Steinbeck's Novel a Beautiful Story of Friendship

Title:  Of Mice and Men

Author: John Steinbeck

Publisher: Penguin Books

Publishing Date: 1993 (original publication 1937)

Pages: 107

Tenth grade students taking English 123 at Lynnfield High School are required to read Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, a beautiful tale about friendship set in California during the Great Depression.  The novella is one of two books students are required to read for English. Students have additional reading assignments for other subject areas.

A Story of Friendsip

Of Mice and Men tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two migrant workers who settle on a ranch with the plan of working for some time until they save up enough money to buy their own place. Lennie asks George to repeat this dream often, and therefore frequently the reader hears about the small house and the rabbits that Lennie will be allowed to tend.

The friendship between George and Lennie is an odd match, making it all the more touching. George is smart and helps guides Lennie, who while large in size, has limited mental capacity. Lennie follows George, looks to him for protection, and would do anything for him. While it seems that had George parted with Lennie, he could have had a better life, Steinbeck does a great job of conveying the loneliness  experienced by migrant workers. Many of the other characters express their own loneliness, such as Candy, an old man attached to his sick dog; Crooks, a blank man isolated due to the racism of the time; a young woman mistreated by her husband. This need, so clearly and eloquently written by Steinbeck offers a lot in terms of classroom discussion. Without a doubt students can consider what friendship means and when only have the bare minimum, what would be the most difficult to give him. For Lennie and George, it’s one another.

Strong Characters

The characters throughout the novella are strong and well written. Each has a clear role to play on the ranch as tension rises throughout the story. It is clear from early in the story that Curley’s wife, a lonely girl always talking and flirting with the ranch hands, is going to be an integral part of the conflict. George warns Lennie early on to stay away from her, that she causes trouble. Further, Curley is known as an angry and aggressive man who suspects all the other men of making a move on his wife. George, knowing Lennie’s strength; and Lennie’s oblivion to it, fears that Lennie could really get himself into trouble. The two were forced to run from their last job after Lennie, who loves pet anything soft, touched the hem of a girls dress and would let go. His actions were misunderstood by many of the men in town, which put him and George in danger.

Predictably, conflict does arise with Lennie and Curley’s wife and Lennie goes to hide where George instructed him to. What unfolds next is a tragic end to a strong friendship. The book teaches that sometimes people have to go to unpredictable lengths to protect a friend, and that protection can take many different forms.

Steinbeck’s tale is so beautiful and well written, and will be accessible to many readers because it has a smaller cast of characters and totals just over one hundred pages. Overall, it is a great read in these last few weeks of summer before the school year starts up again.