Notes & Thoughts On Of Mice And Men

Written by John Steinbeck. Born in Salinas, Calif. in 1902. Worked as a
laborer and journalist. Focused on the laboring class, dispossessed,
underdogs, misfits, castaways, and marginal characters of society _ what to
do with them? Concerned with how society treats them.
Title is from Robert Burns’ poem “To a Mouse” which has to do with planning
and the powers beyond over which man has no control _
“The best laid schemes o’mice an’ men *gang aft a-gley” (*go awry)
and it indicates, or suggests, that plans of Lennie and George will also go
astray due to forces beyond their control.

Some economists of the early nineteen hundreds theorized that the
industrialized age builds a permanent underclass and regardless of hopes and
dreams there is no escape because of powers beyond their control. The people
doomed to manual day and piece work labor will never be able to escape from
their dreary day-to-day existence. Steinbeck focuses on the underdog, the
dispossessed, society’s misfits and outcasts. What to do with them?
Dreams are a major theme in the novel, dreams that can never materialize.

Steinbeck suggests that society itself encourages dreams, such as Curley’s
wife and her dream of becoming a Hollywood star, which can never come to
fruition.
Characters in Of Mice and Men
Lennie Small
Imaged as pet/animal, child, white race, victim of nature and society, just
pure dumb luck he ended up mentally ill, not his fault, he does not know and
cannot learn. Lennie will be discussed through this outline.

George Milton
Looks after Lennie. Acts as parent, friend, protector, and master. George
does not really believe the dream he continually relates to Lennie about
their one day getting their own place until Lennie brings Candy and his
money contributions into the plan. At that time George says,
“Jesus Christ! I bet we could swing her.” George can’t see that the dream
will never materialize. He is doomed to day labor and piece work jobs with
no significant gain. George does value Lennie, even loves Lennie, as a
friend and partner. They are different because they have each other. This
shows that George does not have normal relationships with other men. He
relies on a mentally ill man for a friend. Loneliness is also a major theme.
George is lonely and likes Lennie’s company. He sees Lennie as a pet,
a friend, a responsibility, and a helpless person. George is victim of a failed
economic system that does not provide for its castoffs.
Aunt Clara
Lennie’s aunt who cared for him but has died. George now looks after Lennie.

But, why? That’s the big question. Pose this to the class. Have them look for
supporting details for their answers.
Candy
The “swamper” (one who cleans, mops and sweeps up the bunk house) who had his
right hand mauled in a piece of farm equipment (ironically a cultivator which is used
to produce nourishment but it robs him of the very part of his body that he must have in
order to nourish himself) and he is now of almost of no use to the system. His days
are numbered and he’ll soon be “on the county.” The right hand is a symbol of
the workingman which Candy no longer is. Thus, he is fast becoming worthless and
will soon be dispossessed like his dog. Candy has no chance, or hope, of a future
except if he throws his small amount of money in with the others. Irony is that they
have no hope without him. Lennie acts as the glue to hold this dream together.
Candy’s dog
A foreshadowing of what will become of Lennie, Candy, Crooks, and all the
characters sooner or later. The dog used to be one of the best sheep herder
dogs but now is used up, spent, no longer of any economic value. No one but
Candy cares what the dog used to be able to do. Now he just “stinks”
and can barely get around. This is an excellent opportunity to introduce to
the learners the term “foreshadowing.”
Slim
An American cowboy who now works on a barley farm driving mules due to the
closing, or civilizing, if you will, of the American west. Slim’s a victim of
a vanished way of life with few if any skills suitable to obtain himself
meaningful employment. He’s now a “jerk-line skinner” which is a driver of a
mule team, and thus only a shadow of the man he once was. Industrialization
closed the west, and he’s no longer needed. Slim is a rugged “hatchet-faced” man,
a man the others, including Curley, look up to and respect. Slim can be
trusted. Slim was genuine cowboy, not a dreamer. He had no need to act out a
role like Curley. Slim stands his ground against Curley and the others look
to him for support because he is not a dreamer. Slim is frozen in time, and
would rather be back in the old west.

