Of Mice and Men Study Guide

Of Mice and Men Study Guide Of Mice and Men is a 1937 novella by John Steinbeck. Set during the Great Depression, the book tells the story of George Milton and Lennie Small, two migrant workers and long-time friends employed on a ranch in California. Through its use of colloquial language and detailed characterization, Of Mice and Men offers an unsparing portrait of its characters and the violent and harsh conditions they face. Fast Facts: Of Mice and Men Author: John SteinbeckPublisher: Viking PressYear Published: 1937Genre: Literary fictionType of Work: NovellaOriginal Language: EnglishThemes: The nature of dreams, strength vs. weakness, man vs. natureCharacters: George Milton, Lennie Small, Curley, Candy, Crooks, Curley’s wifeNotable Adaptations: 1939 film directed by Lewis Milestone, 1992 film directed by Gary SiniseFun Fact: John Steinbecks dog ate an early draft of Of Mice and Men. Plot Summary George and Lennie are two farm workers traveling through California in search of work. When the novella begins, they have just been kicked off a bus while journeying to their latest ranch. They spend the night in a makeshift shelter and arrive at the ranch in the morning. The ranch owner is initially hesitant because Lennie, who is physically strong but has a mental disability, doesnt speak, but he ultimately accepts the men as workers. Lennie and George meet fellow ranch hands Candy, Carlson, and Slim, as well as Curley, the son of the ranch owner. Curley, a diminutive but confrontational man, verbally targets Lennie. Carlson shoots Candys old, dying dog. Lennie reveals that he and George have a plan to buy their own land someday, and Candy offers to join them, pitching in his own money. Slim gives Lennie a puppy from his own dog’s recent litter. The next day, Curley attacks Lennie once more. Out of fear, Lennie grabs Curleys fist and crushes it. Later, the ranch workers go out drinking, and Lennie stays behind. He talks to Crooks, an African American farm hand who lives separately from the other workers. Curleys wife approaches and asks what happened to her husbands hand. When none of the men tell her, she berates Crooks with racial slurs and threats. The following day, Lennie accidentally kills his puppy by petting it too hard. Curleys wife finds him with the puppys body in the barn. Lennie and Curleys wife begin to converse. Curleys wife reveals her former dreams of Hollywood stardom and offers to let Lennie touch her hair. While doing so, Lennie unintentionally breaks her neck and kills her. When the farm workers discover Curleys wifes body, Curley begins a vengeful pursuit of Lennie, with the other workers in tow. George takes Carlsons gun and breaks away from the group in order to meet Lennie at their predetermined spot. George tells Lennie all about the beautiful future in which they have a farm of their own to tend to rabbits, then finally shoots Lennie in the back of the head. Major Characters Lennie Small. Contrary to his surname, Lennie is an extremely large and physically strong man. However, he is also gentle-hearted and often fearful. Lennie has a mental disability and is dependent on George for protection. He loves rubbing soft materials and small creatures, from mice to puppies to hair. This desire leads to unintentional destruction and even death. George Milton. Crafty and resourceful, George is both the domineering leader and loyal protector of Lennie. Although he sometimes complains about taking care of Lennie, he is deeply committed to him. At the end of the novella, George decides to kill Lennie in order to protect him from greater harm at the hands of the other ranch workers. Curley. Curley is the son of the ranch owner and a former Golden Gloves boxer. Despite his small stature, Curley picks fights and struts around confidently. He is a jealous husband who rages at his wife. He also targets Lennie, despite the fact that gentle Lennie doesnt want a fight. When Lennie accidentally kills Curleys wife, Curley seeks out Lennie in a murderous rage. Candy. Candy is an old farm worker who has lost a hand. He owns an aging dog that Carlson insists upon shooting. When Candy overhears Lennie talk about his plan to buy some land with George, Candy offers up $350 of his own money to join them. Crooks. Crooks, the only African American character on the farm, lives away from the other workers in segregated quarters. He is world-weary and skeptical of Lennies dream of buying land. Crooks faces racism on the ranch, most notably when Curleys wife verbally attacks him with racial slurs and violent threats. Curley’s wife. Curleys wife, whose name is never mentioned, is treated badly by her husband and warily by the other farm workers. She has a flirtatious nature, but she also expresses loneliness and lost dreams during a conversation with Lennie. When Crooks and Lennie refuse to tell her what happened to her husbands hand, she verbally attacks Crooks with racial slurs and threats. She ultimately dies an accidental death at Lennies hands. Major Themes The Nature of Dreams. Dreams play a key role in Of Mice and Men. Most significantly, George and Lennie share a dream of owning their own land, but their perspectives on this dream differ significantly. In Lennies mind, the dream is sure to become reality; for George, discussing the dream is a way to comfort Lennie and pass the time in a harsh environment. Strength vs. Weakness. In Of Mice and Men, strength and weakness have a complex relationship. This relationship is most evident in Lennie, whose physical strength is a direct contrast to his gentle and guileless personality. In the tough world of the book, strength- particularly mental toughness- is essential. Man vs. Nature. Tension between the human world and the natural world exists throughout Of Mice and Men. Sometimes the characters exert control over the natural world, and sometimes, the natural world rises up to overpower the characters. Ultimately, the novella suggests that the natural and human worlds- the worlds of mice and men- are not so different after all. Literary Style Of Mice and Mens literary style is largely simple and straightforward. The dialogue is written in a colloquial dialect intended to reflect the working-class backgrounds of the ranch workers, whose speech is also peppered with slang terms and vulgar expressions. The novella is also notable for its use of foreshadowing. Lennies accidental murder of the puppy parallels his accidental murder of Curleys wife; the apparent mercy killing of Candys dog mirrors the mercy killing of Lennie. Of Mice and Men has been the subject of censorship due to its harsh subject matter, but it remains one of the most widely-read works of American literature of the 20th century. About the Author Born in 1902, John Steinbeck is one of the most prominent and widely-read American writers of the 20th Century. Much of his work focuses on everyman protagonists in California during the Great Depression. He said that Of Mice and Men was inspired in part by his own experiences alongside migrant workers during the 1910s. In addition to Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck penned over two dozen books, including The Grapes of Wrath (1939) and East of Eden (1952).  He won both a Pulitzer Prize and a Nobel Prize.

