Why Does Steinbeck Use Animal Imagery In Of Mice And Men

Body Paragraph 2 Subsequently, people turn to cruelty in order to fulfill their esteem needs. When George and the rest of the guys are out in town to have a drink, Lennie sees Crooks light open and decides to go inside of his room. “Well I got a right to have a light . You gone on and get outta my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain’t wanted in my room”(68).

In the story Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, the author emphasizes a main character, Lennie, as unworldly and ignorant. Throughout the book Lennie gives the impression through his unobservant innocent acts as a childlike character. For example, Lennie endeavors to create friendships as though a child and does not know how to make friends in the manner of an adult. When Lennie tries to make friends with Crooks, Steinbeck describes Lennie smiling at Crooks in attempting to be friends.

"God damn you," he cried. "Why do you got to get killed? You ain't so little as mice." He picked up the pup and hurled it from him”(Steinbeck 83). Lennie is extremely caring towards animals.

Throughout the story Lennie is described in a very animalistic way, for instance George notes that, “His huge companion dropped his blankets and flung himself down and drank from the surface of the green pool; drank with long gulps snorting into the water like a horse.” (3). This simile compares Lennie to a horse thus portraying that he is strong like a horse but likewise behaves animalistically like a horse. By portraying Lennie as an animal Steinbeck helps the reader understand why he behaves in aggressive ways later on in the text. This example of figurative language develops Steinbeck’s naturalistic tone by describing the natural setting and comparing Lenny to an animal.

In the book Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses powerful symbolism to convey the themes of the novella. George and his partner Lennie have worked on different farms throughout their lives. This story takes place in Salinas, California and covers their conflicts and friendships on the farm. Steinbeck uses symbols like: George and Lennie’s dream, Candy’s dog, and Lennie’s puppy. George and Lennie’s dream is one of the center themes in the novella.

Later in the bunkhouse, a distraught Candy says, “‘I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn't have let no stranger shoot my dog.’", foreshadowing George's reasoning for killing Lennie (Steinbeck 60). Later in the story, George uses this similar thought process when he decides to kill Lennie rather than let Curley torture and kill him. Steinbeck uses Candy and his dog to foreshadow George killing Lennie, conveying the prevalent idea of euthanasia and mercy killing

In John Steinbeck’s dynamic novel Of Mice and Men, the challenged Lennie’s harmless intentions results in heinous acts due to his decline in mentality and inability to control his own immense strength. In the beginning, Lennie’s simple love of soft things causes inconsequential incidents that quickly escalate into more severe offenses as the story progresses. By the end of the novel, Lennie’s uncontrollable strength and mental deficits leads him to commit unintended manslaughter. Stories of Lennie’s childhood show that from the beginning Lennie has enjoyed petting soft things but becomes hindered by his unmanageable physical power and child-like mind.

Steinbeck’s introduction of Lennie infers he has animalistic characteristics that he’s ‘a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide, sloping shoulders: and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws.’ Steinbeck’s vocabulary in this phrase teaches us a lot about Lennie, for example we can understand he is a physically big person from the adjectives like ‘huge’, ‘large’, and ‘wide’. Also describing his eyes as ‘pale’ could be indicative of the knowledge behind them, or more accurately the lack thereof. It suggests that in reality he has a tendency to be absent-minded. Within this description of Lennie, we come across the first piece of animal imagery, where Steinbeck presents Lennie as a bear who ‘drags his paws’.

Dreams, a major motif in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, is defined as wishing for a better place, future, situation, etc.; Idealized life. The motif of dreams contributes to the development of Character vs. Self-conflict because it involves the protagonist Lennie battling his own disability, relating to theme: happiness is an elusive state that people are constantly searching for and often miss from trying too hard. The motif, dreams, strengthens the improvement of the theme by molding Lennie’s actions towards finding his dream so it displays the meaning of the theme. An example of this is when Lennie is killed by George.

The novella ‘of Mice and Men’ was written by John Steinbeck in the 1930s. It is set in a difficult period of time when America was sunk in deep depression. However, themes of loyalty shine brightly throughout the novella. He shows that even though Americas economy is in tatters, loyalty can still be as prominent. There were also distinct themes of disloyalty, mainly between characters.

When his dog is shot, Steinbeck uses this as an opportunity for foreshadowing.. “I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn’t ought to of let no stranger shoot my dog.” (61). This scene is almost an exact replica of the very last one that occurs in the novela. Even the way Candy’s dog is shot, “‘They way I'd shoot him, he wouldn't feel nothing.

Crooks is a black man who has been given the nickname because of his crooked back. He is another character in the novel that is discriminated against. Similarly, as Lennie and Candy are discriminated because of their weakness, Crooks is discriminated because of his race. For example, he says how he “ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse… can’t play [cards] because I’m black” (68). His race causes him to be separated from everyone else and be isolated in his own room.

In the novella, John Steinbeck employs figurative language and symbolism throughout the story to compare Lennie to different animals, dehumanizing him. To begin with, Lennie was always an unusual human being. He would act abnormally compared to others when it came to activities. He would show

Safety Through Nature Have you ever had a safe zone or spot for emergencies? Today we will discuss the use of nature and symbolism in in the book “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck. Throughout the story, Steinbeck uses nature as a symbol to keep the story going. This help the reader understand that the author finds it important to use nature in his writing.

1. Of Mice and Men contains many symbols. Discuss two of these symbols. Two prevalent symbols in “Of Mice And Men” by John Steinbeck are dogs and rabbits. Dogs are used in the novel to represent Lennie, and they way he’s treated.