Curley
A failed boxer, probably a victim of cheap novels that glamorize macho-men,
tough guys, brutality, the big he-men of cheap stories. He’s “the boss’s son”
who has no business being in charge of anything. Yet he is, and only by
virtue of birth and family money. He is symbolic of an economic system that
does not work like it should. Those in charge should not be in charge. The
bad get rewarded while the good have to suffer. His position of power and
authority is not due to his talents and abilities. This is a symbolic use of
a character by Steinbeck to make a social statement on the American economic
system: in real life it always comes down to who you know, and/or who
you’re related to. Although Curley will certainly not be dispossessed,
because he’s the son of the boss, he, like Candy, is also a victim which is
symbolized by his wearing a glove of Vaseline to keep his left hand “soft for
his wife.” This suggests that Curley also subscribes to cheap romantic
notions and ideas derived from movies, cheap novels and magazines. It
also re-enforces that he does not do manual work. Curley spends the
majority of his time looking for his wife. Because he is a short man he
is jealous of bigger men and uses his position to fight them in a desperate
attempt of raising his self-esteem and being thought of as a “big man”
by the other men (who are indebted to him for their jobs which they need
to survive). However, if someone should get the best of Curley he makes
sure that they are quickly fired. It goes without saying that a person of such
character would have no reluctance whatsoever of firing someone who
refused to “kiss his ass.” Curley’s left hand is emasculated by his cheap
romantic notions and later his right hand will be emasculated by the
sheer power of Lennie’s dumb and crushing strength. This raises an
interesting question for discussion. Who is the more powerful here, Curley
or Lennie? Why? Economics plays a big part in power. Right?
Andy Cushman
In San Quentin “on account of a tart.” Went to grammar school, old lady
(mother?) made hot cakes for the kids. George and Lennie knew him from old
days. Where is he now? Why is it no one is getting anywhere in this novel?
Ask the students to think this one over.
Crooks (my own favorite character)
Black stable buck with a broken back which symbolizes his life of hard labor
and no rewards to show for it. System unfair. He is still of some use and mends
leather goods in barn. Crooks is treated much like an animal which is symbolized
by his having to live “in the harness room; a little shed that leaned off the
wall of the barn.” Actually, he is treated worse than the horses as they at
least get to live inside the barn. He had a thirst for knowledge which can be
seen from his books, a tattered dictionary – suggesting he reads and is
curious, a “mauled copy of the California civil code for 1905” – suggesting
his concern for rights, fairness, and equality. Crooks owns “a pair of large
gold-rimmed spectacles” suggesting vision, he is able to see where as the
others are not. The spectacles being a symbol for desire to learn.
Crooks is very aware of how the world in which he lives operates. The other men do
not respect Crooks because he is a “Nigger” who “stinks.” That he “stinks” is
not supported in the novel so we must assume that he does not in fact “stink”
only that he is “thought” to stink by the uneducated white workers only
because of his color. Steinbeck by emphasizing through the novel the “nigger”
who “stinks” is drawing the reader’s attention to the fact that American
society in general cannot support their ideas, views and perceptions on the
Black race. In other words, Steinbeck has deliberately stereotyped Crooks as
a “stinking nigger” in hopes that the readers will examine their ideas about
racism and determine the validity of those ideas. It is a rather cleaver way
to use a derogatory term in hopes of demonstrating how despicable the phrase
“stinking Nigger” really is. It is used only to humiliate Blacks.
Crooks is a proud and aloof man who is more hurt by being segregated than
angry. He tells Lennie that all men need someone to talk to. Crooks was born,
“right here in California” indicating that he desires to be a part of
something, anything, yet he owns no part of anything and is more of an
outcast than the other characters only because of his race. He has worked his
life away for only a broken back. Crooks confides in Lennie, but Lennie can’t
understand. In this instance Lennie becomes a symbol for whites who do not,
and cannot, understand the Black man’s story. Here Lennie also symbolizes the
whites who are more obsessed with their pets than the welfare of a fellow
human being. Notice Lennie’s preoccupation with the pup and rabbits during
the visit with Crooks. The Black man speaks but no one listens, much less
cares. It’s of little or no matter to the other characters that Crooks is far
more educated, intelligent and introspective than any of them because he is
still just a Black man.
Crooks’ effort to acquire knowledge is symbolized by his statement to
Lennie, “Well, I got a right to have light.” Light is a traditional symbol
for knowledge in literature. His frustration over his position is seen when
he says, “If I say something, why it’s just a nigger sayin’ it.” Curley’s
wife threatens him with a frame up if he does not keep
his place, “Listen Nigger. You know what I can do to you if you open your
trap?” She continues later with, “Well, you keep your place then, Nigger. I
could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.” “Crooks had
reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego…” All he could
say was, “Yes, ma’am.”
There’s a significant aspect to Crooks’ ability to survive (a symbolic use of
character once again) that is seen in the description of the fight which
ensued after Smitty “took after the nigger.” Although Crooks had a bad back
he was still able to defend himself against Smitty’s attack because he was a
tough old guy, a survivor. Smitty wanted to “use his feet.” The other workers
wouldn’t let him, “on account of the nigger’s got a crooked back…” Smitty
could have beaten Crooks if he had not been unfairly deprived of the use of
his feet in the fight. That irony shows their distorted idea of fairness.

