In the novella Of Mice and Men, there are symbolism used through animals to represent what happens to Lennie and what kind of sides he has. Candy’s dog displays the image of Lennie’s death because they both get shot in the head and have problems to the extent of having other characters trying to kill them. Throughout the novella, there are rabbits that keep showing up around Lennie. Lennie loves rabbits and likes to touch their fur. He will do anything to protect them because he sees the part of pureness he has in him through the rabbit. He will make sure no harm comes to them because he wants to keep that part of pure innocence that he has in him. When Lennie and George are talking about their dream, Lennie declares if cats come to bother …show more content…
The rabbit simulates the pureness in Lennie because when Lennie is running away from the murder scene of Curley’s wife, he sees this “gigantic rabbit”(pg 101) and when the rabbit makes eye contact, it starts talking to him and that makes a parallel version of the goodness in himself talking to him. However, he then realizes that he had caused the death of a very important person. Throughout the novella, whenever Lennie would bring up about rabbits in a conversation he always asks if he can tend the rabbits and that seems like as if he is trying to assure that virtuous part he has left in him, for an example “you jus’ let’ em try to get the rabbits. I’ll break their god damn necks…” (pg 58). They feature this pure innocence in Lennie because when George and Lennie are preparing for whenever there was a case of the same incidence in Weed, Lennie hides behinds the bush, when George said “But you ain’t gonna get in no trouble, because if you do, I won’t let you tend the rabbits”(pg 16) it seemed as if he is saying that if Lennie gets into the same trouble he did in Weed then, he will just lose the good in him and have nothing left to secure in him. The rabbits signify Lennie’s pureness because there are scenes that make it seem like he is protecting the rabbit, so that he could secure the angelic element he has in him, although the rabbits can present a …show more content…
The dog displays Lennie’s death and Candy’s dog shares the same death and have people wanting to kill them to get rid of the problems they are causing to others. The dog symbolizes his death by getting killed with the same weapon which is the Lugger. The rabbits shows the pureness in Lennie by Lennie wanting to protect that part in him and the rabbits representing as a shoulder angel after he killed Curley’s wife and ran away. The pureness are shown through the rabbits by Lennie making sure that he will kill any cats that harms the rabbits which means that he wants to secure the goodness he still has. The cats displays the bad and viciousness in Lennie by claiming to kill the cats for killing the rabbits he thinks he is going to have and both the cats and Lennie share the same animal that cats kill. The animals resembling the sides that Lennie has in him and his death is shown through Candy’s dog, the pure innocence in him through the rabbit, the bad and monstrous side in Lennie are shown through the cat in the conversation that he had with
Peter Lisca’s analysis on “Motif and Pattern in Of Mice and Men” clarifies that Steinbeck’s misunderstood usage of symbols, actions, and language convey motifs and patterns that connects the beginning of the book to the end. Lisca implies that the first and primary usage of symbolism was the area near the river where the story initiated and ended. He insinuates that the cave that Lennie mentioned twice and the river George ordered Lennie to visit when in danger symbolizes as “a safe place” and innocence while becoming “translated into terms possible in the real world” (Lisca 1). In addition, Lisca also advocates that the rabbits serve as symbols to dramatize Lennie’s devotion for his safe place, but also to “define the basis of what desire on a very low level” (Lisca 2).
why Lennie and George Travel together and is not very understanding. Although you never find
Lennie dreams of living on a wide open ranch with George where he tends to the fluffy little rabbits he loves so much. Nevertheless, Lennie sadly never reaches his ultimate goal as his flaw finally becomes his fatal flaw. Lennie kills Curley 's wife by shaking her so hard that her neck breaks. He does not kill her on purpose but Lennie does not know his own strength. He is only shaking her like that because he wants her to stop yelling. Curley 's wife observes that Lennie is "jus ' like a big baby" (Steinbeck 99) and invites him to stroke her soft hair. Lennie begins to feel her hair and likes it very much indeed, which leads him to pet it too hard. When she started to complain, he panicked and started to try to silence her. He was afraid that George would not let him be part of the dream anymore if Curley 's wife got mad at what he did. So he 's shaking her to try to protect his part in the dream but he kills her and the dream too. Lennie observes that he has "done a bad thing" (Steinbeck 100) and covers her body with hay. Lennie is hiding in the brush where George had told him to hide when he got into trouble. George finally emerges to get Lennie while he is an emotional mess. He then tells Lennie to take off his hat as he continues to recount "how it will be" (Steinbeck 104) for them. He orders Lennie to kneel and pulls out Carlson 's Luger. As the voices of the other men in the search party near their location, George tells Lennie one more time "about the rabbits,"(Steinbeck 106) tells Lennie that they 're going to get the farm right away, and shoots his companion in the back of the
In the novel, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck chooses to use many different and unique symbols in order to help develop characters and to foreshadow upcoming events. The symbols used in this story give it a more effective message and provide a better understanding to what Steinbeck has intended to convey. He uses many different forms of symbolism, some which are objects while some are actual human relationships, in order to make the story more realistic and to give it a more insightful approach.
