Hopes And Dreams In John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice And Men'

He doubted Lennie because of his incapability to keep his head down and do what he’s told. Lennie constantly asked George to reassure him of these dreams to comfort and motivate him.

Throughout the story, George was a good friend to lennie in many important ways. One way he shows friendship is when he puts in a good word for Lennie to their boss. He says to the boss, “He’s sure a hell of a good worker. Strong as a bull!”(pg 22) He says this so Lennie can get a job on the farm and get paid good money to save up for their dream of

Crooks is one of the many characters who has to deal with an impairment everyday but his impairment is not like the others impairments. With Crooks being black no one likes him because the time this book is set in is when slavery is still taking place. “This is a nigger talking an a busted nigger so it don’t mean nothing“(pg71). This example shows that Crooks is very aloof from everyone because no one cares what he has to say because he is black. A final instance when this impairment is used is when Crooks first tells Candy he wants to help with their dream house by staking out some of his profit to help with the payment so he can live with them. He later changes his mind because he is a black and no one would want him there. Crooks knows that he has to stay aloof from everyone because of his impairment of

Later on in the story, George and Lennie talk about the dream of the farm and Candy overhears them. Candy likes the idea, and wants to work with them. He says to George and Lennie “S’pose I went in with you guys. I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How’d that be?”

He yearns to be seen as an equal to everyone else, wishes to be self-sufficient, to have a companion, and to be able to live a life of his own choosing. This dream is significant to Crooks since it provides him with a feeling of confidence, self- dignity, and pride that was not so often appreciated during the time when he was feeling lonely. To be specific, in Chapter Four, when he is conversing with Lennie and Candy about the dream farm that Lennie frequently speaks about, Crooks promises to work for nothing as long as he can live his life out there without the fear of being put out (Steinbeck). Perhaps, with the help of Lennie and the others, it could have been a true reality to be free and successful. But, the undeniable circumstances, such as the discrimination Crooks faced, would not have gotten him very far as he would have liked to. To illustrate, Crooks is “put in his place” by Curley’s wife, when he voices out his feelings, causing him to lose his pride and hope to be seen as an equal to the other white men at the ranch. Due to the prejudice Crooks faces because of his race, the overpowering circumstance dooms his desires to be independent and equal. After all, he wishes to acquire the perfect American Dream. But, there is no security for anyone in a prejudiced world, least of all a black stable hand with a crooked back. Hence, the cruel and unequal circumstances Crooks encounters in Of Mice And Men restricts him from fulfilling his dreams and

with George where he can take care of rabbits. One night, before arriving at the ranch, Lennie and George camp by the Salinas River and talk about their hopes for the future. Lennie says to George, “Tell about what we’re gonna have in the garden and about the rabbits,” (14). Later in the story, Lennie is in the barn with Sometimes dreams don’t come true

For the longest time they had both talked about their desire to become landowners and to grow their own crops. All Lennie wanted was to grow alfalfa to feel to his rabbits. Their shared dreams being out of reach is apparent to the reader until Candy comes into the picture. Candy, a hardworking ranch handyman comes in with a full-fledged proposal. He offers them all of the money he saved up to fund a bit of land George and Lennie had their eyes on. In return, he would like to live on the land with them. They all agree that this is what they will do and not to let anyone know. Lennie destroys this dream by accidentally crushing Curley’s wife’s spine. George, Lennie, and Candy’s dream fails to become reality because of Lennie’s ignorance and strength.

Characters George, Lennie, Candy, and Curly’s wife have dreams they have aspired to and carried with them, but in the end they end up with nothing but pain because their dreams weren't carried out. The two main characters, George and Lennie, dream of living off the fat of their own land in which no one can kick them off of. During

He calmed Lennie down, reminded them of their dream, and shot Lennie where it wouldn’t hurt. It was a quick and painless death, for Lennie. But George will forever be traumatized at the loss of his best friend. In the end, George knew that Lennie couldn’t handle his own strength, and would always run into trouble. All he wanted was to prevent Lennie from suffering anymore, so he chose to take Lennie’s life for himself.

In this case, George learned this the hard way. Once Lennie did the last bad thing he could do, George knew that he had to decide whether he wanted to struggle or survive, the American dream was no longer an option for them, at least not together. Was George finds Lennie, Lennie says, “you ain’t gonna leave me, are ya, George? I know you aint.”(Page.103 line 2-3) This quote proves how even Lennie knows that George has been held back by him. That day, after Lennie killed their boss’s wife, he knows that he can’t continue on with him.

Consider Steinbeck’s presentation of both hope and despair in the novel Steinbeck’s novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ was set in the 1930s in America, during this time hope and despair played a big part in many people’s everyday lives due to the impact of the Wall Street Crash. This is reflected in the novella. As it was so hard to get a job many people had to leave there homes to find other work and this left them with distrust and despair. All the characters Steinbeck uses in his novella at some point feel hopeless with desperation. Within this essay it will discuss Lennie and his endless optimism of the dream, as well as Crooks and Candy, two characters that have seen hope but never actually achieve it.

Originally, the ambition of owning a small farm was one of only George and Lennie’s, until Candy overheard their conversation about what their farm would be like, and then suddenly proposed, “‘S’pose I went in with you guys. Tha’s three hundred an’ fifty bucks I’d put in. I ain’t much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some’” (59). Candy's abrupt suggestion establishes how interested he is in the farm, and how much he is willing to pay in order to attain the farm. The grand amount of money that Candy offers to pay for the land is more than half of what the farm was being sold for, which confirms just how important money is in furthering the theme of the American

Their loyalty to the dream screams how desperate they are to be able to latch onto a future. Lennie in particular looks forward to the dream even with a gun pointed at his head: “‘We gonna get a little place,’ George began. He reached in his side pocket and brought out Carlson’s Luger; he snapped off the safety, and [. . . .] looked at the back of Lennie’s head, at the place where the spine and skull were joined” (115). George is easily able to coax Lennie with the dream, signifying how the dream acts as a blanket of comfort for Lennie.

Hopes and dreams can be very important for peoples’ needs and survival. In Steinbeck’s story, Of Mice and Men, each of the main characters is driven by their hopes and dreams; it provides a sense of motivation and animation to each of their being. From Lennie and George being driven by their hopes and dreams of owning a farm, to Curley’s wife’s dreams of becoming an actress, having dreams plays an essential role in giving hope to the characters of Steinbeck’s story. Although dreams and hopes are essential themes in Steinbeck’s story, in a sense, Steinbeck does seem to emphasize that dreams are not meant to be achieved, and that there are other factors that are essential for survival. I believe Steinbeck included their dreams to give

He is used to heavy work and can do a lot more physical labour than the average man. George is a character that looks after Lennie as he is mentally weak. They have built up a love for each other that has made their friendship as tight as a box. Lennie looks at the same dream from a different prospective.