Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men

Recent paperback cover
Author	John Steinbeck
Cover artist	Ross MacDonald
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre	Novella
Publisher	Spangler
Publication date	1937
Media type	Print (Hardback & Paperback)
Pages	107
ISBN	ISBN 0-14-017739-6

Of Mice and Men is a novella by Nobel Prize winning author John Steinbeck, published in 1937, which tells the tragic story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two displaced Anglo migrant ranch workers in California during the Great Depression.

Based on Steinbeck's own experience as a bindle stiff in the 1920s (before the arrival of the Okies he would vividly describe in The Grapes of Wrath), the title is taken from Robert Burns's poem, To a Mouse, which is often quoted as: "The best-laid plans of mice and men go oft awry." Required reading in many American, Australian, British, New Zealand and Canadian high schools, Of Mice and Men has been a frequent target of censors for what some consider "offensive" and "vulgar" language, and appears on the American Library Association's list of the Most Challenged Books of 21st Century.

Plot summary

Two migrant workers in California during the Great Depression – George Milton: small in stature, intelligent, and cynical, but caring; and Lennie Small: physically strong, but a mentally limited man – come to a ranch in Soledad, California to "work up a stake". They hope one day to fulfill their shared dream of settling down on their own piece of land. Lennie's part of the dream, which he never tires of hearing George describe, is merely to have soft rabbits on the farm, which he can pet. George protects Lennie from himself by telling him that if he gets into trouble he won't let him "tend them rabbits": they are fleeing from their previous employment in Weed; the childlike Lennie was run out of town, with George accompanying him, because Lennie's love of stroking soft things resulted in an accusation of attempted rape when he touched a young woman's dress.

At the ranch, the dream appears to become possible. Candy, the aged, one-handed ranch-hand, even offers to pitch in with Lennie and George so they can buy the farm by the end of the month. The dream crashes when Lennie accidentally kills the young and attractive wife of Curley, the ranch owner's son, while trying to stroke her hair. A lynch mob led by Curley gathers. George, realizing he is doomed to a life of loneliness and despair like the rest of the migrant workers, and wanting to spare Lennie a painful death at the hands of the vengeful and violent Curley, shoots Lennie in the back of the head before the mob can find him. The shot comes while Lennie is distracted by one last retelling of the dream.

Characters in Of Mice and Men

• George Milton – The protagonist: a quick-witted man who is friends with Lennie. He looks after Lennie and dreams of a better life. He struggles to take care of Lennie.

• Lennie Small – A developmentally disabled man who travels with George. He dreams of "living off the fatta' the lan'" and being able to tend to rabbits, his obsession being soft bunnies, materials and cuddly animals. His possession of the mental ability of a child but the strength of a "bull", results in him being unable to control or judge even his own strength. This results in a series of accidental killings when they try to escape him (e.g. mice, his puppy, and eventually Curley's wife).

• Candy – A ranch worker who has lost a hand in an accident and is near the end of his useful life on the ranch. He knows he has little to look forward to, especially when another ranch hand, Carlson, decides to kill Candy's dog because it annoys everyone in the bunk house with its bad smell.

• Curley – The boss's son – a young, pugnacious character, once a semi-professional boxer. He is incredibly jealous and protective of his wife. He immediately takes a disliking to Lennie.

• Curley's wife – A young, pretty woman, sometimes called a "tart" by the men and mistrusted by her husband. The other characters refer to her only as "Curley's wife", and she is one of the only characters in the novel without a name. She had dreams of becoming an actress, and is often mean-spirited and bullying towards the ranch hands. She is killed while letting Lennie feel her soft hair, and when she tried to pull away, Lennie shook her and broke her neck.

• Slim – A "jerk line skinner" (the main driver of a mule team), referred to as "prince of the ranch". Slim decides on the mercy-killing of Candy's dog and later tells George he had no choice in the mercy-killing of Lennie. Before this, it is Slim who helps Lennie avoid getting fired after Lennie's fight with Curley.

• Crooks – The only African American hand on the ranch, referred to as a "nigger" by almost all. Like Candy he is crippled; his nickname refers to a crooked back resulting from being kicked by a horse. He sleeps segregated from the other workers, but is fiercely protective of his "rights".

• Carlson – He wants to shoot Candy's old and infirm dog because he doesn't like its smell. He finally does so with the same pistol which was later used by George to shoot Lennie.

• The Boss – Curley's father; owner and director of the ranch.

Style

Of Mice and Men was Steinbeck's first attempt at writing in the form of novel-play, termed a "play-novelette" by one critic. Structured in three acts of two chapters each, it is intended to be both a novella and a script for a play. He wanted to write a novel that could be played from its lines, or a play that could be read like a novel.

