Biographical Information and Novel Overview

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John Steinbeck and Of Mice and Men

• Biographical Information and Novel Overview

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Biography

• Born on February 27, 1902
• Born and raised in Salinas, California
• Worked summers as a hired hand on a ranch
• Attended Stanford University
• Left in 1925 to pursue a career in writing in New
  York.
• Unsuccessful at this and returned to California.

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Biography

• 1929 Steinbeck publishes his first novel, Cup
  of Gold.
• Poorly received, as were his next few books.
• Married his first wife in 1930.
• Moved to Pacific Grove, California, where the
  people influenced his writing.
• Continued writing, but not successfully until
  1935.

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Biography

• In 1935 Steinbeck published Tortilla Flat, the
  first of his works to gain any success. It was
  followed by Cannery Row, another success.
• In 1939, Steinbeck wrote The Grapes of Wrath, the
  novel that won him the Pulitzer Prize.

I hold that a writer who does not passionately
believe in the perfectibility of man has no
dedication nor any membership in literature. -
From John Steinbecks Nobel Prize Acceptance
Speech
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Biography

• Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962
  for his realistic as well as imaginative
  writings, distinguished by a sympathetic humor
  and keen social perception.
• Died on December 20, 1968 in New York City.
• His ashes were returned to Salinas, California.

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Of Mice and Men

• Written in 1937.
• Regarded by some as his greatest achievement.
• Part of a three-novel series about the plight of
  the California laboring class. The other novels
  were In Dubious Battle and The Grapes of Wrath.

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Of Mice and Men

• The title for Of Mice and Men came from a poem
  written by Scottish poet Robert Burns in 1785.
• The poem is titled To a Mouse, on turning Her Up
  in Her Nest with the Plough
• Steinbeck was inspired by two lines in the
  seventh stanza of the poem.
• The best-laid schemes o mice an men/ Gang aft
  agely,
• Roughly paraphrased, this means that even though
  we may plan for one thing, sometimes the things
  we plan fail to happen, or worse, things go
  terribly wrong.

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Of Mice and Men Historical Influences

• After World War I, many poor rural farmers from
  Great Plains States such as Oklahoma and Texas
  moved to California to find work in the fields.
• A recession following WWI led to a drop in the
  price of crops, so farmers had to produce more
  crops to earn the same amount of money.

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Of Mice and Men Historical Influences

• As a result of the need to produce more, many
  farmers bought more land, and subsequently
  invested in machinery to work that land.
• To make matters worse, the stock market crashed
  in 1929.
• Many farmers were unable to pay their debts and
  lost their property, forcing them to find other
  ways to support their families.

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Of Mice and Men Historical Influences

• Dust Bowl in the Plains States. The land was dry
  and unproductive. Farming was no longer a
  dependable way to support a family.
• Many families from these states packed up and
  moved to California.
• Known as Okies.
• Okies were often met with scorn from the
  California natives, which made their dislocation
  even more unpleasant.

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Of Mice and Men Historical Influences

• Of Mice and Men focuses on the plight of migrant
  workers such as those coming to California in the
  1920s and 1930s.

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Of Mice and Men Plot Overview

• Two migrant workers, George and Lennie, come to
  California looking for work and dreaming of
  owning a farm of their own. The men find work,
  but Lennie, who is mentally handicapped, finds
  himself in trouble, and it is up to George to
  find a way out.

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Of Mice and Men - Characters

• Lennie a lumbering, childlike migrant worker.
• Slightly mentally disabled,
• Depends on George completely.
• George Lennies traveling companion.
• Devoted to caring for Lennie, although he claims
  otherwise.
• Candy the aging ranch handyman
• Curleys wife the only female character in the
  novel although she is not named.
• Represents the temptation of females in a
  male-dominated world.
• Crooks the black stable hand
• Curley the bosss son. Confrontational, mean
  spirited, and aggressive.
• Slim highly skilled mule driver
• Carlson ranch hand
• The Boss man in charge of the ranch and
  Curleys father
• Whit ranch hand

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Of Mice and Men Themes

• The Predatory Nature of Human Existence
• Fraternity and the Idealized Male Friendship
• The Impossibility of the American Dream

• A theme is a broad idea, or a message, conveyed
  in a piece of literature.
• Themes usually deal with life, society, or human
  nature.
• Most themes are not directly stated. They are
  usually implied or hinted at.

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Of Mice and Men - Motifs

• The Corrupting Power of Women
• Loneliness and Companionship
• Strength and Weakness

• A motif is a recurring idea, object, place, or
  statement in a piece of literature that helps
  develop the storys themes.

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Of Mice and Men - Symbols

• George and Lennies Farm
• Lennies Puppy
• Candys Dog

• Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or
  colors used to represent abstract ideas or
  concepts.