Of Mice and Men; Themes
Uploaded by the_nashie on Dec 04, 2003
"Steinbeck creates many themes in of Mice and Men, Discuss"
In the John Steibeck novel, “Of Mice and Men” there are three main themes, which are all very prominent throughout the novel. These three main themes are, Friendship, The American Dream and Loneliness.
The theme in this novel that is prominent throughout then novel is friendship, mainly the friendship that occurs between the two main characters, George and Lennie. This friendship was such a strong friendship because of the trust that existed between the pair. They also shared the same dream, The American Dream. This friendship is considered to be “odd” in the novel as is demonstrated in the quote, “Not many guys travel around together.”
Another of the major themes in the novel is, The American Dream. The American Dream can basically be summarised as a dream to own property and be your own boss, for George this is important because he wants to see what comes from his hard work, especially in crops, he wants to reap what he sows. This dream, although George knew it was basically a pipe dream when it was just the two of them, became very attached to the idea as Candy and Crooks joined into the dream. By the end of the novel the dream is almost a reality apart from Lennie, they almost have enough money for the house on a couple of acres George knows of.
Loneliness in my opinion would have to be the most prominent theme in the novel, although the dream has more mentions, loneliness is always there and Steinbeck always seems to make us aware of that. Loneliness is conceived in the novel as none of the characters have a wealth of possessions and not many chances of marriage. Although the main “case studies” used in the novel are Candy and Crooks we see the underlying loneliness that Curley emanates through his aggression and this shows that everyone is lonely, such as the guy who brings up the magazine letter as a way of bringing up the past to try and block out his dull future.
In conclusion this novel has many underlying themes with three major themes that stand out as being used all throughout the novel. These themes all play an important part in adding to the texture of this novel and supporting the other themes.