Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is known as one of the author's most powerful novels. Even though the story is completely imaginary, the plot takes place in a very precise historical and geographical context: 1930s California. Moreover, one of the main themes of the novel is humanity and Steinbeck's words kindle the reader's sensibility by confronting him or her to his or her own conception of life and human relations. To what extent does John Steinbeck manage to describe a universal story taking place in a precise historical and geographical context through the journey of two drifters? To answer this question, it is first worth analyzing the universal themes of friendship, loneliness and the quest for achievement through the characters' personalities and destinies. Then, it will be shown that some of those universal themes were very particular to California at that time.
[...] What is more, he wrote Of Mice and Men in 1937 during the economical depression. As a consequence of the Depression, hundreds of workers in California roamed the state to find jobs; additionally new migrant workers arrived at that time from the great plain states. They were forced to head to California because of soil erosion in the Mid-West. The concord between the time of the writing and the time of the plot reinforces the realism of George and Lennie's story. [...]
[...] Commentary on Mice and Men', John Steinbeck Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is known as one of the author's most powerful novels. Even though the story is completely imaginary, the plot takes place in a very precise historical and geographical context: 1930s California. Moreover, one of the main themes of the novel is humanity and Steinbeck's words kindle the reader's sensibility by confronting him or her to his or her own conception of life and human relations. To what extent does John Steinbeck manage to describe a universal story taking place in a precise historical and geographical context through the journey of two drifters? [...]
[...] Even if Of Mice and Men is a novel revolving around the theme of friendship, only George, Lennie, Candy and his dog know what it means. Indeed, all the other men living in the ranch in Salinas as well as Carlson's wife are lonely characters. This recurrent theme conveys the idea of life sickness. This idea is illustrated in the 4th chapter: Crooks explains to Lennie how difficult it is to live without anyone with whom one can share his feelings and live alone with ones own broken dreams. [...]
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