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Of Mice and Men (Throughout the sequences of the story the idea of…

- - - - "If you don' want me I can g off in the hills an' find a cave. I can go away any time." "No—look! I was jus' foolin', Lennie. 'Cause I want you to stay with me." (Steinbeck 103)
        
        In this quote you can see, the loneliness, Lennie would succumb to if George wouldn't take care of him. You can the stuttering in his speech, because he really doesn't know what he would do. He is dependent on George, and can't really imagine living in isolation. You can also see George responding in a kind way, he is responding to Lennie's threats in a good way.
        
        Lennie turned his head. "No, Lennie. Look down there acrost the river, like you can almost see the place." Lennie obeyed him. George looked down at the gun. There were crashing footsteps in the brush now. George turned and looked toward them. "Go on, George. When we gonna do it?" "Gonna fo it soon." "Me an’ you." "You…and me." Ever’body gonna be nice to you. Ain’t gonna be no more trouble. Nobody gonna hurt nobody nor steal from ‘em." Lennie said, "I thought you was mad at me, George." "No," said George. "No, Lennie. I ain’t mad. I never been mad, an’ I ain’t now. That’s a thing I want ya to know." The voices came closer now. George raised the gun and listened to the voices. Lennie begged, "Le’s do it now. Le’s get that place now." "Sure, right now. I gotta. We gotta." And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the mussel of it close to the back of Lennie’s head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger. The crash of the shot rolled up the hills and rolled down again. Lennie jarred, and then settled slowly forward to the sand, and he lay without quivering. George shivered and looked at the gun, and then he threw it from him, back up the bank, near the pile of old ashes.
        
        The ending of the story is the culmination of the previous events in the story. It is the point of highest intensity. It is a changing moment for George and the death of Lennie. This scene symbolizes the the pain of isolation, the influence of intolerance, and the American dream which seems something so distant yet so easy in concept. This passage is representative of the life during The Depression, the crushing of ambitions, and dreams. It is also representative of the deep isolation that is felt during The Depression, the people struggling to find jobs. The people living in fear, in poverty, and in dangerous conditions. It exemplifies the sad realism during that era. "Maybe ever’body in the whole damn world is scared of each other.”
      - Why, I could stay in a cathouse all night. I could eat any place I want, hotel or any place, and order any damn thing I could think of. An' I could do all that every damn month. Get a gallon of whisky, or set in a pool room and play cards or shoot pool." Lennie knelt and looked over the fire at the angry George. And Lennie's face was drawn in with terror. "An' whatta I got," George went on furiously. "I got you! You can't keep a job and you lose me ever' job I get. Jus' keep me shovin' all over the country all the time." (Steinbeck 89)
        
        During his little rant George says that if he were alone he could go to as many whorehouses as he wanted, but he decides against it, because he finds being with Lennie to be greater than that, he doesn't want to live like that. This is an important aspect of George's character, George is a capable man. If he wanted to, he could live well on his own. But he wants to stay with Lennie, we can learn that he doesn't want to be lonely. He values a friend more than being able to be by himself and having more money.
      - “Ain’t many guys travel around together,” he mused. “I don’t know why. Maybe ever’body in the whole damn world is scared of each other.” (Steinbeck ch2)
        
        This quote by Crooks shows his character a lot, it shows how the world has conditioned him into being a isolated sad person. "Maybe ever'body in the whole damn world is scared of each other." This is a really realist statement, that humans might be inherently intolerant of others.
    - - "She's perty' said Lennie defensively. 'Yeah, and she's sure hidin it. Curley got his work ahead of him. Bet she'd clear out for twenty bucks.' "
        (Steinbeck 32)
        
        These quotes are just 2 out of the mountain of intolerance in the story, often when characters reference Curley's wife it is often them objectifying her and stereotyping her based on her gender. Also the fact that Steinbeck decided to not tell us her name and refer to her as Curley's wife it further proves the objectifying of women. She is portrayed as being evil and with no good intent since the start of the book. But if you think about it, her sexualizing herself, behaviors, and speech, it all might just be her, wanting to be accepted in society, she wants to be loved and respected.
      - " 'I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny' " (Steinbeck 81)
        
        Curley's wise threatens Crooks when he asks her to leave his room. When she said that immediately all of Crooks desire to join George and Lennie diminishes as he remembers his place in society. It is due to this intolerance Crooks continues to live in isolation and is hopeless.
    - - I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an’ on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an’ that same damn thing in their heads . . . every damn one of ’em’s got a little piece of land in his head. An’ never a God damn one of ’em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Ever’body wants a little piece of lan’. I read plenty of books out here. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. (Steinbeck 64)
        
        This quote is really representative of the time the story takes place in, The Great Depression. This quote is representative of the people whose dreams are crushed.
        This relates to the end of the story because as George was holding the gun against the back of Lennie's head, he knew that it would have meant an end to his ambitions, and most importantly the death of a friend. George who was a beacon of hope for many of the characters for a better life, now cannot pursue his dreams any longer. He has to accept his fate, and basically, declare his dream null. He is one of the hundreds of men who are bound to accept their fate during this time.
      - "Well," said George, "we'll have a big vegetable patch and a rabbit hutch and chickens. And when it rains in the winter, we'll just say the hell with goin' to work, and we'll build up a fire in the stove and set around it an' listen to the rain comin' down on the roof." (Steinbeck 14)
        
        This quote relates to the Theme of The American Dream, the rabbits are a symbolization of freedom and dream for Lennie, for George it is a thing he can control Lennie with. The whole quote is just the ideal life for George and Lennie, variations of this quote is expressed numerous times throughout the story. The more times it was repeated, it seemed the probability of it happening decreased. It is often expressed from George to Lennie when he does something bad, or if George wants to tell Lennie to do something.