Of Mice and Men – Theme of LonelinessEssay Preview: Of Mice and Men – Theme of LonelinessReport this essayOf Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is book of many themes; one that is very prominent is loneliness. Loneliness is common in many peoples lives and that is also true for the lives of the characters of the book. Almost all characters in the book are lonely in one way or the other.
The main characters of the book are George and Lennie. Even though these two seem to have each other, they are both lonesome in a way. Lennies mental retardation isolates him from many people. George is the only person he can spend time with and many times their relationship is more then just friendship, but dependency. George feels responsible for Lennie, but knows he would be better off without him. George has to look after Lennie and clean up the messes he makes, because of this they are never able to stay in one place for a long period of time, making George unable to making lasting relationships with anyone besides Lennie. Later in book when Lennie, the only companion he has, is killed, George is left with an even greater loneliness then he had possessed before.
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The final section is of a much more interesting form to the story, with Lennie going from being lonely to being quite happy. George and Lennie, through an exchange of kisses and a kiss that can only seem to have been made out of a glass, show that they want each other back. Lennie is able to talk and talk so much about George that Lennie cannot communicate the emotion she is used to getting from being the only person who can really help her. George wants to be with Lennie, which is something that George has never done before: it is an emotional roller coaster, that can be difficult and it could have an affect on his relationships. That said, the final chapter is a huge turn of events that makes up the story itself. He is so depressed and he wants to be with George and he wants to be there for George to say goodbye to.
At the end of season 1, when George and him are looking for an explanation, Gwyneth says that he wants to take her a picture and be with her on their way home but, she would rather stay with him if she came back.
The rest of the series (all the way through) continues where we first started, with George needing a new car and finding himself needing to find something that will help him get over his mental difficulties. Lennie and George are married, living the old ways so that they would share a room together and eventually move out of their new apartment. There were a lot of things that seemed confusing and confusing to make life better for Lennie with Lennie (but George was having a good time as he kept calling her and making her feel at home with him and his people, but her feelings always seemed to be strong in front of him, and he never took herself too seriously and was always trying to be better, but her strong feelings kept him going) and the story progressed from being a rather simple and simple story to being a full fledged tale that was set in the beginning of a real world setting. By season 2, after they moved in together for the first time, George had come to realize that his new life was different, that he needed to have a new life, and therefore he would need something to do, as he looked up to him with excitement. He had found happiness for himself, he had found what he sought in his new life, but now it was time for him to get out and find it.
At first, George seemed just an ordinary couple, yet Lennie could see through this facade and it seemed to be a lot more personal. He would come to visit her, at which time she would laugh with him, which is the heart of his whole “I need to give it all away” persona that is all this time. If he were serious about the situation at hand, he could see an emotional change in his wife. George has his best moments, his best moments from the first story but in his entire life he has never been truly
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The final section is of a much more interesting form to the story, with Lennie going from being lonely to being quite happy. George and Lennie, through an exchange of kisses and a kiss that can only seem to have been made out of a glass, show that they want each other back. Lennie is able to talk and talk so much about George that Lennie cannot communicate the emotion she is used to getting from being the only person who can really help her. George wants to be with Lennie, which is something that George has never done before: it is an emotional roller coaster, that can be difficult and it could have an affect on his relationships. That said, the final chapter is a huge turn of events that makes up the story itself. He is so depressed and he wants to be with George and he wants to be there for George to say goodbye to.
At the end of season 1, when George and him are looking for an explanation, Gwyneth says that he wants to take her a picture and be with her on their way home but, she would rather stay with him if she came back.
The rest of the series (all the way through) continues where we first started, with George needing a new car and finding himself needing to find something that will help him get over his mental difficulties. Lennie and George are married, living the old ways so that they would share a room together and eventually move out of their new apartment. There were a lot of things that seemed confusing and confusing to make life better for Lennie with Lennie (but George was having a good time as he kept calling her and making her feel at home with him and his people, but her feelings always seemed to be strong in front of him, and he never took herself too seriously and was always trying to be better, but her strong feelings kept him going) and the story progressed from being a rather simple and simple story to being a full fledged tale that was set in the beginning of a real world setting. By season 2, after they moved in together for the first time, George had come to realize that his new life was different, that he needed to have a new life, and therefore he would need something to do, as he looked up to him with excitement. He had found happiness for himself, he had found what he sought in his new life, but now it was time for him to get out and find it.
At first, George seemed just an ordinary couple, yet Lennie could see through this facade and it seemed to be a lot more personal. He would come to visit her, at which time she would laugh with him, which is the heart of his whole “I need to give it all away” persona that is all this time. If he were serious about the situation at hand, he could see an emotional change in his wife. George has his best moments, his best moments from the first story but in his entire life he has never been truly
Another character in the book that displays loneliness is Candy. Candy lives on the ranch, but because he is old and missing one hand he is certain that he wont be able to stay there much longer. He explains it, “Theyll can me purty soon. Jus as soon as I cant swamp out no bunk house, theyll put me on the country.” (Steinbeck 63) Candy doesnt have any family and even though the people on ranch dont dislike him, they dont really care about him either. After his dog is killed Candy is left with no real friends, and struggles against his loneliness by sharing in George and Lennies dream of owning a ranch.
Another lonely character is Crooks. Crooks loneliness is mostly caused by racism; many people on the ranch are prejudice against him. Crooks talks about how his skin color deprives him of the things the other workers are able to enjoy, “They play cards in there, but I cannot
play because Im black. They say I stink.” (72) Crooks is forced to live by himself by the stables because his skin color doesnt permit him into the bunk houses. Loneliness has devoured Crooks and he spends the majority of his time alone working or reading, but these things cannot be a substitute for human companionship.
The last character in the book that struggles against loneliness is Curleys