Of Mice and men
... I finished reading the book I realised that the full significance of the title was something deeper. I was then introduced to this quote. “The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men Gang aft agley.” This is a famous quote from the Robert Burns poem “To A Mouse.” Roughly translated this means that no matter how much planning and preparation you put into something, your plans often go astray. Everything comes down to fate in the end. I believe that this simple quotation sums up the entire idea of the novel and it is through this that Steinbeck is able to demonstrate his talent in relating to human nature. Throughout the novel George and Lennie are constantly referring to their desire for their own ranch. “Some day - we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an’ a cow and some pigs and...” This fantasy is a microcosm of the “American Dream.” Both characters admit a longing for a different life. The dreamers wish for untarnished happiness, for the freedom to follow their own desires. Owning their own farm would provide both George and Lennie protection from an inhospitable world. Their journey, which awakens George to the impossibility of the dream sadly proves that, in this world, such freedom and safety simply does not exist. The theory of the “American Dream” is that if you work hard enough you can achieve anything you wish for yourself and there will be nothing to stand in your way. However, to my mind I think that it boils down to the same ideas as the quotation from “To A Mouse”, if what you want is not meant to be then it will not happen regardless of the time and effort put in to realising your dream. It is through the events at the end of this novel that Steinbeck ultimately manages to deliver this point. By innocently entering the barn to go and see his puppy, Lennie sets in motion a chain of events which ultimately proves to be, not only his downfall, but also that of George. Lennie goes into the barn to visit his puppy and accidentally kills it by petting it too hard. Whilst in the barn he is joined by Curley’s wife and Lennie begins to stroke her hair but gets too rough and they both panic and Lennie ends up breaking her neck. When everyone finds out about the accident the ranch men organise a mob to hunt Lennie down and kill him. In the end George decides that it would be kinder to kill Lennie himself than have him brutally murdered scared and alone. This point in the story is a perfect example of Steinbeck’s clever use of symbolism as Lennie kills both the puppy and Curley’s wife through his failure to recognise h...