What is the book “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck about? - briefly
The novel follows two itinerant ranch hands during the Great Depression as they chase a shared vision of owning a small farm, only to confront the brutal social and economic forces that shatter their hope. It highlights the stark loneliness, fragile friendships, and systemic oppression faced by marginalized workers.
What is the book “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck about? - in detail
John Steinbeck’s novella follows two itinerant workers, George Milton and Lennie Small, during the Great Depression in California’s Salinas Valley. George, a small, wiry man, looks after Lennie, a physically strong but mentally disabled individual who is obsessed with petting soft objects. The pair share a dream of owning a piece of land where they can farm, raise livestock, and live independently, a vision that sustains them through a series of transient jobs.
The narrative begins with their arrival at a ranch near Soledad, where they encounter a cast of characters whose lives intersect with their own:
- Candy, an aging swamper who clings to his old dog; he offers his life savings to join George and Lennie’s plan.
- Curley, the boss’s aggressive son, whose hostility toward larger men creates tension.
- Curley’s wife, the only female presence, who seeks companionship and inadvertently becomes a catalyst for tragedy.
- Crooks, the isolated black stablehand, whose segregation underscores the era’s racial prejudice.
Lennie’s inability to control his strength leads to accidental violence. He kills his companion’s puppy and later, in a moment of panic, crushes Curley’s wife while attempting to silence her pleading. The incident forces George into a painful decision: he shoots Lennie mercifully to spare him from a lynch mob led by vengeful ranch workers.
The story concludes with George left bereft, his dream shattered, and the reader confronted with the harsh realities of economic hardship, loneliness, and the fragility of human aspirations. Steinstein’s work examines themes of friendship, the pursuit of autonomy, the impact of disability, and the social hierarchies that dictate the characters’ fates.