George states, “Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don’t belong no place. They come to a ranch an’ work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they’re poundin’ their tail on some oth... ... middle of paper ... ...rrows than joys in life. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men validates this saying by following the lives of two migrant workers, Lennie and George, who toil on ranches for a living.
There are several clearly identified themes running through the novel, one of the main being loneliness. Steinbeck raises questions in the mind of the reader that the novel would be based on loneliness immediately from the beginning of the novel. The first line read ‘A few miles south of Soledad’. This is a clever idea by Steinbeck as ‘Soledad’ means loneliness in Spanish. The title ‘Of Mice and Men’ may be seen as a warning for the whole novel as it came from Robert Burn’s poem ‘To a mouse’ which translates as “No matter how well we plan for the future, things often go wrong”.
The setting of the novel is destined for loneliness. Soledad is short for the town's full name, 'Nuestra Senora de Soledad' which means 'Our Lady of Loneliness'. This is the town that is closest to the ranch, a place that is already full of lonely, solitary people. "Guys like us, that live on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world." George means that if not for each other, then he and Lennie would be all alone, with no friends, like all the men like them, working from ranch to ranch without making any friends, and living a lonely life.
As the novel concludes George must kill Lennie for his own benefit. Later Lennie goes into town and abandons his dream by spending his money. The main cause of George and Lennie's lonesomeness and that of all the people at the ranch was a lack of a home. The only thing that kept the two men going was their friendship with each other and the hope to soon get a place of their own. In the novel George and Lennie mention what their dream place is going to be like: "Someday we're gonna get the jack together and we're gonna have a little house, and a couple of acres and a cow and some pigs and ---" (Steinbeck 16).
Of Mice and Men - Critical Evaluation ‘Of Mice and Men’ is a book, which deals with the issues of loneliness, dreams and friendship, the author of this book, is John Steinbeck and it was first published in 1937. The story this book tells is of two friends who travel together looking for work during the recession in America in the 1930’s. The men are George and Lennie. George has to look after Lennie because he is a bit dumb and gets into trouble a lot. They both have a dream of owning their own farm one day.
John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice And Men vividly depicts the life of migrant workers living in rustic America. It narrates a tragic story of two peripatetic men, George Milton and Lennie Small, who don’t belong anywhere but with each other. As migrant workers that are haunted by their dreams, Steinbeck uses the docile commitment that Lennie and George have towards each other to depict the hardships that were faced during the great depression of the 1930’s. George has accepted to take on the burdening responsibility of protecting Lennie because of his mental illness. But because of this, he has created a cordon that won’t allow him to reach his common dream of overcoming destitution.
To some extent, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is a novel of protest. When he wrote the novel, Steinbeck was sad because of the horrible situation of the old and disabled during the Great Depression. The themes of ageism and the treatment of the disabled are protested through Candy. Candy does not play a very big role in the story, but he plays a very big role in the background of the novel.
Symbolism of Loneliness in ‘Of Mice and Men’ by Steinbeck Steinbeck’s novel ‘of mice and men’ is set in the time of the Great Depression after the stock market crash of 1929. The currency is almost worthless and people can afford little possessions. Because of the situation there are many people moving from place to place to find work. This means they are never in one place long enough to form any relationships, so this is a very lonely existence: “Guys like us, that live on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world.” All that the men really ever spent their money on was the cathouses and bars, so they can never break free from their dire lives. Steinbeck emphasises loneliness, powerlessness, and isolation, and his hatred for it throughout the book.
Loneliness is the sadness resulting from being forsaken or abandoned. John Steinbeck brought up the theme of loneliness in many characters in Of Mice and Men. Crooks, Curley?s wife, and Candy expressed the theme of loneliness in many different forms throughout the story. Early in the novella George said, life working as ranch hands is on the loneliness lives to live, for these people finding friendship seems to be impossible. Crooks expressed feelings of loneliness through out Of Mice and Men.
Loneliness is a theme that is always visible when one reads Of Mice and Men, and the forms of loneliness discussed are still applicable to today’s life. Many of the characters admit to suffering from profound loneliness and it really captures the life people were living during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck uses this novel to uncover and chronicle the circumstances that cause human suffering during this era. Each character’s loneliness is relatable though, and can be empathized with even today. Works Cited Steinbeck, John.