How Does Steinbeck Use Lennie's Fantasy To The American Dream

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What is it like to have all hope lost and dreams crushed? A mute world deprived of vibrance. For a second, color appears. Your desires have a chance at reality, it seems. But the color dies away, you feel foolish, it was never real in the first place, and you knew that. Though the monochrome world seems duller than before. This is exactly what many characters in the book, “Of Mice and Men,” go through. Our main characters, George and Lennie, go through different types of death in the midst of the Great Depression. Everything starts with the murder of Curley’s wife, a ripple in a pond that kills Lennie and George. A woman who was never given a name throughout the book. Her identity only began through her marriage. Curley’s wife is murdered at the hands of a man who …show more content…
The obsession for success through determination and hard work. Steinbeck lived through the Great Depression. The American Dream seemed impossible back then, and it was for most. The death of Lennie’s dream in this story embodies what the American Dream was for most during the Great Depression. This book is tainted with the theme of death, from the beginning until the end. Each death connects to another, less significant one. For example, Curley’s wife’s demise parallels the death of a puppy. Lennie received a puppy from Slim, but it died due to Lennie’s accidental injury. Same for Curley’s wife, too. Lennie’s death relates to the killing of Candy’s dog. Candy’s dog is old and useless. One of the farm workers, Carlson, wanted it killed, so he did it himself. Candy had the opportunity to shoot his dog himself, but he didn’t. And he’ll live with that forever. Although they can be compared, George makes the opposite decision. He killed Lennie himself, Curley didn’t. Understanding the significance of these deaths helps to see the connections that John Steinbeck forged, creating the brilliant story, “Of Mice and
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