FREE ESSAY ON OF MICE AND MEN

OF MICE AND MEN

Title: Of Mice and Men
Author: John Steinbeck
Time, Place:
Salinas Valley, California during the Great Depression in the 1930s. 
Background:
Lennie Small and his friend, George Milton, were forced to leave their homes because
Lennie was accused of raping a girl from another town. The book begins with the two of
them hiding from the angry townspeople. Lennie had a tendency to kill small, soft animals
by accident; he was unaware of his own strength. This repeatedly leads to severe
problems. 
Characters Descriptions
George Milton - George is small, intelligent, dark of face, has restless eyes and sharp,
strong features with every part of him defined. He is a cousin to Lennie and loves him
very much. Always has to bail Lennie out of his troubles. 
Lennie Small - Lennie is unnaturally large and has a shapeless face. He drags his feet
when he walks and lets his arms hang. He is mentally retarded and needs George's constant
attention and care. He has an infatuation with anything soft and furry. He acts
impulsively which gets him and George into trouble numerous times. 
Curley - Curley is the boss's son, and was a welterweight boxer. He was short and stocky,
and wore high-heeled boots and spurs to prove he wasn't a laboring man. He believes
himself superior to everyone. 
Candy-He is an old man that is missing a hand.He is an outcast and is 
discriminated against. He offers his life savings to George and Lennie to 
help finance their dream. He wants to be a part of it and live on the farm 
with them. He has a friend and long time companion, his dog. Candy is afraid 
of being alone but he consents to the killing of his dog and wishes he could 
have killed him himself after it is over. Candy represents what will 
ultimately happen to all ranch hands. They will get old and have no place to 
go. Candy is very old and has hardly any money to his name. 
Crooks-Black stable worker. He is disfigured and is an outcast as well as 
Candy. He has a place of his own and stays there by himself. He doesn't want 
company. He also wants to be part of George and Lennie's dream. He said that 
he would work for free. He gives up on the farm dream when he realizes it 
isn't going to work out. He is the only one who understands Lennie, besides 
George, and befriends him. He looks past Lennie's mental handicap and Lennie 
looks past Crooks' physical handicap. 
Slim-Tall, thin and quiet. Slim is both respected and admired. Everyone 
seeks his approval, even Curley, who seems to have contempt for everyone else 
on the ranch. The others give into Slim because his word is the law. He is 
the voice of reason and understanding, and he consoles George after he has 
killed Lennie. Slim is the kind of man that George hopes to become one day. 
Carlson- He has a lack of concern for other people's feelings and doesn't take 
time to understand them. He is an insensitive person who cares nothing for 
others. He pushes for the killing of Candy's dog and doesn't understand why 
George is so upset after he has killed Lennie. Carlson is the type of man 
George hopes to avoid becoming. 
Curley's wife-There isn't much known about her. She isn't even given a name 
but referred to as Curley's wife. She is lonely because Curley doesn't pay 
much attention to her. This lack of attention from Curley forces her to seek 
it elsewhere. She flirts with the other ranch hands but they pay her no 
attention either. She is in reality the end of George's and Lennie's dream. 
When Lennie kills her their dream is forever lost. 
Boss-There is little known about him, except that Curley is his son. He 
interviews Lennie and George when they first come to the farm. He becomes 
suspicious that George is trying to put one over him because he won't let 
Lennie talk. He thinks that George is going to take Lennie's pay, he warns 
them he has seen wise guys before. He says that nobody can get away with 
anything. They can't trick him. He isn't a trustworthy person. 
Plot Summary
Chapter One 
Lennie and George are hiding after getting off a bus that took them from Weed to Soledad.
They were forced to leave Weed because Lennie was accused of rape. This was a very common
occurrence - not being accused of rape, but being driven out of when they were. They went
from ranch to ranch. They sit eating and talking about the past and talking about the
future - the future where they own a ranch of their own with rabbits and chickens, and
where they live off the fatta the lan'. They discuss what there plans are for the next
day; they are to go to the ranch and George is to do all the talking. 
Chapter Two 
Lennie and George arrived at the ranch where an old man introduced them to their new
home. The boss walked in while George and Candy (the old man) are talking. He takes down
George and Lennie's names, where they worked before, and what skills they have. George
answers every time for Lennie, which makes the boss curious. He asks George what his
interest in Lennie is, thinking that George is out to get Lennie's pay. George told the
boss that Lennie had been kicked in the head by a horse when he was little, and he had
told Lennie's aunt that he would take care of Lennie. When the boss left, Candy came back
in with his dog after listening to the conversation through the door. Curley, the boss'
son, came in soon after. He noticed the two new guys and saw a challenge - especially in
Lennie. Once Curley left, George and Candy had a discussion about him. Candy said that
Curley just does not like men who are bigger than him. Curley has been even cockier since
he got married. Candy also said that Curley's wife is a bit of a tart", and then he left
to go to work. Soon after, Curley's wife entered looking for her husband. After flirting
with George and winning Lennie's love, she leaves just as Slim comes in. Slim introduces
George and Lennie to Carlson. After another short confrontation with Curley the men went
to dinner. 
