Animals are used so heavily throughout the book because people can relate to them. When you compare a person to a hawk, one will easily be able to understand the author is eluding to the fact that the person is vigilant or a good hunter or even fierce. People can relate to animals much easier than to plants or inanimate object because animals, especially domestic, have become a common aspect of everyday life. Steinbeck using animals to describe the characters actions, personality and appearance; the way he compares his characters to animals is both easy to understand and one of the most effective literary devices.
Rabbits
"'Tend the rabbits,' it said scornfully. 'You crazy bastard. You ain't fit to lick the boots of no rabbits (page 102).'"
"'Maybe if I took this if I took this pup out and throwed him away, George would never know. An' then I could tend the rabbits without no trouble (page 89).'"
"'Sure we will,' George said sleepily. "Red and blue and green rabbits, Lennie. Million of 'em (page 16).'"
The story of Of Mice and Men was wrongly named for the main animal in the story is a rabbit. From being to the end Lennie can not stop telling the farm hands and Curly's wife about the rabbits; he tells them of how he will tend to them and we will not forget, what colors they will be and even how George plans to eat some of them. The rabbits fascinate Lennie and for good reason, unbeknownst to him, they represent his very own American dream with George: to own a farm, work when the want, and of course, to own millions of rabbits.
The first quote is at the very end of the book after George accidentally kills Curly's wife and he flees into the brush in the clearing. While he is waiting for George, his Aunt Clara and then a giant rabbit come to him. The rabbit scolds Lennie saying that because Lennie is constantly doing bad things, he deserves for George to lave him. All George has ever done is be nice and take care of Lennie like they shared blood and all Lennie does in return is get in trouble and run them out of work. So, the rabbit or Lennie's conscience is telling him that his decisions will reflect on George badly and that George would be better off without Lennie. This however, means that Lennie's conscious/rabbit only recognizes that George will be mad, no that killing someone is a major wrong-doing. This means that the rabbit at this point in the story does not just represent Lennie's conscious but also the death of their dream.
Next, the quote is speaking from Lennie's point when he had recently killed the pup and Curly's wife came to talk to him. This moment reinforced the fact that Lennie, despite his mental retardation, can have a dream just as strong as any other. Even when he took a life, all he could possibly care about was if George would let him keep his dream of the rabbits. Besides being the only thought that occupied his mind at the time, the rabbit tending represent their strong American dream because as said in the beginning in the story George repremanded Lennie for his terrible memory that came along with his mental retardation. So despite not being able to even remember who his Aunt Clara was, Lennie remembers the rabbits.
In the third quotation George and Lennie were about to sleep in the clearing when George makes the impossible promise to Lennie that when their dream comes true, not only will they have normal rabbits but also exotic blue, red and green rabbits. This statement is absurdly untrue and yet George makes it anyway. He makes it for the same reason that Lennie constantly wants George to tell him the story of the rabbits, because it gives him hope ,and this gives George joy. So, George tells Lennie that he can have multi-colored rabbits if he wants because it does not truly matter about what color they are but the pure fact that the rabbits are what gives him hope. This quote also reinstates the impossibility of their dream as well. As said before, rabbits do not come in red or blue and green; this statement George makes shows how yes, the rabbits may give them hope of their dream, but it will always be just out of their reach.
"'Maybe if I took this if I took this pup out and throwed him away, George would never know. An' then I could tend the rabbits without no trouble (page 89).'"
"'Sure we will,' George said sleepily. "Red and blue and green rabbits, Lennie. Million of 'em (page 16).'"
The story of Of Mice and Men was wrongly named for the main animal in the story is a rabbit. From being to the end Lennie can not stop telling the farm hands and Curly's wife about the rabbits; he tells them of how he will tend to them and we will not forget, what colors they will be and even how George plans to eat some of them. The rabbits fascinate Lennie and for good reason, unbeknownst to him, they represent his very own American dream with George: to own a farm, work when the want, and of course, to own millions of rabbits.
The first quote is at the very end of the book after George accidentally kills Curly's wife and he flees into the brush in the clearing. While he is waiting for George, his Aunt Clara and then a giant rabbit come to him. The rabbit scolds Lennie saying that because Lennie is constantly doing bad things, he deserves for George to lave him. All George has ever done is be nice and take care of Lennie like they shared blood and all Lennie does in return is get in trouble and run them out of work. So, the rabbit or Lennie's conscience is telling him that his decisions will reflect on George badly and that George would be better off without Lennie. This however, means that Lennie's conscious/rabbit only recognizes that George will be mad, no that killing someone is a major wrong-doing. This means that the rabbit at this point in the story does not just represent Lennie's conscious but also the death of their dream.
