2018 OMAM blog (F period)

In Part 3 (pgs. 38-51), one of the main focuses was the mercy killing of the dog (and exactly how merciful it really was). However, another interesting focus was the friendship developing between Slim and George. They had a nice conversation, and their personalities seemed to match up to each other very well. For example, when George talks about how he's stuck with Lennie, Slim says, " 'I can see Lennie ain't a bit mean.' " Even when George tells Slim about what happened in Weed, Slim still stands firm with his idea, saying, " 'He ain't mean...I can tell a mean guy a mile off.' " This shows that Slim has a kind heart and is a steadfast leader, a good combination. However, he's not just kind to George. Just before Candy's dog is killed, Slim says, " 'Candy, you can have any one of them pups you want.' " This shows that Slim cares about others as well, and will help people through tough times. Overall, I feel th...

Great writers come up with great ways to end novels (hence the name "great writers"). But the end of Steinbeck's short novella Of Mice and Men is a particularly touching scene. After accidentally killing Curley's wife, George finds Lennie at the hiding space, and shoots him. If this is how you described it to someone else, they would not think of it as touching. Violent, maybe. Jarring. But not touching. What actually makes this scene so profound is how Steinbeck executes it. He begins by describing the tranquil pond featured in the beginning of the book; the fact that this will be a scene of gruesome violence in pages to come is extremely ironic. Lennie than crashes through the bushes, and Steinbeck wrenches the reader's heart by describing the visions Lennie sees. These include his Aunt Clara, who berates him for being such a nuisance to George, and the rabbit, who cruelly taunts Lennie by saying he's going to leave him after his failed efforts. In a stron...

         Part 4 was set entirely in Crooks' bunk room, but some pretty notable events occurred. For example, Crooks was able to bond with Lennie and Candy despite being a largely unnoticed black stable hand, Candy and Lennie interested Crooks in buying a ranch for themselves, and Curley's wife parted from her "seductive temptress" persona in a rather startling moment. This whole part is very intriguing, so I decided to take a closer look at these characters developing.          Before this point in the book, we hadn't really gotten to know Crooks very well. We just knew he was a stable hand on the ranch. However, Part 4 expanded Crooks' presence dramatically, really showing us how he is important to the ranch. Although he initially did not want Lennie or Candy in his room, he opened up to them over time, saying, " 'Come on in. If everybody's comin' in, you might just as well,' ". The book also notes that "it was difficult for C...

I am particularly interested in how the "unimportant" characters on the ranch are treated. After Part 2, I am intrigued by the treatment of Curley's wife, Crooks, and Candy. Curley's wife appears briefly at the door of the bunkhouse, looking for Curley, but doesn't find him. Steinbeck describes her as "heavily made up", wearing a "cotton house dress." When she inquires about Curley, she "throws her body forward" and says, "Nobody can blame a person for lookin'," as Lennie ogles her. I think that she is used to being treated as an object and valued only for sex appeal, and I think Curly treats her this way as well. Crooks is also interesting. He is described briefly with epithets and called "Stable Buck" for the entire chapter--such as when a car pulls up outside and a man yells, "Stable Buck!" This shows that he is not valued as a person and given little thought. Lastly, Candy's position as a ...