John Steinbeck is an American author who often dealt with social and economic issues. He has written many famous novels including The Grapes of Wrath and East of Eden. During the time of the Great Depression, Steinbeck elaborated on the general theme of human nature in his well known novel Of Mice and Men. Discussing human nature tends to be a controversial topic because it is one’s culture and sub-culture which influences a person’s point of view on the way humans behave physically and mentally. Every person experiences, believes, and discovers something different given their time on earth. These distinguishing characteristics make humans diverse. In the story Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, the characters portray their grim realizations on the nature of human existence; this is shown through the endless battle of isolation, the use of symbolism, and the impossibility of the American Dream.
To begin, isolation is demonstrated both mentally and physically in the novel through the use of characters and setting. A profound feeling of loneliness seems to be a constant during the grim time of the Great Depression. The average human craves the need for companionship in any form; without this feeling of devotion people often take drastic measures in order to subdue the needs. Steinbeck illustrates a great deal of loneliness through Curley’s flirtatious wife. Living on the ranch with men alone, she has a complete understanding of what social isolation feels like. Her gender and flirtatious nature draw a fine line between her and the male workers. Any time she tries to communicate or make friends with the men she is immediately turned down and is seen as a sexual temptation due to her gender. This sex appeal she holds is a result of the neglect from her husband Curley. Curley is an overconfident man who spends the majority of his time bragging about his beautiful wife rather than spending quality time with her. The couple is seen looking for eachother on multiple occasions throughout the novel. Considering Curley and his wife are married, they are not isolated as much physically, as they are mentally. The isolation of Curley’s wife is slightly ironic considering she portrays a great deal of prejudice and is nothing but insulting towards Crooks throughout the entirety of the novel. This leads into the second example of mental loneliness shown through the black man Crooks. In the time period Steinbeck uses, black men and women are looked down upon due to racism and prejudice, especially in regards to employment. Black people suffer worse than white people during the Great Depression, as they are pushed out of unskilled jobs previously scorned by white people before the depression. Living on a ranch occupied exclusively by white men in this era, Crooks seems very out of place. His skin colour is the reason why he lives in a separate bunk house and why he no longer trusts genuine kindness. Crooks does not comprehend why any man or woman would display courtesy as his hurt and suffering from racism holds key to his opinion of others. As Lennie attempts to befriend Crooks, he basically spits on the idea and promptly turns him down. On a separate note, isolation is also portrayed by way of the town of Soledad. Steinbeck is non-coincidental in regards to the selection of Soledad, which means solitude. This small and lonely town symbolizes the isolation the majority of the people on the ranch experience. The men fill the void of loneliness by travelling to the strip club, drowning their emotions with beer, as George says “Guys like us that work on the ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don’t belong no place” (Steinbeck 56). As George and Lennie travel through Soledad together it becomes clear that they are not a typical arrangement. The other workers are taken back as they discover how close George and Lennie are. They are surprised to see genuine companionship through the form of friendship. As Thomas Scarseth explains, “The boss is suspicious of the bond between George and Lennie, and the other characters in turn also question this friendship: they have simply never seen anything like it. In their world, isolation is the norm”. This portrays the normality of isolation in the novel and time era. Conclusively, the theme of isolation is related to the grimness of life through the depressing and lonely lifestyle most working men and women in the 1940s experience. It is isolation which mentally and physically restricts the characters from living a full and content life.
Furthermore, Steinbeck illustrates a substantial number of symbols which represents the hopeless reality of life. Through these symbols it is evident that with time, things that are pure, become immoral. The first symbol, which relates to appearance versus reality, is the contrasting settings that appear in the novel. The setting mainly represents the hopelessness the characters experience, each ambience symbolizing something different. This novel begins by describing the peace and innocence the river represents, as “it serves as a symbol of retreat from the world to a natural state of innocence” as Kevin Attell explains. George and Lennie lay by the river and discuss their hopes and dreams, thinking of a better life to come for them. Later in the novel it is at this river in which Lennie is brutally shot by his best friend George. As the bullet propels through Lennie’s skull the river ultimately symbolizes the death of friendship, hopes, and dreams. The barn on the ranch is another example of symbolism with an underlying trait of appearance versus reality. This setting paints a picture of evil in a place of innocence. Lennie relates the barn to a home for his most beloved things in the world; animals. For Lennie, nothing bad can happen in the barn, it is his safe place away from the horrors of reality. After he kills the puppy and murders Curley’s wife, the barn becomes a place of dismay and conclusively the end of his dream to one day tend the rabbits on his own barn. On the topic of animals, Candy’s dog can be expressed as a symbol of the upsetting truth of life and death. Candy’s dog is meant to be perceived as weak and old. In the novel the other men selfishly convince Candy to kill his dog to put it out of its misery. The death of Candy’s dog symbolizes the misfortune the weak must face when challenged by the strong. Basically, one who is powerful will surpass and survive over the one which is powerless. This death foreshadows the death of Lennie, which symbolizes physically and mentally strong versus the weak. The final symbol is represented through the death of Lennie’s puppy. As Lennie receives his new puppy, he is beyond ecstatic. The puppy and Lennie’s relationship is a clear contrast to George and Lennie’s relationship. The pet is dependant on Lennie, as he is to George. As Lennie accidentally kills his pet he says, “You ain’t so little as mice. I didn’t bounce you hard” (Steinbeck 86). This symbolizes the fate of the weak in the face of the strong. Conclusively, The symbols present ultimately end in misfortune. Steinbeck portrays this disappointment through symbols in order to reveal the grimness in everyday reality and in the overall nature of human existence.
