Wilfrid Speagle 16 – 2 – 11

Of Mice and Men, a novel by John Steinbeck, is very much a story of desperation and despair.
The novel if full of themes about there always being a dream, however, all the way through,
the reader knows that there will be no happy ending with George and Lennie riding off into
the sunset. No; rather, it will end badly, with the sense of the hopelessness of the characters
well and truly ingrained in the mind of the reader.

Despair is very much a sense of hopelessness; all of the characters in Of Mice and Men have
that aura of hopelessness about them. Nobody has really anything to live for. Even Lennie
and George, who have their dream of “buyin‟ a little place an‟ livin of the fatta the lan‟”,
have very little to live for. That dream will never come true, because of Lennie‟s childish
nature. This is made very obvious when Lennie begins to tell Crooks about his dream, and
Crooks instantly knows that this will never happen, as so many people have had exactly the
same wish with no success. However, George possesses something few other characters have:
humility. While so many co-workers would pick fights and lose their dignity, George would
stay away. This is epitomised when there is the option of a free meal before work started the
next day, but George insisted on eating beans from a fire, as he believed they had not earned
it. It is hard to say many other characters would have done the same, perhaps Slim.

Curley‟s wife also is filled with despair. She has married Curley, most likely against her wish,
and has missed out on the opportunity of a lifetime. She could have become and actress in the
theatre, yet she is stuck with a husband who does not love her: life is tough. Hence why she
comes and talks to the men, causing trouble. She is desperate for a friend, not a controlling
person like Curley; she wants attention, and consequently gives men the „eye‟. They all
believe her to be a bit of a desperate tramp.

The environment in which all the men live, with the small bunkhouse, lack of possessions, no
family and competition breeds despair. Everybody complains about anything, and everyone
really wants something. For some, it is company, for others, it is simply a better life.
Nobody‟s life means anything to the world, they have no impact, and they are effectively
useless, just another person wanting a job. That‟s why there is constant tension for what little
things they have: George and Lennie have each other, Candy his dog, Curley his wife.

Of Mice and Men is a book that has the feeling of all the characters „chasing rainbows‟. None
of their dreams will come true, but it is that glimmer of hope that preserves their will to live.