Lennie In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

836 Words4 Pages
Have you ever planned to have a picnic on a sunny, humid day, but an unpredicted shower of rain washed away all your intentions? A Scottish poet Robert Burns once said,“ [t]he best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men/often go awry.” The theme in what Burns said was extremely accurate in reference to the story Of Mice and Men; what one may have in mind might not always have the outcome they wanted or planned. Men are just like mice, despite their physical differences, they follow the same rule of survival, their reputation, and actions are really similar. In order to survive in this harsh community or environment, their chances is mostly based on one’s strength. Indeed men are the highest of the food chain by all human, however they are actually…show more content…
In this case, the use of “small” is not used to describe a physical feature. Instead Steinbeck used it to compare them individually to the huge world they live in. When Lennie said, “ I pinched their heads a little and then they were dead… i wisht we’d get the rabbits pretty soon, George. They ain’t so little”(Steinbeck 10). The usage of “little” was to describe the unsatisfying physical features of the mice. Because of this feature, Lennie compared the mice to the rabbit which ain’t so “little”. As Carlson said,“ He’s all stiff with rheumatism. He ain’t no good to you, Candy. An’ he ain’t no good to himself. Why’n’t you shoot him, Candy?”(Steinbeck 44). Steinbeck used the dog to represent the fate of Candy since Candy is old and no longer able to work on the ranch as efficiently as he used to. This presented an irony to the reader who might think a men with great contribution would be respected, however just like how Carlson said, Candy is “ no good” anymore. Similarly, men may also be replaced when they aren’t needed anymore thus unable to choose their own fate. In addition, men and mice both have a cowardly side to their
Open Document