John Steinbeck’s
Of Mice and Men – Background Notes
Author |
John
Steinbeck (1902-1968), California native; concerned with the plight of the
misfits, homeless & hopeless in a fast-changing America. |
|
Title |
Allusion to Robert Burns’s (1759-1796)
poem, “To a Mouse” (1785) Connection
– Theme: |
|
Structure |
Like a play with each chapter beginning with
a description of setting |
|
Setting |
Ranch
near Salinas River in California; 1930’s – The Great Depression – Novel covers a total of three days |
|
Characters |
George Milton
Lennie
Small Carlson Slim Whit The Boss Aunt Clara Will. Tenner Andy Cushman
Al Wilts |
Point
of View: 3rd Person Limited Because of this, the characters are revealed indirectly
– we do not know what they are thinking or feeling – actions, reactions,
& words (dialect) only. Reader must determine motivations, etc. |
Themes |
friendship,
loneliness, the American dream, rootless-ness, power, justice/fairness,
mercy, violence, predatory nature of humanity – along with its victims,
corrupting power of females, indifference of the world, worth or lack of
worth of the individual |
|
Other literary techniques |
Realistic Fiction: Dialogue/Dialect/Detail/Imagery
– The Great Depression. Captures the
American experience; reflection of history |
|
Allegory: def – Symbol *look for
character “types”, categories, symbolic places, symbolic deaths |
||
Philosophy behind
the book |
Naturalism: The system of thought holding that all phenomena can be explained in
terms of natural causes and laws. 1.
Presents human behavior as a scientist would – just the facts with no moral
judgment at all – attempts to be painstakingly precise 2. Human
beings as “animals” – products of their heredity and environment – fate is
predetermined by the circumstances of life. 3. People
are beaten down and generally defeated by natural and/or hostile economic
forces they cannot possibly overcome. 4. Common
settings, lower class, unremarkable people who somehow become involved in
intense dramatic incidents, usually ending in violent death. 5. While
all this seems negative and contrary to a person’s life meaning much of
anything, the 20th century naturalist almost always builds in a
sense of importance of the individual – a significance to their lives. |