Steinbeck originally titled it Something That Happened, however, he changed the title after reading Robert Burns's poem, To a Mouse. Burns's poem tells of the regret the narrator feels for having destroyed the home of a mouse while plowing his field; it suggests that no plan is fool-proof and no one can be completely prepared for the future.

Steinbeck wrote this book, along with The Grapes of Wrath, in what is now Monte Sereno, California. Steinbeck's dog ate an early manuscript of the novel.

Adaptations

Movie poster for 1939 film version of Of Mice and Men.

Cinema

Of Mice and Men was cinematized several times, the first in 1939, only two years after the initial publication of the novel. This adaptation of Of Mice and Men starred Lon Chaney Jr. as Lennie, Burgess Meredith as George, and was directed by Lewis Milestone. It was nominated for four Oscars. In 1981 it was made into a TV movie. This version starred Randy Quaid as Lennie, Robert Blake as George, Ted Neeley as Curley, and was directed by Reza Badiyi.

The most recent film version of Of Mice and Men (1992) was directed by Gary Sinise, who was nominated for the Palme d'Or at Cannes. In addition to directing, Sinise also played the role of George opposite John Malkovich. For this adaptation, both men reprised their roles from a 1980 Steppenwolf Theatre Company production.

Theater

Stage adaptations have also been produced. The first production was by Sam H. Harris, and opened on November 23, 1937, in the Music Box Theatre on Broadway. Running for 207 performances, it starred Wallace Ford as George and Broderick Crawford as Lennie. The role of Crooks was performed by Leigh Whipper, the first African-American member of the Actors' Equity Association. Whipper repeated his role in the 1939 film version. It was chosen as Best Play in 1938 by the New York Drama Critics' Circle. In 1939 the production was moved to Los Angeles, still with Wallace Ford in the role of George, but now with Lon Chaney, Jr., taking on the role of Lenny. Chaney's performance in the role would result in his casting in the movie.

The play was revived in a 1974 Broadway production in the Brooks Atkinson Theatre staring Kevin Conway as George and James Earl Jones as Lennie. Noted stage actress Pamela Blair played Curley's Wife in this production.

In 1970 Carlisle Floyd wrote an opera based on this novel. One departure between Steinbeck's book and Floyd's opera is that the opera features The Ballad Singer, a character not found in the book.

Reception

Attaining the greatest positive response of any of his works up to that time, Steinbeck's novella was chosen as a Book of the Month Club selection before it was published. Praise for the work came from many notable critics, including Maxine Garrad (Enquirer-Sun), Christopher Morley, and Harry Thornton Moore (New Republic). New York Times critic Ralph Thompson described the novel as a "grand little book, for all its ultimate melodrama."

The novella has been banned from various American public and school libraries or curricula for allegedly "promoting euthanasia", being "anti-business", containing profanity, racial slurs, and generally containing "vulgar" and "offensive language". Many of the bans and restrictions have been lifted and it remains required reading in many other American, Australian, British, New Zealand and Canadian high schools, perhaps in part to bring awareness to these societal errors in which Steinbeck aims to bring into light. As a result of being a frequent target of censors, Of Mice and Men appears on the American Library Association's list of the Most Challenged Books of 21st Century (number 4).

Characters similar to George and Lennie have been popular since the publication of Of Mice and Men. Theatrical cartoon shorts of the 1940s and 1950s, particularly the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies cartoons released by Warner Bros., are particularly awash with Of Mice and Men parodies. The Of Mice and Men reference most often in the form of one character asking another, a la, Lennie, "which way did he go, George; which way did he go?" Tex Avery, who worked as a director on Warner-released cartoons during the 1930s and early 1940s, started the trend with Of Fox and Hounds (1940). The formula was so successful that it was used again and again in subsequent shorts, notably Robert McKimson's Cat-Tails for Two (1953) and Chuck Jones' The Abominable Snow Rabbit (1961). Avery used it again when he went on to direct several cartoons starring the George and Lennie dopplegangers George and Junior for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in the late 1940s. What's more, Avery himself provided the voice of "Junior." The parody also appears in Mystery Science Theatre 3000 when a stereotypical 'dumb' person asks, 'Tell me about the rabbits, George'.

For more references in other works, see Of Mice and Men in popular culture

References

Sources

• "Of Mice and Men Factsheet". English Resources. 2002. Retrieved 2007-10-08. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)

External links

• Photos of the first edition of Of Mice and Men