Why are George and Lennie different from the other men?
George and Lennie are different from the other men in many
ways.
One way in which they are different is through their
friendship. This friendship is shown in the quote 'got kinda used to each other
after a little while.' Their friendship sets them apart from other men because
travelling alone was normal for the time. OMAM (Of Mice and Men) is set in
1930's America. In that time, loneliness was expected and it was unheard of for
men to travel and be friends with one another. This is made apparent throughout
the book when different ranch workers ask about their relationship. 'After a
little while' suggests that it didn't come naturally to George and Lennie to
make friends, which backs up the idea that their thoughts are typical of the
time. Although they are best friends, the word 'kinda' shows that George is
hesitant to show the extent of his friendship with Lennie, which once again
suggests that admitting feelings for people doesn't come naturally to him.
These are all typical views of the time.
Another way in which George and Lennie are different is
through Lennie's mental disability. In the quote 'I wanna tend rabbits', it is
obvious that Lennie's mind works in a more childish way that that of other men.
Lennie's mental disability makes him act like a child. The disability sets them
apart from the other men because mental disabilities were viewed differently in
the 1930s. People with them were often institutionalised, or expected to stay
at home about be cared for by a family member. Lennie still works on ranches
with George, showing that he isn't like the other men of the time. George likes
to keep Lennie's problem under wraps, as he knows that Lennie could be locked
up or not given a job because of it. This is why he tells Lennie not to talk to
the ranch's boss when they are looking for work. Lennie is demanding, which is
shown in the word 'wanna.' This is another childish trait that he has that
proves his child like nature and justifies his dependency on George.
A final way that Lennie and George are different to the
other men is because all of the other ranch workers had grown to accept that
they would be working on ranches their whole life, and they had given up on
anything better. George talks about this in this quote: 'With us it ain't like
that. We got a future.' Though the other workers have dreams too, the American
Dream, they are all quite happy to carry on working and travelling from ranch
to ranch. George and Lennie are not like this. They are only working until they
have enough money to buy a small farm for themselves. George and Lennie had
already worked everything out and knew exactly what they had to do to be able
to reach their dream, which makes them different to the majority of other men
in 1930's America. George knows this, and that is why he says 'with us it ain't
like that.'
A/N- example essays for the GCSE subjects were written when
I was studying the books, which was around the Y9-11 mark. My writing has
greatly improved since then, but these essays were marked at around an A, so I
thought I'd leave them as they were. I find that this gives a more accurate
representation of GCSE level work.
Thank you!
Anna xx
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