47 pages • 1 hour read
John SteinbeckOf Mice and Men
Fiction | Novella | Adult | Published in 1937A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Literary Devices
Allusion
A literary allusion is a textual reference to another literary work or figure. Allusions can refer to historical periods, figures, and events as well as other authors, literary works, and characters. In employing allusions, the author empowers readers to draw from their own knowledge to make connections about the text. In Of Mice and Men, the novella’s title is an allusion to Scottish poet Robert Burns’s 1785 poem “To a Mouse,” in which a farmer inadvertently kills a mouse while plowing. In the poem, the remorseful farmer surmises, “The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men / Gang aft agley.” This means that man’s best intentions are not enough to ensure a positive outcome and implies that a negative outcome is more likely. In Chapter 1, the novella establishes that Lennie has a pattern of unintentionally killing mice. In this way, Lennie is like the farmer, who regrets plowing over the mouse’s nest. However, George is also like the farmer. Despite his best intentions to keep Lennie safe from the world, he must kill Lennie to ensure the safety of others.
Figurative Language (Personification, Metaphor, Simile)
Figurative language uses words and phrases to create associations between two different people, places, and things. Figurative language goes beyond the literal meaning of something to create layers of meaning that the reader must interpret. Steinbeck employs figurative language to juxtapose the idyllic natural landscape with the oppressive Soledad farm; the contrasting imagery highlights the isolation and hopelessness the ranch workers feel. Personification—or the attribution of human characteristics to non-human subjects, such as animals, objects, and ideas—is one type of figurative language. Steinbeck uses personification to endow the natural landscape with human actions: “The sycamore leaves whispered in a little night breeze” (16). The effect is that nature itself becomes an observer of and witness to the unfolding story.
Steinbeck uses other types of figurative language, specifically metaphor and simile, to characterize Lennie’s animal-like innocence and strength. Metaphor is the direct comparison of two unrelated things to create meaning. In Chapter 1, the author uses metaphor to compare Lennie to a bear, thus illustrating his physical strength: “the way a bear drags his paws” (2). Simile is a literary device that compares two things using “like” or as.” Steinbeck uses simile to illustrate Lennie’s innocence, timidness, and obedience to George: “Slowly, like a terrier who doesn’t want to bring a ball to its master, Lennie approached” (8). The reference to “paws” repeats in Chapter 3 when Lennie is too afraid to defend himself against Curley, further characterizing Lennie as docile: “Lennie covered his face with his huge paws and bleated with terror” (70). However, when George commands Lennie to “get” Curley, the tables turn, and Curley becomes dominated: “The next minute Curley was flopping like a fish on a line, and his closed fist was lost in Lennie's big hand” (71). The image of a fish repeats in Chapter 5 when Lennie kills Curley’s wife: “[H]er body flopped like a fish” (101). Bears eat fish, and the author suggests that those who are physically weaker than Lennie may become his prey. The use of figurative language highlights both Lennie’s intellectual disability as well as his physical might.
Foreshadowing
Of Mice and Men relies heavily on foreshadowing to propel the novella toward the climactic death of Curley’s wife in Chapter 5 as well as the tragic death of Lennie in Chapter 6. The repetition of actions is used to foreshadow events. For example, Lennie’s inability to let go of the dead mouse in Chapter 1 and his accidental killing of the puppy in Chapter 5 set the foundation for his future—and arguably predictable—behaviors that lead to the death of Curley’s wife. Similarly, the mercy-killing of Candy’s dog in Chapter 3 foreshadows George’s obligation to take care of Lennie in the novella’s conclusion.
Repetition
Steinbeck uses repetition to show the reader that Lennie has an intellectual disability. Lennie, who is depicted as childlike in his cognitive abilities, fixates on key ideas and phrases and repeats them throughout the novella to show both his excitement and uneasiness. For example, Lennie fearfully remarks that he won’t be able to tend to rabbits because of his mistakes, such as when he kills the puppy and again when he kills Curley’s wife. Lennie and George demonstrate a pattern of repeating instructions back to each other to ensure that Lennie will not forget important information. Lennie’s inability to recall and grasp simplistic directives illustrates his disability. In turn, this pattern of repetition also characterizes George as Lennie’s guardian. George, who is typically brisk and short-tempered, reveals that he cares for Lennie through his patient execution of reminders. Lennie also repeatedly prompts George to tell him the story of their future farm. George “rhythmically” describes their shared dream in exact detail, which comforts Lennie.
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