Next, the quote is speaking from Lennie's point when he had recently killed the pup and Curly's wife came to talk to him. This moment reinforced the fact that Lennie, despite his mental retardation, can have a dream just as strong as any other. Even when he took a life, all he could possibly care about was if George would let him keep his dream of the rabbits. Besides being the only thought that occupied his mind at the time, the rabbit tending represent their strong American dream because as said in the beginning in the story George repremanded Lennie for his terrible memory that came along with his mental retardation. So despite not being able to even remember who his Aunt Clara was, Lennie remembers the rabbits.
In the third quotation George and Lennie were about to sleep in the clearing when George makes the impossible promise to Lennie that when their dream comes true, not only will they have normal rabbits but also exotic blue, red and green rabbits. This statement is absurdly untrue and yet George makes it anyway. He makes it for the same reason that Lennie constantly wants George to tell him the story of the rabbits, because it gives him hope ,and this gives George joy. So, George tells Lennie that he can have multi-colored rabbits if he wants because it does not truly matter about what color they are but the pure fact that the rabbits are what gives him hope. This quote also reinstates the impossibility of their dream as well. As said before, rabbits do not come in red or blue and green; this statement George makes shows how yes, the rabbits may give them hope of their dream, but it will always be just out of their reach.
Dogs
Parallels
"Lennie dabbed his big paw in the water... (page 3)."
"Slowly, like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master, Lennie approached, drew back, approached again (page 9)."
Dogs are a common animal used throughout much of literature; they represent loyalty and the kindhearted to jumpy, ugly men. Dogs are so widely used that it it nearly impossible to not understand a reference or parallel between a dog and a character, even if the comparison is not stated clearly in the text. In this case it is not and the character is Lennie. Steinbeck throughout the novel shows the astounding similarities between Lennie and dogs in subtle ways. The most obvious way is the description of Lulu, Candy's dog, and why she is being put down. Carlson lists that she cannot take care of herself and that she has somewhat outlived her use. George has t take care of Lennie as his "master" and Lennie never had a true use to start with. Besides this, Steinbeck compares Lennie to dogs in a more subtle way, using similes and metaphors to show how Lennie both acts and shares personality traits with dogs. Examples of this are above when George and Lennie are in the clearing in the beginning of the book. These quotes compare both lennie's hands to dgo paws and his actions to that of a terrier. The rest of the book has quotes much like these to have the reader make the connection between Lennie and a dog.
Foreshadowing
"'If you wanted me to, I'll out the old devil out of his misery... Can't eat, can't see, it can't even walk by itself without hurting (page 47).'"
"'He made like he's gonna... an' I made like I was gonna smack him... an'... an' I done it. An' then he was dead (page 87).'"
Steinbeck uses foreshadowing throughout the entire book. He foreshadows the death of Curly's wife, the eath of Lennie and George's dream and then finally the death of Lennie. Not only does the author use dogs to descirbe Lennei but also for the reader to see how inevitable his death it, and it starts with the death of Candy's dog Lulu. In the example above, Carlson explains why Lulu must be put down, because she cannot take care of herself and she has outlived her use. When Lennie kills Curly's wife, he essentially has outlived his own use. George also knows form the very beginning that Lennie cannot take care of himself on his own so it would be more humane to "put him down" than to let him die a slower and most likely painful death by himself. The next example is from when Lennie was petting his put and accidentally hit it too hard, breaking its neck, right before Curly's wife comes to talk to him. This is just another time in the story where Lennie unintentionally kills an innocent animal. He started killing mice and it escalated from that to rabbits metaphorically and now to dogs; it was really only a matter of time until Lennie advanced to killing a human, and once he did so, his death was no longer an option. Lastly, when Slim's dog has her pups, he must kill some of them right away because he knows that his dog would not be able to care for all of them. This shows how the relationship between George and Lennie becomes strained as he kills more, and when Curly's wife dies, Lennie fundamentally becomes too much for George to handle. Therefore, like the pups, Lennie must die.
"Lennie dabbed his big paw in the water... (page 3)."
"Slowly, like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master, Lennie approached, drew back, approached again (page 9)."
