Literature Essay Outline: Loneliness (student work)

Introduction

·        Most common theme in this novel

·        It has the biggest effect on people

·        The time of the Great Depression

·        One of the reasons why the American Dream has not happened for any of them.

Crooks

·        Only black man on ranch-“Cause I’m black they play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black.”

·        Crippled

·        No one comes to visit him- “I ain’t wanted in the bunk house and you ain’t wanted in my room.”

·        Marginalised

·        Has to take care of himself

·        Takes his medicines by himself

Lennie

·        Worries George will leave him alone

·        Mentally weak

·        Dependent on George

·        Physically strong

·        Mentally weak

·        No one understands him and vice versa

·        Gets taken advantage of

·        Has no control over his power

Candy

·        Oldest man on the ranch

·        Also marginalised

·        A “mere swamper”

·        When he loses his dog, he loses a friend. “I had ‘im ever since he was a pup.”

Curley’s wife

·        Lives as Curley’s property-“I don’t like Curley. He ain’t a nice fella”

·        Looks for comfort

·        Gets no love from Curley- “I get awful lonely.”

·        Uses Curley as excuse for attention

·        Seductive to find love

 

George

·        Wasn’t lonely when Lennie was alive

·        Became lonely when he died

·        Started looking for comfort in a whore house

·        Didn’t really trust anyone

·        At the end of the novel

Conclusion

·        Evidence of popularity of the theme of loneliness

·        More successful characters (e.g. Slim, Curley, the boss)

ü Less lonely.

·        All characters are weak which contradicts loneliness

Literature Essay Outline: George 2 (student work)

Intro:

· George significant because he has a strong dependence on Lennie

· He and Lennie share the same dream of getting their own ranch one day

· Last name ‘milton’ relation to John Milton who wrote a poem about shattered dreams

Main Ideas:

His features:

· George has defined features ‘sharp, strong features’ – shows he is independent

· Described as a leader ‘the first man’

Loneliness:

· George, having killed Lennie, is now forced to live life alone without a confidant

· In opening chapter Lennie & George walk in single file as opposed to side by side which shows disconnection and that they were not linked in any way ‘They had walked in single file, even in the open one stayed behind the other’

· George is always going to the whorehouse to seek attention. Shows his life is pointless without Lennie ‘give me a good whorehouse everytime’

Weakness:

· George uses Lennie as a scapegoat

· He blames Lennie for all his failures and for holding him back

Dependence on Lennie

· Lennie needs George for mental ability and George needs Lennie for physical strength

· George enjoys having a companion and someone to travel around with eventhough Lennie is a drawback ‘Lennie’s God damn nuisance most of the time but you get use’ to goin’ around with a guy’

· Especially at time of Great Depression, George would’ve felt extremely lonely so would’ve liked having a companion

· Feels superior to Lennie and bosses him around, Lennie always listens to him

Friendship:

· Slim is the only one who understands George and shows empathy towards him after he shoots Lennie ‘you hadda George. I swear you hadda.’

· George holds authority over Lennie ‘don’t drink so much’

· George confides in Slim and trusts his opinion, they are both intelligent

· George and Lennie’s friendship parallel to Candy and his dog

Shattered Dreams:

· George’s disability to get the dream ranch is inevitable due to Lennie’s destructible behaviour

· Lennie and George get close to their dream when Candy tries to contribute and be part of it

Conclusion:

· George’s dependence on Lennie results in failure of achieving his dream ranch as Lennie was a vital part of the plan

Literature Essay Outline: George (student work)

The character George in Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ is a literary illusion to John Milton who wrote ‘Paradise Lost’. This book foreshadows shattered dreams for the character George throughout the novella. Straight away we see paradise ruined in Chapter 1 when we see nature disrupted by man. George is also significant because as part of the microcosm of the Great Depression, George is a character which stands out for having a strong companionship, which was unnatural at the time.