Chapter Three 
Slim's dog just had puppies and George asked if Lennie could have one. Slim said yes.
After dinner Slim and George went back to the bunkhouse and sat down to play a game of
cards while the men outside played horseshoes. George told Slim about the incident in
Weed. Lennie had met this girl that was wearing a pretty red dress. He also had a problem
where he has to touch things that he likes, so he innocently grabbed the dress. The girl
started screaming because she got scared which scared Lennie. He held on tighter because
he did not know what to do. The girl accused Lennie of rape and the two men had to hide
until nightfall and then leave town. 
Lennie entered the bunkhouse hiding his new puppy underneath his coat and George promptly
sent him to put it back. Candy and his old dog joined George and Slim and soon Carlson
entered, too. Carlson tried to convince Candy to shoot his dog because it was so old and
in constant pain. Candy finally gave in after several minutes of debate but had Carlson
shoot and bury the dog. He regretted not shooting his own dog later on. Crooks poked his
head through the bunkhouse door telling Slim that his mule's hoof was ready to be tarred
and Slim left. Several minutes later Curley came into the bunkhouse looking for his wife.
He was told that no one had seen her around and was about to leave but he noticed that
Slim was not there, either. He asked where Slim was and took off after him to the
stables, thinking that Slim was with his wife. Whit and Carlson who had returned from
shooting the dog followed Curley out, hoping for a fight. George and Lennie forgot that
Candy was still there and started discussing their plans for the future. Candy wanted to
join them at their farm but George was cautious at first. When Candy said that he could
put in $350 towards buying the farm, their dreams seemed possible. After the discussion,
Slim and Curley walked in arguing. Slim is tired of being accused of spending time with
Curley's wife. Curley, already in a bad mood, saw Lennie smiling and laughing to himself
still daydreaming about his rabbit-filled farm, and punches Lennie in the face. Lennie
was terrified and tried to block the punches, but Curley hits him in the nose and
stomach. George ordered Lennie to fight back. Lennie grabbed a flying fist and held
tight, too scared to let go, crushing every bone in Curley's hand. George had to slap
Lennie numerous times in order to get him to let go of Curley's broken hand. Slim got one
of the men to get a buggy ready to take Curley to a doctor, George tried to convince
Lennie that it was not his fault. 
Chapter Four 
Crooks, a cripple and a stable buck, stayed the longest and has many possessions. Crooks
is proud and keeps his distance from the other workers. When Crooks is rubbing liniment
on his back Lennie comes in and smiles wanting to be friends with him, but Crooks gets
angry. Lennie asks him why he is not with the other workers, Crooks says because he is
black and the others don't want to be with him.When Lennie mentions the plans he has with
George about a farm with rabbits, Crooks thinks he is crazy. Crooks tells Lennie about
how during his childhood his family was the only black family in the town. Then Crooks
asks Lennie what he would do if George did not come back, and Lennie got scared. Candy
comes looking for Lennie, and they all start talking, when Lennie tells about the plans
for the land, Crooks tells him it will never happen. Curley's wife comes into Crook's
room but all the workers want her to go home. The men tell her to leave but she refuses,
then laughs at Lennie's idea of land. When Crooks tells her to leave, she threatens him
but then leaves, and George comes for Lennie. 
Chapter Five 
Lennie sat in the barn. He killed his puppy. He tries to hide it so George does not find
out. He got angry and threw the puppy and walked away. Curley's wife came into the brand
but Lennie refused to talk to her. She tells him she is lonely and wants someone to talk
to. She fins out the puppy died and tells him he could get another one. When Lennie tells
her he is not supposed to talk to her, she gets angry and asks why not, she will not harm
him. Curley's wife tells Lennie she does not like Curley and hates living on the ranch.
Curley's wife lets Lennie feel her soft hair, then tells him to let go but he panicked,
and broke her neck accidentally. Lennie plans to throw the puppy away and leaves. Candy
finds Curley's dead wife, shows George. Both know it was Lennie's fault. Candy asks
George if they would still get the land, but he knows it will not happen. Curley and the
rest of the men found Curley's wife and knew Lennie did it. All the men got together to
look for Lennie, planning to shoot him. 
Chapter Six 
Lennie goes to the place George told him to go to if he got into trouble. Lennie imagined
his Aunt Clara, who scolded him for always getting into trouble and never caring about
George, who has to take care of him. Lennie imagined a rabbit who told him that George
would get rid of him because he is sick of him. George came and when Lennie asked him if
he would leave, George says no. When Lennie offers to leave, George declines. George
tells Lennie of their plans for a rabbit farm and tells Lennie to look across the river.
George puts the gun to the back of Lennie's head and shoots him. Slim guesses what
happened and tells George it had to be done