Intolerance is human nature; people who are different from or weaker than the norm
are victims of intolerance and become isolated and lonely. Those who are in the
norm are expected to be strong and not show their feelings. In Of Mice And Men, by
John Steinbeck, the social power group is the white, male workers on the farm.
They are younger men, still useful, reasonably intelligent, and average-sized. They
exclude people who do not fit their norm, such as Curley for being short, Lennie for
being retarded, Candy for being old, Crooks for being black, and Curley's wife for
being a woman. Between themselves, they expect strength, distance and
independence, and are uncomfortable with emotions. This intolerance and isolation
cause loneliness for all the characters in this novel.
This social power group oppresses and isolates Curley, Lennie and Candy because
they are different, even though they are white. Lennie is very strong and big but his
mind is like a child's, so the men don't respect him as an equal. For example,
George explains to Slim that he, "Used to play jokes on [Lennie] cause he was too
dumb to take care of 'imself"(p. 40). Lennie does not take part in the activities the
workers do in their spare time. Lennie does not go to town with the men. In Weed,
Lennie gets in trouble because the people don't understand his problem. They react
with anger instead of understanding. George explains to Slim, "Cause he ain't
mean....like what happened in Weed-"(p. 40). Candy is afraid that he will have
nowhere to go soon because he is old: "I won't have no place to go, an' I can't get
no jobs." (p. 60) Candy knows that society doesn't value or care about people who
can't work. Society ejects them because they are no longer useful. Carlson shows
this when he says about Candy's dog, " He ain't no good to you, Candy. An' he ain't
no good himself. Why'n't you shoot him, Candy? (p. 44). Candy knows he is like
his dog; an old man is almost useless. He knows how they will discard them he's no
longer useful: "They says he wasn't no good to himself nor nobody else. When they
can me here I wish't somebody shoot me." (p. 60) Curley feels excluded from
society because he is too short. He hates big men because big men automatically get
into the social power group. Candy comments to George that "Curley's like a lot of
little guys. He hates big guys. He's alla time picking scraps with big guys.
why Lennie and George Travel together and is not very understanding. Although you never find
Men are allegedly competitive, aggressive, dominant, and strong and if these attributes are not acquired a man is not a man. When other men recognize a man failing in those four areas of “manliness” they compare him to a female with negative connotation as expressed in the following quote, “The worst insult one man can hurl at another-whether its boys on the playground or CEOs in the boardroom-is the accusation that a man is like a woman.” These actions create perceptions that women are unworthy and pitiful. Jensen mentions that because of masculinity men are thought to seek control over women resulting in an increase of physical violence towards women. However, masculinity has harsh effects on men as well. Men are constantly trying to prove their dominance to each other, while competing against one another for ultimate dominance. This creates a never ending cycle of competition and unease for
her alone. It reads, “You ain’t nothin’ but a hound dog, quit snooping round my door.”
In Of Mice and Men the character Lennie is big and has a diminished mental capacity. Lennie is s...
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.
He is fond of his dog even though it is old and smelly. Candy had that
A friendship is not all they have together, Lennie and George have dreams. Lennie and George have worked up the idea of owning their own piece of land together. Lennie wants to tend the rabbits (Steinbeck 11) and George just wants to be his own boss (Steinbeck 14). The only problem with their dream is that it is unrealistic. They cannot buy land to tend and just go days without tending it because they do not want to. Like many traveling farm hands during the 1930s, George and Lennie think they could work up enough money to buy their own place and not give a “hoot” about anyone but their selves. Although their dream is unattaina...
...andy’s flirt with independence, society has acted in the same animalistic way that was expected of it. Through this treatment of Candy, Steinbeck exposes humanity’s failures and inhumanness. He does this not out of disgust for mankind, but rather because he believes in the “perfectibility of man.” However, he does remind us that we, as humans, have the power to destroy as well as the power to perfect. After all, only “Man himself [is] our greatest hazard and our only hope” ("John Steinbeck - Banquet Speech").
Slim, an insightful ranchman, calls him dim witted. He says to George, “It jus’ seems kinda funny a cuckoo like him and a smart guy like you travelin’ together.” George tells Lennie to keep his mouth shut in front of the boss before he starts working. He fears that if Lennie speaks, he will reveal his witless nature.This would minimize their chance of getting employed.Lennie recollects George’s advice and says to himself, “I….I ain’t gonna……say a word.” Lennie is unable to remember his own aunt (Clara), who took care of him before George did. He says to George, “I remember a lady who used to give em’ to me.” Later George reminds him that she is his aunt. In comparison to others, Lennie is idiotic. He is defenseless and dependent. George warns him, “Somebody’d shoot you for a coyote if you was by yourself.” Steinbeck emphasizes Lennie is unfit to survive because of his idiotic nature. George protects him against others and his own
like fugitives and take refuge at a ranch house, where they work for money, food, and shelter
Although George has the brains in the group, Lennie, who is mentally handicapped, still causes problems very often. Lennie has the body of an adult but the mind of a child. In page 11, George explains the incident that occurred in Weed to Lennie: “‘...well, how the hell did she know you jus’ wanted to feel her dress? She jerks back and you hold on like it was a mouse.’” Lennie enjoys
Lennie was not very smart and couldn't do much by himself. He had to be told what to do or he wouldn't do anything at all. He fits all the profiles for a retarded person. He doesn't have any self-control. When he starts to panic he gets out of control and even kills Curly's wife because she starts to scream. Lennie loves animals and can't stop talking about them. He always says that when they get their own place that he wants lots of rabbits, his favorite animal. To him George is like his father figure, since Lennie never really had any parents. He is easily amused and panics quickly.
Lennie is broken and incomplete in many ways. He has a mental disability which differentiates him from the others. He depends on George for everything and cannot do things on his own even though he is a grown man.
In the Salinas River Valley, after the Great Depression, there were a large number of unemployed workers seeking jobs. In the fiction novel "Of Mice and Men," by John Steinbeck, Lennie Small is among one of those men. Lennie and his friend George both have just received jobs on a ranch as farm workers. What brings the two together is their dream to someday own their own land. Lennie has a lot of character and personality traits that define him. One trait that he has is he is very forgetful. Another trait he has is he is very curious. A final trait he has is that he is very reliant. Although he might not be the intelligent person in the book, he has a very well developed personality. Lennie demonstrates his personality and character traits throughout the novel.
Lennie is the target for many attacks. It's as if an invisible barrier has been put up, in which he can't be viewed as an equal. This barrier is built by both Lennie's low intelligence and large size. Lennie is strong in the arm, thick in the head; these two opposing factors do not go well together. It will cause much suffering to both him and others. Lennie's impetuous actions and mental deficiency causes him to lose his life, which in return, destroys the dreams of others and their desires.