John Steinbeck

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John Steinbecks, Of Mice and Men

• Introduction and Chapter One Summary
• Hamish Anderson

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What does this outcome ask?

• How the author creates meaning?
• Characters, themes, ideas
• Context Social, cultural, historical
• Interpretations by readers
• Analyse Why? Why? Why?

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How will we be assessed?

• SAC Essay Format
• One and a quarter periods
• 1.5 hours
• 90 minutes
• 5400 seconds
• 324000 milliseconds
• You will get a question and have to answer it.
  TEEL i.e.
• Of Mice and Men is a novel about impairments,
  both literal and symbolic. Discuss

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How will we study this?

1. Writing Context Who is John Steinbeck, where is
   Soledad and Salinas River, 1930s etc.
2. Read the novel Lecture series with your chance
   to practice note-taking, creating your own
   summaries to study.
3. Answering questions, filling in tables and
   creating plot lines (exploring different ways to
   study for this outcome)
4. Film viewing
5. Essay writing practice and skills workshop

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Who is John Steinbeck?

• Handout 1
• LETS READ THIS ONE TOGETHER.

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Im sure that was thrilling for you but now

• Where is Soledad?
• Where is the Salinas River?

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1930s

• During the Great Depression, in which the novel
  is set, workers were thrust from relative comfort
  to fend for themselves in a cruel and uncaring
  world. They face the original challenges of
  nature to feed themselves, to fight for their
  stake.
• The Great Depression was a worldwide economic
  downturn starting in most places in 1929 and
  ending at different times in the 1930s or early
  1940s for different countries

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• What information can the title give us about the
  rest of the text?

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The Title

• Parallels between humans and animals
• Conflicts
• Symbolisms
• Social world

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Robert Burns To a Mouse

• But Mousie, thou are no thy-lane, In proving
  foresight may be vain The best laid schemes o'
  Mice an' Men, Gang aft agley, An' lea'e us
  nought but grief an' pain, For promis'd joy!

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• Lets continue reading Chapter One of John
  Steinbecks Of Mice and Men

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Chapter Summary Whats going on

• Introduced to the protagonists George and Lennie
  
• They are on their way to a new ranch, where they
  hope to be hired to buck barley otherwise, to
  haul sacks full of grain
• George small, quick man with dark, suspicious
  eyes, migrant worker. I could live so easy and
  maybe a girl (If he didnt have to take care of
  Lennie, p7)
• Lennie naïve, unintelligent mountain (large)
  of a man, child-like, careless, needs to be taken
  care of, likes to pat soft things
• George notices that Lennie has something in his
  pocket a dead mouse. Lennie explains that he
  likes to pet the mouses soft fur as he walks

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• Lennie is told off by George and warned to not
  behave badly
• George reflects on past misadventures with Lennie
  who assaulted a woman in a red dress because he
  thought her dress was pretty and he wanted to
  feel it.
• The boys set up camp and George asks Lennie to go
  look for firewood.
• Lennie returns with yet another dead mouse, which
  George takes. Lennie begins to whimper.
• They recall that Lennies Aunt Clara, whom Lennie
  refer to as as lady, used to give Lennie mice
  to play with.
• George goes on a rant about having to look after
  Lennie. Afterwards he feels ashamed and
  apologises to for being mean (pg14)
• Lennie requests George to tell about rabbits,
  which means talk about how things are going to be
  for in the future.
• George paints a picture of the future, in which
  he and Lennie have their own place on their own
  farm and live off the fat of the land. Lennie
  repeatedly interrupts George as he tells this
  story but insists that George finish it to the
  end.
• George reminds Lennie not to say a word during
  their interview
• with the boss the following day.
• George also tells that that if they run into
  trouble they are to return
• to the placed where theyve camped.

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Chapter Summary

• Task 1
• Create a plot line so we can keep up with whats
  going on
• Or
• - Write a brief summary on the events that have
  occurred

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Chapter Analysis

• Task 2
• Draw a table with two columns and list some of
  the character traits of Lennie and George. Leave
  space so you can continue to fill this in later.
  Tell me how they relate to the animals i.e.
  personality traits, Lennies love for micewhat
  else can you find?
• (After we have completed this novel we will bring
  all of our information together)

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Chapter Analysis

• Simple Characters, Simple language, Simple
  techniques, Simple plots
• Juxtaposition of the human and natural world
• Poverty draws the human and natural world closer
  togetherreduced them to an animalistic state
  i.e. Lennie an imbecilic bear, George a quiet,
  scheming rodent.
• The woman who mistakenly thought of Lennie, the
  mice Lennie crushes with his affection, Georges
  orders will come into play later on.

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Themes - a unifying or dominant idea, motif

• Friendship
• Power
• Loneliness
• Loyalty and Sacrifice
• Dreams
• Change
• Isolation
• Innocence
• Justice
• Prejudice
• Women
• Man and the Natural World