Thats What Friends Are For
"Of Mice and Men" is a book about 2 men and their struggle to achieve their dream of owning a farm through their companionship. The two men are completely different, one being a retarded fellow(Lennie), and the other, a typical ranch hand(George) who travels with him. On the path to achieving their dream, they run into obstacles, but stick together, stressing the importance of true friendship. Steinbeck wrote this book to tell us how important it is to have a friend to share your life with.
The book starts off set in Soledad, which, when translated into English means "lonely". But when Lennie and George are together, they are anything but lonely. They share a friendship so great that if either person dies, or both are separated, they other could not survive. Their friendship is a true one, where they share their lives together, benefitting from each others company. "Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don't belong no place. They come to a ranch an' work up a stake and then they go inta town and blow their stake, and the first thing you know they're pounding in' their tail on some other ranch. They ain't got nothing to look ahead to....With us it ain't like that. We got a future. We got somebody to talk to that give as a damn about us. We don't have to sit in no bar room blow in' in our jack jus' because we got no place else to go. If them other guys gets in jail then can rot for all anybody gives a damn. But not us. But not us! An' why? Because.....because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that's why."(p.13-14) Because of the extent of Lennie and George's friendship, they go beyond the mere sharing of words. George and Lennie share a dream of owning a farm, due to their friendship with each other. Their friendship makes this dream possible, because if there were only one person, there would be no one to share the dream with,...
View Full Essay