Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck sets his short novel called Of Mice and Men in the fertile farmlands of California's Salinas Valley, on a ranch (For Quote See Appendices 1.1). In Spanish, the town's name, Soledad, means solitude, implying both a physical isolation and a psychological loneliness. Steinbeck incorporates all of the word's meanings into this story of migrant field hands who harvest the nation's crops in the 1930s, examining in the process the root causes of modernity's increased sense of isolation in the loss of community. (For Quote See Appendices 1.2), George tells his weak-minded traveling companion Lennie. (For Quote See Appendices 1.3)

Nearly all the characters suffer from an isolation that renders them powerless. Indeed, the need for companionship seems to compel from them confessions of loneliness that, if anything, make them even more vulnerable. Old Candy, a disabled ranch hand now in charge of cleaning the bunkhouse because he can no longer work in the fields, awaits to be dismissed, only to lose companionship. When his only source of affection, an old and feeble dog, is euthanized by his fellow ranch hands, Candy recognizes his own fate. ( For Quote See Appendices 1.4). Crook's is ostracized by the others and must eat and bunk alone. Only Lennie, ignorant of racial norms, will join him in his room for companionship. (For Quote See Appendices 1.5). Even Curley's wife, bored and lonely in her marriage, joins the other outcasts gathered in Crooks's room. (For Quote See Appendices 1.6) she later tells Lennie. (For Quote See Appendices 1.7)

Although they come together by the need for companionship, Steinbeck's characters are often hampered in their efforts to connect with others by the effects of prolonged isolation. (For Quote See Appendices 1.8) George tells Slim. (For Quote See Appendices 1.9). Steinbeck illustrates the interactions ...