Of mice and men Argumentative Essay Example For Students

Of mice and men Argumentative Essay Of Mice and Men is a book about the socially oppressed and about migrant workers. The workers went through a lot of things in this story. There are many themes in this book, which had to do with them. These themes are violence, nature, loneliness and dreams. Out of these themes I think that loneliness was the most important. However, all the themes played a part in the workers lives. A dream is pictures and ideas a person has in their mind. Dreams are special to people and show how they feel. George and Lennie were the main characters, who had a dream. George and Lennie have been together for a long time and they talked about their dreams. They both just would like to own a farm with animals and a garden. They dont want to have anyone bossing them around anymore. They just want to be their own boss and do what they want to do. They want to be able to run everything their way and no one elses. Violence is a force, which is damaging and negative. There were a few characters that experienced violence in this book. The main one was Curley. He always likes to pick fights with bigger guys and cause trouble. He also likes to threaten people about them getting close to his wife. Another person who caused violence was Lennie. Lennie isnt a violent person he just cant help hurting things. He doesnt mean to cause any of the violence that he puts out. He wouldnt be violent at all if he could just control his strength. Carlson was another person that showed some violence. He kept on pushing Candy about killing his dog. When he ended up killing Candys dog it didnt even bother him he just did it and went on with his life. Nature is living things like the animals and plants. Nature is a beautiful thing that is being ruined by man. In the book the workers cut down trees and build things with it. They dont care about nature at all they just ruin it. The only person that might have liked na ture was Lennie, when he mentioned about living in a cave. Loneliness is when a person feels isolated on the inside, not really important to anyone. Loneliness is a very big theme in this book. Many of the characters experienced this. This is a very sad thing, which I think no one should have at all. One person that had this was Curleys wife, even if it didnt seem so. She was the only woman on a ranch full of men. She didnt have anyone to talk to or share her feelings with. She had a husband, but he didnt want to spend time with her and didnt want her spending time with someone else. Another person is Crooks who kept himself away from everybody. There was too much racism going on, so hed rather keep his space. Candy was also a very lonely person. He has no relatives and his only best friend was his dog who was taken away from him by Carlson. George ended up to be a lonely person in the end. He had Lennie but when he was forced to kill him, he had no one left. The people in this story went through many things. Pretty much every character experienced at least one of these themes. Violence and loneliness seemed to be big parts in the themes in this story. However, loneliness was the strongest theme in the story and no one should experience it. Words/ Pages : 637 / 24 Of mice and men Argumentative Essay Example For Students Of mice and men Argumentative Essay Does Steinbeck reflect a desperate society or does he offer some hope and optimism in his novel Of Mice and MenIn Steinbecks novel Of Mice and Men there are many different characters each expressing there own opinion on whether they are living in a desperate society or that there is indeed some hope and optimism in the world around them. At the time the book was set, which is in the 1930s great American depression, many people were unemployed and jobs were hard to come by. Steinbecks novel centres around the exploits and happenings of a few men, and one women, at the time of this great depression. Steinbeck shows how the most unusual friendships can be created in the mist of this depression and sadness. Such as the strong friendship between Lennie and George. Which in the end, drove George to kill Lennie for his own good. Some characters such as Lennie show how many people at this time had dreams of owning there own piece of land and being able to retire in peace with no one to tell them what to do. This reflects the view of optimism and hope in the book. However some characters such as Crooks see the world around them as desperate and solitary. Crooks believes that no ones dream will come true and that nothing will ever get better, this is shown in the line, Nobody ever gets to heaven, and nobody never gets no land. (page 106) He also says that Lennies dream will always stay as a dream and will never come true. The novel Of Mice and Men on the whole gives many views of hope and optimism and many views of the characters in the book living in a desperate society. I believe that the book balances itself out and that there are equal amounts of each view. The book being as equally optimistic as it is pessimistic. I will discuss how Steinbeck shows these views through his selection of characters and scene settings over the next few paragraphs.At the time the book Of Mice and Men is set many people in America and other countries had a very pessimistic outlook on l ife. The book reflects this view in its character opinions and scene settings. From 1929 to 1939 there were failed businesses, harsh poverty and many people were in long term unemployment. Many people made the migration to California looking for work. Most travelled alone, however, in the case of Lennie and George they travelled together. This is evident when George says, We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us. (page 32). Here George is saying how that he and Lennie are different from the rest of the no-hopers in the world around them and that they have a chance to make things better for themselves because they with always have each other. In some cases in the book there is a pessimistic side to Lennie and Georges friendship. The line said by George Hide in the brush till I come for you. (page 34). George repeats this statement about hiding in the brush until he comes many times, to emphasise the point to Lennie. This is suggesting that George does not trust Lennie and that he believes he will do something wrong in the near future. Therefore giving the impression that George believes that the society they are living in is desperate and that Lennie will make the same mistakes over and over again. Another example of how George and Lennies friendship sometimes reflects a desperate society is how George says You crazy son of a bitch. (page 29). This is when George is reflecting on how he could have a much better life without Lennie with him all the time. Also in this section, George shows some compassion for Lennie. After he has finished shouting at Lennie we get the line, He looked ashamedly at Lennies anguished face through the flames and also the line, Poor Bastard. This is showing us how George now feels sorry for Lennie and maybe he realises that he is lucky to have a friend in this desperate society, therefore reflecting some hope and optimism in the book. With George now thinking that he may be able to get to that imaginary piece of land wi th his friend, which for the moment only exists inside the head of Lennie and George. Moving on to section two we see how the Candy like to gossip a lot. Saying things like, Last guy that had this bed was a blacksmith and Used to wash his hands even before he ate (page 39). This is unimportant information and just general gossip. This could show how the society is desperate because it shows how the Candy is lonely and doesnt get to speak to many people. So when there is someone to speak to he seizes the chance to make the most of the conversation. Candy does have one friend though, an old dog. This further emphasises the lonely, desperate environment which the men live in. It shows how Candy has to resort to having an animal as a friend because he knows that an animal will not answer him back and that his dog will always be there, unlike a human at this time which may go off and leave him. Watching My Little Sister Grow Up EssayCurley only sees the world through his eyes and so is supremely selfish. His inability to control or understand his wife brings about Lennie’s death. He is to blame, just as much as his wife and Lennie, but will never accept that. Curley’s Wife How is Curley’s wife described and what does it mean? Quotations Mean? She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages† â€Å"Curley’s wife is described as a â€Å"tart† and is seen as â€Å"jail bait† by the ranch hands† â€Å"Think im gonna stay in that two-by-four house and listen to how Curley’s gonna lead with his left twice, and then bring in the ‘old right cross? Curley’s wife is very lonely, and she is trapped in a loveless marriage. â€Å"You know what I can do to you if you open your trap? † She can be vindictive and she will use the power her status gives her, even if it is totally unfair. â€Å"He says he was gonna put me in the movies† Curley’s wife has her dream destroyed too. Crooks How is Crooks described and what does it mean? Quotations Mean? â€Å"Crooks was a proud, aloof man his eyes seemed to glitter with intensity He had thin, plain tightened lips† Crooks’ life is dominated by pain – the pain of being the only black man and of his â€Å"busted back† – but he has managed to rise above that pain. â€Å"I aint wanted in the bunk house ‘Cause im black† Crooks is a victim of racial prejudice â€Å"I had enough†, he said coldly. â€Å"You got no rights comin’ in a coloured man’s room† Crooks has enough pride and independent to stand up to Curley’s wife. â€Å"Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego – nothing to arouse either like or dislike,† The futility of Crooks’ stand shows how little power a black person has in the world of this novel.