions, aspirations, and dreams of man.
John Steinbeck, the author of the novel Of Mice and Men uses many stylistic devices and description in chapter one to give the reader a deeper understanding of what may occur throughout the novel. Firstly, the name of the city the two protagonists, Lennie and George, are heading to is called “Soledad,” which means loneliness in Spanish; this is symbolism and foreshadowing because it can mean that as they get closer to the city, their relationship as friends may deteriorate and they may end up alone towards the end. Furthermore, this could also mean that there can be major problems in further chapters because of Lennie’s unpredictable behaviour due to his mental disabilities. In relation to Robert Burns’s poem, “To a Mouse,” the author may be
There is only one way an author can get their readers to cry, laugh, and love or just enjoy their master pieces. That one way is through the uses of literary devices such as similes, metaphors and personification. These are the small things that brings the author`s thoughts and ideas alive. The author`s ability to use literary devices through the book helps in direct characterization and lets readers get a better understanding of Lennie and George, the two main characters Of Mice and Men. It also helps in keeping readers thinking on their feet and constantly questioning George and Lennie`s next move while in Salinas, California. John Steinbeck, in his novel Of Mice and Men, makes use of similes and foreshadowing to keep readers in touch with the characters and at the edge of their seats throughout the story.