7/28/2019 G&L Relationship (Of Mice and Men)

1/2

Corinne Yau 10Y

How is the relationship between George and Lennie presented in the first half of the novel?

The novel, set in America in the 1920s, features the two protagonists George and Lennie.

Steinbeck creates an intense relationship between them, its purpose to allow the reader to

attach themselves emotionally to the statement hes making. During that time in America the

novel is set in, the main way of life for most men were to be itinerant workers. Technology

was evolving and more and more jobs were given to machines, meaning less and less jobs for

men; men had to move from ranch to ranch, receiving lowly-paid wages. It was extremely

rare to form lasting friendships with another, making the bond between George and Lennie

even more special.

The first impression Steinbeck imprints on us is that George is the leader of the pair.

Lennie, for God sakes dont drink so much. is the first speech the reader is shown.

Steinbeck does this so as to immediately reinforce the idea that George calls the shots and

also controls Lennie to a certain extent. This fact comes into play later in important parts ofthe novel, so it was important to string the feeling of Georges authority early on.

Their relationship is also heavily conveyed as a father and son relationship aside from

Georges leadership. Throughout the whole of the chapters, Lennie is portrayed as a animal

and childlike being, with metaphors such as dabbled his big pawand imitated George

exactly. Still part of the first dialogue, Lennie is warned by George against drinking the

water from the pool as it looks kinda scummy. This is common action of worried parents,

nervous for the wellbeing of their child. Another usage of the feeling of parental feeling is

during when Lennie thought he had lost his work card and George replies with Think Id let

you carry your own work card?. Although this may come across as a little harsh, it is

common practice for parents to assume responsibility over looking after belongings.Steinbeck uses these connections to let the reader, which when he wrote this book was aimed

at adults in America, empathise with George.

At times, George may seemingly act unkindly and cold towards Lennie, examples are him

calling to his face and referring to him as a crazybastard, and his demeanour towards him,

occasionally described as brusquely and imperiously. However, Steinbeck is careful to

make certain that the readers understand that at the end of the day, George will always

irrevocably care for Lennie. This is strongly implied at the closing of chapter one, after a

discussion of an unfortunate incident of the past and a retelling of a shared dream the

atmosphere is created to be serious and George instructs Lennie to Hide in the brush till I

come for you. if he ever came into trouble. This nearly interprets as a direct promise toLennie that he will come to his aid whatever happens. Steinbeck creates this moment to show

how much George is willing to give for Lennie, and it also adds a sense of foreboding to the

novel of what may happen.

A common thing the main characters share with all the other characters is the American

dream. In the time in America, everyone strived in hope to have their own plot of land and to

work for themselves. It was an unrealistic dream for many as their pay was little and was

usually spent in brothels or on drinks. The dream strengthens the bond between George and

Lennie as it gives them both something to aim for. When George talks to Lennie about their

dream, it is written as he repeated his words rhythmically as though he had said them many

times before. This reinforces the idea that it is story shared between them many times, and

one that never gets tired and keeps them going. Steinbeck also creates it so because this gives

7/28/2019 G&L Relationship (Of Mice and Men)

2/2

Corinne Yau 10Y

George a motive to stay with Lennie; when he has someone to look after, it becomes

important for him to look after himself and keep his mind on their goal.

On the other hand, the unusualness of their relationship is represented by their parallel of

Candy and his old dog. Lennie is described as a strong hard worker as Candys dog is also

said to be the best damn sheep dog Candy had ever seen. Just as the other men at the ranch

cannot see reason behind Candys sentimental connection with his old, ill and now useless

sheepdog, neither can they see why George has such a close alliance with the infantile and

such a burdensome man of Lennie. Steinbeck shows how the others try as they might cannot

comprehend the friendship between George and Lennie using the parallel bond of Candy and

his dog. Whynt you shoot him, Candy? Carlson asks Candy bluntly, showing neither

sympathy nor understanding towards their situation.

Steinbeck also emphasises the strength of the two protagonists relationship by generating

Lennies love for dogs. While Lennie completely dotes on puppies, as shown when Georgethanks Slim for giving one of his pups to Lennie and says Hell want to sleep right in the

barn with em., Lennies behaviour is comparable to a dog towards George. Most dogs are

completely answerable to their owners and Lennie always unthinkably obeys George. This

link is also reinforced by Georges patronising manner at Lennie, with him saying Good

boy to Lennie, exactly how one would talk to a dog. This is a clever technique used by

Steinbeck as it shows how much Lennie complies with George without directly reflecting on

the issue.

The relationship between Lennie and George is presented with many different sides. The

leadership within George is shown in the first chapter; Steinbeck also uses this to reinforce

their father and son relationship throughout the whole of the rest of the novel. The Americandream is also an important part of the story that is used to bond the two together, and

Steinbeck has the clever technique of inserting parallel bond meanings to portray the

unusualness and strength of their connection. Their relationship is a major necessity of the

novel for the reader to be able to go through the emotions of the story and feel the message

Steinbeck is trying to bring across, and that is the reason why their relationship is presented

with so many angles and so much depth.