Imagery is shown through two hallucinations that Lennie has before the end of the book. He has just escaped the ranch because of the accidentally killing of Curley's wife. Lennie also realizes that George will not let him tend rabbits on a farm, which was the desire that he wanted the most. After all George said, "But you ain't gonna get in no trouble, because if you do, I won't let you tend the rabbits" (65). Constantly throughout the book, Lennie pesters George about taking care of rabbits on a farm of their own; tending rabbits was Lennie's dream. As he hides near the river where he and George stayed the night before going to the ranch, Lennie begins seeing his Aunt Clara. But Aunt Clara was speaking in Lennie's voice. She begins to blame
When you’re first introduced to a character you can depict their role within the story, but sometimes they can portray a much larger meaning. Many characters in numerous stories can be considered allegories due to author trying to show a bigger picture. Such as the story Of Mice and Men. This John Steinbeck novella can be viewed as an allegory due to the characters being able to embody certain groups in society. Three characters that symbolize a particular group are Curley’s wife, George, and Lennie.
George and Lennie need each other to achieve their dream of their own farm with rabbits to tend. Lennie could not take care of his rabbits or even survive without George.
Reading means to understand the information on paper and be able to understand its true meaning. Reading for explicit meaning is to look at the text and be able to know and understand the accurate definition. Reading for implicit meaning is to be able to find the implied or suggested, but not clearly stated meaning. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, an implicit reading of the text requires the understanding of suggested value. In this paper, I will examine implicit meanings in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men (Penguin Group 1993), paying particular attention to the implicit meanings derived from symbolism, paradox, and theme.
Lennie’s love for animals and for soft things extended toward even those things that are dead. He always ended up killing the things that he loves. And Lennie
Lennie Short, who is one of the main characters in the novella Of Mice and Men, has defining characteristics that exposes the true meaning of the book. The complexity of the Lennie’s nature is so thought provoking that the story, Of Mice and Men, is often considered one the greatest short works of fiction of all time. Predominantly, Lennie is a kindhearted, simple-minded soul who unfortunately is mentally disabled. Lennie also has a very distinctive external feature, his size. Being a massive individual, Lennie is magnificently strong and never intentionally causes harm to other beings. In contrast to his size Lennie has a love for all things soft mice, puppies, Curley’s wife and most of all rabbits. It is for this reason that readers find the book remarkable. In a secluded setting at the beginning of the story, Lennie tells George “But I wouldn't eat none, George. I'd leave it all for you. You could cover your beans with it and I wouldn't touch none of it.” (page) This quote expresses the author, Johns Steinbeck’s point of view of Lennie, by starting the book off showing multiple acts of benevolence towards Lennie’s partner George. Even though Lennie is a beast of a human, and is capable of severe destruction, he is an empathe...
Lennie is unintelligent all throughout the story. “‘Uh-uh. Jus’ a dead mouse, George. I didn’t kill it. Honest! I found it. I found it dead.’” This quote shows that Lennie doesn’t understand that keeping a dead mouse as a pet is not sanitary and not the right thing to do. Another time, George was exclaiming to Slim that he once told Lennie to jump into the Sacramento River and there Lennie went, right into the river. This trait of Lennie’s effects the story because it got him and George kicked out of Weed when he wanted to feel a girl’s dress. It also got him into trouble when they got to their new job. His unintelligence gets him into more trouble as the story goes on making him anything but a sympathetic character.
The central element of this novella is its symbolism. This novella has plenty of symbolical forms, such as people, creed, and some of the animals. Candy has several terms of symbolism, for example his disability is a symbol of the migrant workers who are just literally forgotten about, they are forgotten when they are no use to the owners. Candy’s dog is a symbol of a life only for advantage to others Lennie also for shadows this, he is belittled of his mind but enormously commented for his strength. Also he is compelled to lie about the fight he had with Curley, this is a symbol of typical male society in the, “Depression era”.
Since the beginning of the book, Steinbeck characterizes Lennie as a man who sees the world through the perspective of a child, as if it is a dream. Lennie is a big guy, but he acts like a baby. In the beginning of the story, after George threw the dead mouse Lennie was petting, Lennie was “…‘Blubberin’ like a baby!” (9). This juvenile action demonstrates Lennie’s immaturity and childish
Lennie apologized to George for killing the mice; he told him that the reason for killing the mice was because “they bit my[Lennie’s] fingers” but he only “pinched their heads a little”(Steinbeck 10). Lennie’s guilt drives him to apologize about the mice but he appears to underestimate his own strength because he claimed that he vaguely pinched their heads, but Lennie being a vast man, that couldn't have been the case. He didn't know the consequences of pinching the mice even after he had done it so many times. This shows the lack of perception he holds, meaning he can't become cognizant of the things happening around him on his own, causing the reader to initiate sympathy for Lennie. Lennie’s immaturity is so big it can be misunderstood for cleverness. George sharply asks Lennie to give him the object from his pocket but he claims “ I ain't got nothin’”but later on admits he has a dead mouse but [George] insists to “ have it”,but George insisted to have the mouse then he “slowly obeyed”(Steinbeck 5-6). It appears as if Lennie was being clever but by handing the mice to George, his childish behavior is revealed. His ingenuous acts portray identically to a child influencing the reader to gain sensitivity to the way Lennie is treated. The way Lennie understands the world and process thoughts makes him mentally stable, for a child. Not only is he innocent but he is also ironically characterized.
Lennie's Passion for Soft Objects in Of Mice and Men Works Cited Missing Definition of the word trace: follow, hint, and mark out. In this essay I will trace in detail soft things that Lennie pets in the novel, showing that the petting grows more serious as the novel goes on. In the novel Lennie pets mice, he dreams about petting rabbits, destroys someone's dress in Weed, hurts Curly's hand, kills a pup, and kills Curley's wife. Bad things come in threes, Lennie's two accidental killings of animals foreshadow the final killing of