Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men
George needs Lennie as much as Lennie needs George. Discus.

You must consider the context of the novel in your answer. 40 marks.
Throughout the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’, Steinbeck portrays Lennie needing
George more than George needs Lennie, therefore I disagree with the statement
“George needs Lennie as much as Lennie needs George”. This is evident in the
opening scene where George demonstrates his dominance over Lennie through
"you know God damn well what. I want that mouse.", thereby this presents his
authority and ‘father-like figure’ towards Lennie. This is further represented
throughout the novella where George reminds Lennie of their dreams, yet George
does not see their dreams in terms of rabbits; instead, he sees it in a practical
way, in which they can be independent and safe from Lennie getting them into
trouble. Thereby, Steinbeck portrays that as a result of the great depression,
many migrant workers like Lennie and George had an ‘American dream’ during
the 1930s, to keep them working through these unbearable times. The near
impossibility of attaining the American Dream in the face of huge economical
and social challenges, mirrors the poem “To a Mouse”, where the mouse is
Lennie and George is the farmer. The story line depicts the destruction of a
mouse’s home by a plow in which the farmer helps rebuild it, similarly George
helps Lennie through the great depression. Like the mouse, Lennie is seen as an
animal and acts “small” due to his autistic characteristics which he exhibits
throughout the novella. Animal imagery used throughout the novella shows that
during the Great Depression, people lack humanity and reverted to animalistic
tendencies, as well as the idea of survival of fittest. Steinbeck uses the
destruction of the house as a metaphor for the harsh reality of life and that,
although people have hopes, they will be destroyed.
Throughout the novella, Steinbeck highlights George and Lennie’s friendship as a

complex one: whereas George provides Lennie with protection, Lennie is able to
provide George with company; George says that ranchers are “the loneliest guys
in the world”, but the pair are spared that loneliness because of their friendship.
Although Lennie is described like a bear and a horse, in contrast with George’s
‘sharp’, ‘clever’ face, the ritual of reciting the story of the dream farm gives
George something to hope for. At the end of chapter one, Steinbeck follows
George’s harsh comment “go to hell…shut up now” with a calming description of
the nighttime valley. This allows the reader to feel that, despite his harsh words,
George and Lennie’s friendship brings a feeling of peacefulness to both of them.
In addition, the bond that George and Lennie share is so strong that when one is
destroyed, the other inevitably is as well. Therefore, the conclusion of the novella
illustrates what life would be like for George and Lennie without the other:
hopeless. George shooting Lennie is a parallel scene to Candy’s dog being shot.,
as George does it himself in an attempt to be ‘cruel to be kind’ - it is better that he
does it than lets Lennie fall into the hands of Curley. Lennie’s death represents
the death of the American Dream and the loss of hope.
It can be argued that Lennie needs George for basic survival as without him,
Lennie wouldn’t live very long due to his irresponsible nature. However, on the
other hand, George needs Lennie for purpose in his life. Even though George
finds Lennie a burden, he keeps him around due to the companionship and the
need for humanity. In which relationships were rare in Great Depression, and
especially for migrant works who were seen as “dust bowls” for moving around
the country and never having a place to settle.
Lennie acts as a light of hope for George as even though Lennie doesn’t
understand the American Dream, he influences George to believe in it due to
repeating it so often that George starts to believe that it could be true. Therefore,
Lennie makes George feel hopeful and provides purpose in George’s life due to
their strong friendship. This mirrors George’s role towards Lennie through the
use of imperatives throughout the novella to show his care and parental figure.
Therefore, it can be argued that George and Lennie are one; they are two halves
of a body. Lennie represents innocence and vulnerability due to his disability in
which Steinbeck suggests that there is no place for this during the Great
Depression. George shows awareness of Lennie’s weakness to eugenics scrutiny
when he lies to the boss that Lennie “was kicked by a horse in the head as a
child”, as a brain injury was much less threatening to society and more socially
acceptable than autism.
Therefore, in my opinion it can be argued that Lennie needs George more than
George needs Lennie, as George is responsible and wouldn’t have had such
difficulties if it weren’t for Lennie, yet without him, George would have had no
companionship and been hopeless like the other migrant workers. Whereas
Lennie needs George to survive due to his autism and frivolity.

Of Mice and Men - Friendship

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George needs Lennie as much as Lennie needs George. Discus.

Throughout the novella, Steinbeck highlights George and Lennie’s friendship as a

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