 Appearance

·         Small & thin

·         Simple description signifies simple nature

·         “defined” suggests his sharp character

Aggressive

·         When Candy tries to get involved with the dream George jumps in “you got nothing with us”

·         Wants Lennie to fight Curley back

·         Gets frustrated with Lennie  - Lennie doesn’t always listen – has to repeat everything

·         George snaps at Slim for thinking it is unusual to have a companion

Dependant on his dream

·         Was ready to go as soon as he could

·         Lennie’s behaviour is unpredictable - Could ruin dream at any moment

·         Has to work for people he doesn’t respect (Curley)

 Leader to Lennie

·         First scene walked ahead of Lennie

·         Helps him get out of trouble (in Weed)

·         Relied on simple things; getting a job and finding food

·         George has more power than Lennie

·         ‘George won’t let me tend rabbits’ – Lennie does what he is told and worries about what George will think

·         Lennie has great respect for him – opening scene – ‘imitated George exactly’

·         Authoritative figure – ‘don’t drink so much’

 Realistic

·         Lies under the stars and is happy (Ch1) – enjoys being free

·         George tells Lennie off for his own good

·         Tries to help him learn “I got you to look after me and you got me to look after you”

·         Can read people

·         Trusts slim

·         Hates Curley immediately – trouble for Lennie

·         Curley’s Wife is dangerous ‘poison’

 George would be fine alone

·         Lennie inflicts trouble – restrains his bright future

·         “If I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an’ work an’ no trouble”

·         Good at finding work

·         Reasonably smart

Friendship

·         Lennie brings George companionship – lets him believe his dream could come true

·         Takes advantage of power over Lennie – told him to jump into river – saved him – told Slim he will never do anything like that again

·         Calls Lennie a “crazy bastard” – projects his frustration on Lennie

·         Loyalty – “I want you to stay with me, Lennie”

·         Kills Lennie for the better

·         Lost his companionship and shatters his dream

·         Subconsciously dependant on Lennie as he braves him for his failures

·         George defends Lennie – ‘George broke in “Lennie was jus’ scairt”’

 Lonely

·         Plays solitaire which is a solitary game

·         Lennie is hard to converse with as he is mentally weak

·         Unable to settle down, have family, have secure job – Lennie unpredictable

·         After killing Lennie - alone

 

Literature Essay Outline: Curley's wife (student work)

Curley’s Wife

1)    Introduction

a)     Most significant because…

b)    She affects most of the characters as she is the catalyst for Lennie’s death

c)     She is seen as a risk because of her promiscuity and her position  on the ranch

d)    She is greatly affected by the theme of loneliness due to her marginalisation

e)     This is the source of her need for attention, good or bad

 

2)    Key Features of CW’s character

a)     Promiscuous – most prominent aspect of her character ‘She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers…Her voice had a nasal, brittle quality.’ ‘She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward.’ ‘She said playfully.’

b)    Shallow – lack of description for personality

c)     Lonely – only women on ranch and marginalised (attention-seeking) ‘”Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever’ once in a while”’

d)    Dramatic – wanted to be an actress + uses this to her advantage

 

3)    Key events involving CW

a)     Despite her efforts to force her presence upon the men, she is not involved in many significant events

b)    The only times we see her are when she intrudes on the men – she has no purpose so she just appears randomly ‘For the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off’

c)     The most significant event she is involved in is her death – but only because she died

 

4)    Interactions with other characters

a)     She is attention seeking

b)    tries to force her presence upon the men – they see through her feeble attempts at befriending them

c)     when in the company of the ‘weak ones’ she takes advantage of Curley’s position of power on the ranch as she can’t  enforce her miniscule bit of authority on the more powerful characters ‘”Listen, Nigger... I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny”’

d)     

e)     she loves to be in control as she does not often get the opportunity

f)      when in the company of the ‘weak ones’ she expresses her frustration

g)     she takes advantage of her aspiring actress skills to manipulate the weaker characters

h)    the workers see her as a risky character to interact with – George refers to her as ‘jailbait’ (‘I seen ‘em poison before, but I never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her’)

i)       she creates tension between the other men

 

5)    Key themes connected with CW

a)     Loneliness – she is the only women on the ranch and has no friends or companions as her relationship with Curley is purely sexual

b)    Marginalisation – she is marginalised because of her gender

c)     Shattered Dreams – she wanted to be an actress though her dream was shattered when her mother would not let her go ‘”Coulda been in the movies and had nice clothes.”’

d)    Sexism – in the 1930s, women were still discriminated against

e)     Anger (frustration) – she is frustrated and angry with her life and situation, she could’ve had a better life as she tells Lennie

 

6)    Conclusion

a)     The most significant character in the novella

b)    She affects the lives of most of the other characters and is the cause for the main event in the novella

c)     She poses a constant threat to their jobs and well being

d)    The main theme affecting her is loneliness as she is marginalised by the other characters

e)     This is the theme that drives her to be so promiscuous and intrusive on the men