Dogs are a common animal used throughout much of literature; they represent loyalty and the kindhearted to jumpy, ugly men. Dogs are so widely used that it it nearly impossible to not understand a reference or parallel between a dog and a character, even if the comparison is not stated clearly in the text. In this case it is not and the character is Lennie. Steinbeck throughout the novel shows the astounding similarities between Lennie and dogs in subtle ways. The most obvious way is the description of Lulu, Candy's dog, and why she is being put down. Carlson lists that she cannot take care of herself and that she has somewhat outlived her use. George has t take care of Lennie as his "master" and Lennie never had a true use to start with. Besides this, Steinbeck compares Lennie to dogs in a more subtle way, using similes and metaphors to show how Lennie both acts and shares personality traits with dogs. Examples of this are above when George and Lennie are in the clearing in the beginning of the book. These quotes compare both lennie's hands to dgo paws and his actions to that of a terrier. The rest of the book has quotes much like these to have the reader make the connection between Lennie and a dog.
Foreshadowing
"'If you wanted me to, I'll out the old devil out of his misery... Can't eat, can't see, it can't even walk by itself without hurting (page 47).'"
"'He made like he's gonna... an' I made like I was gonna smack him... an'... an' I done it. An' then he was dead (page 87).'"
Steinbeck uses foreshadowing throughout the entire book. He foreshadows the death of Curly's wife, the eath of Lennie and George's dream and then finally the death of Lennie. Not only does the author use dogs to descirbe Lennei but also for the reader to see how inevitable his death it, and it starts with the death of Candy's dog Lulu. In the example above, Carlson explains why Lulu must be put down, because she cannot take care of herself and she has outlived her use. When Lennie kills Curly's wife, he essentially has outlived his own use. George also knows form the very beginning that Lennie cannot take care of himself on his own so it would be more humane to "put him down" than to let him die a slower and most likely painful death by himself. The next example is from when Lennie was petting his put and accidentally hit it too hard, breaking its neck, right before Curly's wife comes to talk to him. This is just another time in the story where Lennie unintentionally kills an innocent animal. He started killing mice and it escalated from that to rabbits metaphorically and now to dogs; it was really only a matter of time until Lennie advanced to killing a human, and once he did so, his death was no longer an option. Lastly, when Slim's dog has her pups, he must kill some of them right away because he knows that his dog would not be able to care for all of them. This shows how the relationship between George and Lennie becomes strained as he kills more, and when Curly's wife dies, Lennie fundamentally becomes too much for George to handle. Therefore, like the pups, Lennie must die.
Mice
"'That was your Aunt Clara. An' she stopped givin' 'em to ya. You always killed 'em (page 9).'"
"'I ain't takin' it away jus' for meanness. That mouse ain't fresh, Lennie, and besides, you've broke it pettin' it (page 9).'"
Lastly, in the animals motifs are mice. Mice are small, weaker creatures, nearly the opposite of Lennie. They are also simplistic creatures, almost stupid in their ways. In this sense they embody, not stupidity but Lennie's simplest nature and his unintentional killing. Lennie has some sort of mental deficiency that has prevented him from developing a mental capcaity greater than that equivilant to that of a seven year old; this fact is what gives him his simple nature. This type of nature means that he can literally "love" animals and humans to death and he does often in the book. George explained after Lennie accidentally crushed Curly's hand that when Lennie becomes confused he panics and in that case he broke every bone in someone's hand. Other times he has gotten confused or distraught, he killed a puppy, a mouse, and then eventually Curly's wife. Like in the quotes above, it clearly shows that Lennie loves mice and have had many as his pets, but because they are so small and fragile, he breaks their necks like they are nothing because even he does not know of his own strength.
"'I ain't takin' it away jus' for meanness. That mouse ain't fresh, Lennie, and besides, you've broke it pettin' it (page 9).'"
Lastly, in the animals motifs are mice. Mice are small, weaker creatures, nearly the opposite of Lennie. They are also simplistic creatures, almost stupid in their ways. In this sense they embody, not stupidity but Lennie's simplest nature and his unintentional killing. Lennie has some sort of mental deficiency that has prevented him from developing a mental capcaity greater than that equivilant to that of a seven year old; this fact is what gives him his simple nature. This type of nature means that he can literally "love" animals and humans to death and he does often in the book. George explained after Lennie accidentally crushed Curly's hand that when Lennie becomes confused he panics and in that case he broke every bone in someone's hand. Other times he has gotten confused or distraught, he killed a puppy, a mouse, and then eventually Curly's wife. Like in the quotes above, it clearly shows that Lennie loves mice and have had many as his pets, but because they are so small and fragile, he breaks their necks like they are nothing because even he does not know of his own strength.