Steinbeck is stating that what the white race sees a “fair” when dealing with
Blacks is in reality completely one sided and totally unfair in the Black
view. In spite of everything Crooks beat the daylights out of the “little
skinner” Smitty. Notice Smitty is imaged as “little” and he says he “woulda
killed the nigger” but he didn’t. Why? Because in this “little” man’s mind it
wasn’t a fair fight. If he had been permitted to fight fairly (use his feet
on an old crippled man) he would have won the fight.
The boss
Curley’s father. Wears high-heeled boots and spurs to prove he is not a
working man. Cocky man, looks down on working men. Cannot understand George’s
concern for Lennie’s welfare, thinks he is up to something. Symbolic of
American business world which has no concerns for anything except profit.

They think there has to be an angle to profit from everything. A good example
of Steinbeck’s use of naturalistic details is seen when the boss first enters
the bunkhouse to speak with George and Lennie. His belt buckle, thumbs in his
belt, high-heeled boots, etc. all act to show what sort of individual he is.

Curley’s wife
A dim-wit, two-dimensional character, a wanna-be actress, a bimbo with no
talent. She’s about 18 to 20 years old and has no name, other than “Curley’s
wife. She is anonymous, nameless, unknown and without any identity. The
search for, and/or lack of identity is a common theme in literature.

Steinbeck leaves her without identity to show that she is but one in a
million of nameless persons who dream of stardom, those who lack a
self-identity and go in droves to California only to continue living a dream.

Curley’s wife, we are told, was promised to be taken to Hollywood by a man
who in all probability seduced her by using her own dream. He told her what
she wanted to hear. In trade for promising to make her a famous actress he
got a night’s roll in the hay. The bimbo actually believed the lie. She
spends her time getting made up with no where to go. She is trying through
the use of cosmetics to create an identity yet it has no basis in reality. It
is doomed to fail. And it does. Without an identity which is firmly rooted in
reality an individual has little hope for survival. She does not survive and
that is Steinbeck’s point. She also has, “the eye” which provokes Curley’s
jealousies and indicates that loyalty, an important attribute of human
character, is not one of her foremost concerns. The couple have only been
married a few weeks. No identity, easily seduced.
Smitty
“Took after the nigger” on Christmas when they let Crooks in the bunkhouse.

He did good but couldn’t use his feet so Crooks got the best of him. “We had
fun.” “Smitty says he woulda killed the nigger…on account of the
nigger’s…back, Smitty couldn’t use his feet.” Excellent example of man’s
brutality to those less fortunate than themselves. Smitty could not use his
feet shows that in a fair fight he could not beat an old crippled black man.

The attack occurs on Christmas, the time of Christian charity, goodwill, and
giving. Note that Smitty is a “little” man. See Crooks section above for more on
Smitty.
Murray & Ready
Labor recruiters
Carlson
Large powerful man. His Luger was used to kill both Candy’s dog and Lennie.

He urged and got Slim’s okay to shooting Candy’s dog. No accident that
Steinbeck had Carlson’s gun kill them both.
Whit
Worked with Bill Tenner running cultivators. Showed magazine to Slim.
William “Bill” Tenner
Wrote letter to the pulp magazine complimenting them on their publication
which was published. Whit showed it to Slim. Tenner used to work on the farm
and ran cultivators with Whit. Shows types of reading the hands like.
Susy’s place
The whorehouse where the men go.

Clara’s house
The whorehouse which they don’t like as well.

Some themes in Of Mice and Men
Can you see any others?
Care for the mentally ill
Dreams
Economic injustice
Friendship
Helping
Helplessness
Imagination
Industrialization and its castoffs
Knowledge
Loneliness
Love relationships
Man’s brutality to man
Man vs. nature/machines
Nature vs. civilization
Parent/child relationships
Pets
Plans
Racism/segregation
Responsibility
Security and certainty
Social injustice
The helpless
Vision
Techniques and Settings to Discuss. Have students find examples in the novel.
Naturalism: contrast between crisp nature scenes and squalid lives that the
men must lead in an industrialized world. Steinbeck’s use of naturalistic details to
develop characters.

Depression America: Stock Market crash, failed system, vagabonds,
Hoovervilles, hoboes.

Barren setting: no reproduction, cannot sustain life, men doomed, is shown by
lack of females in novel except for cheap whores and Curley’s wife the
dreamer.
Barley: a basic staple of life, yet the men retain no significant part of it.

Must exist in an endless cycle of planting/harvesting/etc., circularity, no
rewards.
California: seen as traditional land of milk and honey, but its soil cannot sustain
dreams of those who come.

Foreshadowing: Candy’s dog, Lennie, Crooks, all characters doomed.

Dog/pet/animal imagery: used to describe Lennie throughout novel. Sheepherder
now useless, no rewards. Dogs/underdogs is a motif to maybe suggest: work
like dogs, dog days, dog tired, dogged out, etc. This is evident from
George’s language when speaking to Lennie, “Good boy.” Lennie is imaged as a
dog/pet/animal throughout the novel.