Year 11 Comparative Essay ‘Of Mice and Men’ and ‘The Green Mile’ Kymberley Boyko The characters within the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’, written by John Steinbeck, and the film ‘The Green Mile’, directed by Frank Darabont, share a similar fate of loneliness throughout their journeys of life. A number of characters are connected by the harsh sentiments of isolation. Due to the fear of being alone, both Candy and Del seek friendships within beloved animal pets. There is also a comparable destiny involved in George and Paul’s outcome from the tragedies that involved losing their companions. As well as the fortune of the cruel characters Curley and Percy face punishments for their actions. These obvious similarities connect the different characters …show more content…
It was not until the terrible events occurred to which they both lost their companions. George’s fate consisted of his mentally challenged best friend, repeating mistakes resulting in George suffering dramatically. Lennie’s actions lead to his death, which surprisingly was completed by George. Although it was extremely hard for George to lose his friend, he committed this crime purely out of his love for Lennie as he would have been tortured for his actions which he did not deserve. Paul, the death-row supervisor at Cold Mountain Penitentiary, was a caring man who takes excellent care of the men on his block, avoiding conflict and keeping the peace whenever possible. He is the first character to discover John Coffey's amazing abilities, when the prisoner cures his urinary tract infection. From this, instantly a bond between the men arose. They became friends, sharing intense but unusual moments together. Paul knew his fate consisted of losing John through execution would occur. But little did he know that John would transfer his supernatural powers within him. This resulted in Paul living an un-deathly life. Paul was not effected from this change until everyone he loved slowly died, leaving him to grow old alone. Therefore due to George and Paul losing their special link, they were destined to grieve alone for the rest of their …show more content…
Although throughout the story, their fate was delayed as they both were related to people in charge of their work places. Curley tries to prove his masculinity by picking fights. Another way he proves himself is marrying a physically attractive woman to which he treats as a possession. In the event that Lennie kills his wife, he sees the opportunity to take revenge. From this Curley lost his only relationship and suffered from loneliness for many years to come. Percy is the main antagonist of the story, a young and sadistic guard who is disliked by his fellow work companions. The main inhuman act Percy committed was when he deliberately avoids soaking a sponge in brine that is supposed to be tucked inside the electrode cap to ensure a quick death in the electric chair. When the switch is thrown, the current causes Del to catch fire in the chair and suffer a prolonged, agonizing demise. At the end of the story he is sent to the Briar Ridge mental institution, originally considered for a job but now as a patient, after Coffey transferred Melinda's disease to him which caused him to kill Wild Bill. These characters share a similar fate of loneliness as they both obligate hurtful events to which they are punished
The authors John Steinbeck and Robert Burns approach their ideas in very different ways, while having the same themes the reader comprehends key concepts in a different light. Throughout the short story “Of Mice and Men” and the poem “To a Mouse” the theme of hope is a key concept, even though while in both stories their hope did not bring them their happiness, friendship brought them together. Correspondingly while having similar themes of friendship, loneliness, and hope, this all takes place in different settings with different characters.
While the novel Of mice and men and the film What’s eating Gilbert Grape have different plots and settings, the themes of the two stories are very comparable. The stories depict how taking care of people with disabilities is very challenging and the problems they encounter in their day to day activities. Gilbert (What’s eating Gilbert Grape) has the task of taking care of Arnie his brother and George (Of mice and men) takes care of his childhood friend Lennie. Both of this characters Arnie and Lennie have mental disabilities and rely on their caregivers in life. The responsibility of taking care of Arnie and Lennie is frustrating but George and Gilbert still love them. This paper aims to compare and contrast the novel Of Mice
The novel, set in the 1930s, is a story of friendship of migrant workers George
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is a novel about loneliness and the American Dream. This book takes place during the Great Depression. It was very difficult for people to survive during this time period. A lot of people hardly survived let alone had the necessities they needed to keep relationships healthy. Of Mice of Men has a common theme of disappointment. All the characters struggle with their unaccomplished dreams. The migrant workers, stable buck, swamper, and the other men on the ranch had an unsettled disappointment of where they were at in their lives. George and Lennie, two newcomers to the ranch, aren’t like the other guys. They have each other and they are the not loneliest people in the world. Lennie has a dream though he wants to own a farm with plenty of crops and animals one day. The only problem is his blind curiosity of people and things around him. George wasn’t justified for killing Lennie because Lennie was innocent and never got the chance to find out what he did wrong.
There was a heavy rain outside, but other than that, the room was silent. George stared at the bunk where Lennie slept, unable to sleep. He was filled with hatred of the world that forced him to kill his own friend. As the night dragged on his hatred shifted to Curley’s wife, then Curley. “If Curley hadn’t let his tramp wife go around and cause trouble Lennie would still be here” George thought. Just then, Lennie appeared in front of him with a look of deep sadness and pain. Seeing Lennie’s pain and suffering, sent him over the edge. “That god damn Curley!” George thought, grabbing Carlson’s gun while he slept. “This is all his fault!” he thought, consumed by rage. He shuffled over to where Curley slept and pulled out the gun. George aimed the gun at Curley and pulled the trigger. An instant later he is horrified by what he has done. A couple seconds pass and Slim comes into the
Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, portrays the hard–done-by life of two California labours, who form an unlikely bond and cling together in the face of alienation. The Novel exhibits the idea of the thirst for companionship when cast into the abyss of loneliness, while unveiling the horrors and strife that the labours of the south endured during the 1930’s. Throughout the plot, one of the protagonist, George, continuously carries through with several decisions that define him as a character and subsequently, as a human being. For example, at the beginning of the story, Geo...
