Similarities Between Of Mice And Men

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The American dream is a common belief that has many different meanings. Usually the meaning of the American dream comes from the American Declaration Of Independence which says that "all men are created equal" with the right to "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness". It was also defined by James Truslow Adams as "life should be fuller and better for everyone regardless of social class, nationality or circumstances of birth". This means that no matter how bad your background may be, you can still be economically successful by working hard and being honest. Many opposed the idea of the American dream and argued that it was not true and that you couldn't control your financial state by working hard as it was out of your control. John Steinbeck…show more content…
Arthur Miller uses this to show that even in a setting where an ordinary person would have been financially stable, the American dream is false and broken. Of Mice And Men is set in the Great Depression where the world's economy declined. The novel shows how events that cannot be controlled by ordinary people can affect them negatively. Both writers use the theme of domestic tragedy in which the protagonists are ordinary middle-class or lower-class individuals. They use this theme and lower class individuals to emphasize how the American dream is false. The writers use this to show how people who cannot control the economic processes and systems are left crushed and cannot reach their dreams even if they work hard in society. The protagonists of both stories are made redundant by society. This is shown in Death Of A Salesman when Willy is fired because he can no longer be of use to the company he worked for. This is also shown in Of Mice And Men when George and Lennie are travelling to a different part of America to find work. This suggests that the writers believe that you have to be born into power or be born into a rich family to be successful and that people who were born into
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