Book Review: ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck
A literary masterpiece set during the great American depression-era, Of Mice and Men, is a heartwarming tale of innocence, love, and friendship. This short novel delves deep into the lives of those that were hit hardest by the great American depression and explored the themes of racism, sexism, friendship, and mercy killing.
The book is a favorite among literature teachers and is often studied in high school in great depth. As such, it is not uncommon for your teacher to ask you to write an essay on Of Mice and Men. To write a thorough argumentative essay, you first have to understand the book and the central message being portrayed in it. The symbolization portrayed in the book is especially important to conduct an in-depth literary analysis.
However, if you’re simply overburdened and don’t have the time to write essays about Of Mice and Men, you can always get a professional online writer to write it for you. For a minimal fee, you can get an excellent Of Mice and Men essay written that will help you achieve those As. If, however, you would like to review the book yourself, read through our easy to read yet thorough book review to understand what the book is all about.
Summary
The book starts off with two friends, George and Lennie, traveling across the country looking for work. George is a short height resolute man who takes care of his friend Lennie. A friendly giant who likes to touch “soft things.” However, Lennie’s quest for soft things often lands the duo in trouble at their jobs. At their last job, Lennie and George were fired because Lennie was touching a girl’s soft dress and was accused of sexual misconduct. His love for soft things is also another reason why George often finds a dead mouse in Lennie’s pocket.
If you’re writing an Of Mice and Men argumentative essay, then it is important to mention this point as it holds great significance in the book. The two men share the same dream about owning a farm of their own where they can work and live a happy and content life. However, owing to their poor financial circumstances, the dream remains just that for the moment.
After traveling across the country, Lennie and George find work at a farm owned, where they work alongside a few others. One of the workers at the farm, Candy, has an old and arthritic dog. Another one of the farm’s workers offers to kill the dog to save it more misery, and Candy agrees with a heavy heart. This is another significant moment in the book and must be mentioned if you’re writing an essay on Of Mice and Men as it is a foreshadowing of events.
The farmer’s son Curley’s wife, who is considered a “tart,” strikes an unlikely friendship with Lennie over their mutual love for soft things. She allows him to touch her soft her, but when Lennie unknowingly strokes it too hard, she gets scared and tries to pull away. Frightened, Lennie holds on even tighter, and in the scuffle that ensues, accidentally ends up killing Curley’s wife. Afraid of getting in trouble, Lennie runs away to hide near the riverside.
When Curley finds out what has happened, he vows to take painful and slow revenge on Lennie and organizes a lynching mob to find him. George also tries to look for Lennie on his own and knows exactly where to find him. George is not angry at Lennie; however, he realizes that he can no longer protect him and wants to save him from a painful death at the hands of Curley. George asks Lennie to look out to the river and imagine them living at their farm, happy and content, and then he shoots him at the back of his head.
Analysis
Though the book explores many themes, the three that stand out the most are friendship, loneliness, and the dream of a better life. A well-written essay on Of Mice and Men must include these three themes. The theme of friendship is the most obvious and long-running theme in the book, as exemplified by the simple yet deep relationship that George and Lennie share.
Readers can tell that the relationship is pure with no ulterior goals and motives and that this simple friendship is what has kept the pair going through their toughest times. Their friendship and love are also what led George to kill Lennie out of mercy to save him from the painful end Curley had planned.
Loneliness is portrayed in numerous ways in the book; in fact, the only two people who aren’t lonely are George and Lennie since they have each other. However, at the end of the book, even George is left all alone after killing Lennie. An interesting thing to note here if you’re writing an essay on Of Mice and Men is that the town that George and Lennie moved to, is known as Soledad, which is Spanish for solitude.
The final theme explored in the book is of dreams, in particular the American dream of being able to live a good life through hard work. The dreams that the different characters in the book have are what keep them going even through troubled times. However, as John Steinbeck shows us at the end of the novel, not all dreams come true.
Conclusion
Of Mice and Men is one of a kind book that portrays the lives of the average Americans during the depression era. Literary analysis is often carried out in English classes in high school. Students are often asked to write an essay on Steinbeck’s book which might be difficult to do if you don’t really understand the book too well. Go through our review and in-depth Of Mice and Men literary analysis essay to truly understand what the book is about.
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