List of Greek Words in the English Language

List of Greek Words in the English Language List of Greek Words in the English Language List of Greek Words in the English Language By Michael After French, Latin and Viking (and Old English of course, but that is English), the Greek language has contributed more words to modern English than any other perhaps 5%. Many Greek words sprang from Greek mythology and history. Knowing those subjects was evidence that a person was educated, so dropping a reference to Greek literature was encouraged even into the 20th century. From Greek mythology, we get words such as atlas, chaos, chronological, erotic, herculean, hypnotic, muse, nectar, promethean, and even cloth. But most Greek-origin words in English did not come straight from ancient Greek. Many are modern, not ancient, combinations of Greek root words. For example, you probably know the telephone was not used by the ancient Greeks. But the word itself is all Greek, made up of the Greek words for distant and sound. Besides tele and phon, common Greek roots include anti, arch, auto, bio, centro, chromo, cyclo, demo, dys, eu, graph, hydro, hypo, hyper, logo, macro, mega, meta, micro, mono, paleo, para, philo, photo, poly, pro, pseudo, psycho, pyro, techno, thermo and zoo. Among others. Comparing the original and the modern meanings of Greek words that became English words sometimes shows not only how much language has changed, but how much culture has changed. idiot Someone of very low intelligence. For the ancient Greeks, an idiot was a private citizen, a person not involved in civil government or politics. Related: idiosyncracy, idiom, and other individualistic words. metropolis The Greek roots of this word are â€Å"mother† and â€Å"city. Socrates, convicted in court of corrupting the youth with his philosophy, was given a choice between drinking poison or exile from his mother city of Athens. He chose poison because he wasnt an idiot, in the ancient sense. If you chose exile, you might be an idiot in the ancient sense, but you would be a live idiot. acrobat This circus performer who demonstrates feats of physical agility by climbing to the very top of the rope gets his name from the Greek words high and walk, with the sense of rope dancer and tip-toe. bacterium From a Greek word that means stick because under a microscope (another Greek word), some bacteria look like sticks. cemetery The Greek word koimeterion meant sleeping place, dormitory. Early Christian writers adopted the word for burial ground, and thats why college students stay in the dormitory and not in the cemetery. dinosaur You may have heard this one before. Our word for these ancient reptiles is a modern (1841) combination of the Greek words for terrible and lizard. hippopotamus The ancient Greeks called this large, moist African animal a hippopà ³tamos, from the words for â€Å"horse† and â€Å"river.† In other words, river horse. rhinoceros Continuing our African theme, this large, dry African animal is named after the Greek words for nose and horn. Horns usually dont grow on noses. history The Greek word historà ­a meant inquiry, record, narrative. dialogue A monologue has one speaker, but a dialogue doesnt necessarily have two speakers (that would be a di-logue, but theres no such word). Dialogue comes from Greek words that mean across-talk, and more than two people can do that if they take turns. economy The Greek word for â€Å"household administration† has been expanded to mean the management of money, goods, and services for an entire community or nation. But economical still refers to personal thrift. metaphor In ancient times, this word meant â€Å"transfer† or â€Å"carrying over.† When my grandfather called my grandmother a peach, metaphorically speaking, he used a figure of speech that transferred the sweetness of the fruit to his sweet wife. planet The ancient Greeks get blamed for everything wrong with astronomy before the Renaissance, but they were astute enough to notice that while most stars stood still, some wandered from year to year. The word planet comes from the Greek word for wandering. schizophrenia People with this mental disorder have been described as having a split personality, and the name comes from Greek words for split and mind. Symptoms may include hallucinations, delusions, or disorganized speech. technology This word was not limited to industry or science until the mid-19th century, during the Industrial Revolution. Originally it referred to technique (same Greek root) or the systematic study of an art or craft – the art of grammar, at first, and later the fine arts. grammatical Speaking of grammar, the Ancient Greek word grammatike meant â€Å"skilled in writing.† Now it means correct in writing. syntax A combination of Ancient Greek words that mean â€Å"together† and â€Å"arrangement.† Syntax is how words are arranged together. sarcasm Though it was used to describe bitter sneering, the Greek word sarkazein literally meant to cut off flesh, which you might feel has happened to you when subjected to cutting sarcasm or critical humor. sycophant Not a word that Ive ever used, but you might like it. It means servile, self-seeking flatterer. In ancient Greek, it meant one who shows the fig. That referred to an insulting hand gesture that respectable Greek politicians wouldnt use against their opponents, but whose shameless followers could be encouraged to do so. telescope Another all-Greek word that wasnt invented by the Greeks, but perhaps by the Dutch around 1600. Its roots mean far-seeing and Galileo Galilei was one of the first astronomers to use a telescope to see faraway things. As you can see, Greek is deeply woven into modern English. To prove it, in the late 1950s, Greek economist Xenophon Zolotas gave two speeches in English, but using only Greek words, except for articles and prepositions. The results were rather high-sounding, but mostly comprehensible. As you become more familiar with Greek words, English will be easier to understand. And probably, more colorful. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! 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