Nevertheless, the impossibility of the American dream is a key characteristic to understanding the overall theme of the novel. To go into greater detail, the American dream in the novel is ideally the same as it is in today’s society. The majority of the population desires wealth, roots, and stability. These traits are seen through George and Lennie. The idea of the ranch in which they strive to own is a prime example of stability. George explains to Lennie that, ” … Someday—we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an’ cow and some pigs and—” (Steinbeck 14). For both men this ranch is the key to keeping them sane. The idea of someday having roots and balance pushes George to hopefully control Lennie, while continuing to produce money. The aspect of money plays a big role for George and Lennie. The money they do not have is the only factor holding the two back from freedom, which ultimately restricts them from escaping the dangers of society. Kevin Attell explains that, “George and Lennie’s dream is specifically necessitated by and responds directly to the limitations placed on their lives, and their story is meant to illuminate the social conditions which Steinbeck seeks to critique”. Part of the American Dream includes the concept of power. Although Lennie is physically powerful, his spirit has been crushed over the years due to his stupidity and people, such as George, telling him he is worthless. Steinbeck’s juxtaposition of Lennie with the weaker puppy and rabbits provides him with the feeling of power. This feeling slowly diminishes as he accidentally kills the animals along with Curley’s wife, pushing him to believe he is as worthless as he is sought out to be. Peter Lisca explains that, “At the moment that George and Candy discover the body of Curley’s wife, they both realize that the dream is lost; their partnership dissolves”. On another hand, Candy shows a similar dream. Throughout the book Candy is perceived as content and full because of his best friend, the dog. Following the death of his dog, which is forced upon him, Candy feels lonely and is in need of something new to take control of. Once he hears Lennie and George’s plan to buy their own land, he decides that it should be the next chapter of his life as well. The real aspect Candy craves is the friendship. He has his dog for over 10 years, meaning he is used to having a companion. By buying into the ranch deal, he is also joining a friendship, which ultimately means more to him. The final display which proves the impossibility of the American dream is shown through Curley’s wife who brings a completely different dream to the table. Her beauty and bubbly personality clearly stands out in the depressing masculine ranch. She has dreams of someday becoming a Hollywood star, but she is always dominated by fear. Her fear is also evident through her rough marriage. Curley and his wife do not have a healthy relationship. At one point of the novel she admits to having settled with Curley due to the aspect of stability. Like most women during the Great Depression the sound of a supportive husband and family was idealistic. Ultimately, Curley’s wife never has the determination or power to leave her husband to follow her dream of becoming an actress. The hopes and ambitions she has become impossible as her life comes to an end while seeking for the one thing she truly craves, a friend. To summarize, most characters admit to wanting a different life, but such paradises of freedom, contentment, and safety are not to be found in this world. By the end of the novel all of the characters’ dreams are destroyed and defeated by their own actions.
Conclusively, Steinbeck teaches the readers a grim lesson on the nature of human existence; this is illustrated through the symbolism, the reality of the American dream, and the physical and mental isolation. This novel tells a tale of the average man during the Great Depression. This time era consists of unemployed men searching for work, while attempting to scrounge up enough money to eat. The aspect of human nature never stops evolving, proving that the most apparent form of strength, which is repressive to others, is itself born of weakness. This also proves physical strength is not the only force that oppresses the men in the book. Most of the grim lessons portrayed in this novel is displayed through the mentality of the characters. The majority of them admit to the hopelessness of reality in one way or another. The predatory nature of human existence is still an issue to date. Reality is not typically the happy nor romantic theme in which society portrays, Thomas Scarseth proves that statement by saying, “Some people seem to believe that the function of literature is to provide vicarious ’happy endings’, to provide in words a sugary sweetness we would like to have but cannot always get in real life”. Steinbeck comes across as pessimistic in this novel by not sugar coating the grimness one experiences as a human. The grim lesson of human nature is evident in this novel.
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