Of Mice and Men is novel that was written by John Steinbeck that describes the journey of George, and his mentally disabled friend, Lennie, as they travel and work together on a ranch in California. The story of Of Mice and Men accounts for the experience of George and Lennie as they encounter different people on the ranch who live in solitude, such as Crooks the negro stable buck, and the wife of the boss’s son, Curley. Crooks the stable buck is always alone because he is black, and during the time period of which the novel takes place, people with colored skin were discriminated and excluded from white social activities. Curley’s wife is alone most of the time because most of the men on ranch stay away
John Steinbeck 's book Of Mice and Men is a piece of literature that everyone is familiar with in one form or another. There have been countless stage productions of the book and three film adaptations. The most recent film version was in 1992, and it starred Gary Sinise and John Malkovich. While the film version remains mainly true to the original book, there are a few differences that are noticeable. While many think that a film can actually enhance a story by adding a visual to the text, it often times falls short. In dealing with the loneliness of the characters of the story, the book does a much better job of conveying not only their loneliness, but also the despair and desperation that each character feels when confronted with loneliness.
Throughout the novel, Of Mice and Men (by John Steinbeck), loneliness is the major underlying theme of the novel. You could almost say that the book has hormonal' up's and down's. Most of the characters are very lonely because they have no family. However, George and Lennie are the contradiction to this. George and Lennie's bond towards each other are so- strong that you can almost see it as you are reading the book. Candy the old crippled man wants to be part of George and Lennie's dream to own a farm and "live off the fatta the land". Curley and his dog are like the metaphor in the book for George and Lennie. Candy has to take care of his dog and George of Lennie. The other two characters in the novel that are apart of the overall theme of loneliness are crooks the crippled stable buck and Curley's wife the flirtatious city girl. Crook's fits in to the loneliness theme because he is black. During this time in history, there was very little racial empathy. So being black means that he is isolated from everyone else at the ranch. Speaking of isolation, curley's wife feels very isolated because her husband, Curley, doesn't trust her at all, however, because Curley is so strict and concerned about her flirting with other guys it almost fuels her desire to cause trouble.
In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck brings out the themes of Lonliness and companionship, and strengths and weaknesses through the actions, and quotations of the characters. Irony and foreshadowing play a large roll on how the story ends. Lennie and his habit of killing things not on purpose, but he is a victim of his own strength. George trying to pretend that his feelings for Lennie mean nothing. The entire novel is repetitive in themes and expressed views.
I have been analysing the novella ‘Of Mice and men’ by John Steinbeck, which was published in 1937. Steinbeck wrote the novel based on his own experiences as a bindle stiff in the 1920’s, around the same time when the great Wall Street crash happened, causing an immense depression in America. Throughout the novel he uses a recurring theme of loneliness in his writing, which may have reflected his own experiences at this time. This is evident in his writing by the way he describes the characters, setting and language in the novel.
...et across to us. This novel emphasizes how perilously people long for a companion. John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, states the true meaning of friendship, the reality of the American Dream seen in the vision of the characters, and the awfulness of human nature. There are many differences between Crooks, Candy, and Curley’s wife, however all of these characters are linked together by their lust for a better life; a life where they can fulfill their dreams. These characters' hardship comes from the amount of hatred they have for solitude and idealized friendships. It's their hatred of loneliness that pushes them to confess their problems to other people about their difficulties. Even though Crooks, Candy, and Curley's wife may not find pure satisfaction, those occasions of finally conversing about their feelings, comfort their misery and give them a feeling of unity.
Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, is a book that can be analyzed and broken down into a vast majority of themes. One of the predominant themes found in this book is loneliness. Many characters in this book are affected by loneliness and they all demonstrate it in one way or another throughout the book. Examples of these characters are Curley’s Wife, Crooks, and Candy.
The classic novel, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck was made into a Hollywood Blockbuster in 1992. Directed and acted by Gary Sinise and John Malkovich, Hollywood took a stab at trying to recreate this literary success. The novel, which takes place in the 1930’s, follows the lives of two men, George and Lennie, as they try to attain their dream of owning a farm. George is a smart man who always seems to have things figured out. Lennie is massive, but has the mind of a young child. George looks after him, but it is not easy since Lennie always seems to get himself in some kind of trouble. As they struggle towards their dreams, George and Lennie face obstacles that test their friendship. In the end, with Lennie dead, George finds out that dreams aren’t worth striving for, and eventually, loneliness overcomes everything. The movie, running almost two hours, stays very true to the book, although some things are removed or added. While the movie differs from the book in a few ways, it still gives its audience the same message.
One of the main themes in “The Green Mile” is death. It encapsulates the whole novel, leaving the reader to think deeply about their fate. It’s an obvious theme, considering the story takes place on death row. However, further analysis reveals a deeper meaning than men dying in the electric chair for their crimes. “And I think about all of us. Walking our own green mile; each in our own time.”(Pg 434) Paul said. The reader will discover that the Green Mile itself is a metaphor for death. Paul compared life at the Green Mile to life for a free citizen, because both lifestyles will end in the same way. Death is inevitable. For the prisoners, they have a set number of days until their execution, so their “Green Mile” is relatively short. A free citizen is uncertain about the time of their death, some people never even think about it, like they’re going to live forever. But when the day of reckoning comes, both prisoner and free citizen face the same fate. Life is uncertain -anything can happen in life - but death however, is not. One must live a righteous life, so one can die a righteous death. Nobody wants to have the same fate as a prisoner at E-Block, and live the life of regret, misery, and despair.