Of Mice and Men Chapter 5:Curley's Ignorance

I definitely agree with you.  Curley is a very self-centered, cruel individual, and I too hope something bad happens to him at the end of the book.  I found it very sad when Lennie killed Curley's wife.  I didn't feel especially bad for Curley's wife, since she purposefully caused trouble with Lennie, but for Lennie. Lennie is such an innocent character at heart, although his actions do not immediately describe him as such.  But now he was done the unforgivable, and killed another person.  Even if you did know Lennie very closely, as George did, it is very difficult to forgive him for that.  Some crimes are so serious that they extend beyond the range of forgivability due to mental illness.  I also feel especially bad since Lennie killed Curley's wife.  Curley is the one man who hates Lennie the most out of everybody on the ranch.  Curley, in his blind ignorance, cannot see the fact that Lennie is disabled. Instead, Curley sees a large, stupid man who broke his hand and flirts with his wife. Instead, Lennie is a kind, mentally disabled individual who can get angry sometimes, but mostly simply is kind to people and wants others to return the favor.  I fear that this novel will not end well for Lennie, since Curley will spread his ideas of the man to all his workers, and they will listen to him since he is their boss.

Not Weak, Yet Vulnerable

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Chapter 5


   Jon, it is interesting that you saw George and Lennie's relationship as being one of benefits, but it makes complete sense. I always thought George simply felt like he was Lennie's family and that was why they stayed together, but the fact that Lennie can get work and other necessities for George also comes into play here. Of course, I still believe George has come to care for Lennie, but your post has made me consider a part of the relationship between these two men that I hadn't realized was present before now.
   One thing that has become extremely obvious in this chapter is that a person with the kind of mental disability Lennie has should never be left without someone who can properly take care of him or her. Without George, Lennie got himself into a heap of trouble by killing Curley's wife (although she did ask for it), and he was not even able to fully understand the severity of what he did. "For a moment he seemed bewildered. And then he whispered in fright, 'I done a bad thing. I done another bad thing.'" (pg. 89). It is not at all true that people with mental disabilities need to be treated as if they cannot do things, but some of them do need to be kept under a watchful eye so that they don't feel alone or cause chaos. Lennie never did anything on purpose, but his mental disability kept him from defending himself. Lennie's state of mind is not a weakness in my point-of-view, yet it is something that makes him less able to understand the ways of the world, and therefore, he is a very vulnerable target to things such as mobs and accusations.
   Curley, on the other hand, seems to be the one creating problems for our main characters. This man is too full of himself to see that he will gain nothing by bullying Lennie and that, in fact, doing so just makes him a cowardly being. Curley's wife might have been a very odd character, but she was right about Curley being such an awful husband, considering that he looks like a really mean man in general. "'I don't like Curley. He ain't a nice fella.'" (pg. 86). Part of me is currently hoping something bad will happen to the main villain of our second novel.

Of Mice and Men Chapters 3-4: Lennie and George Part 2

     On the rubric for this project, it says you may pick one central theme and write about it for every post, so I have decided to write about Lennie and George's relationship for all of my posts.  I believe that this is a very important and central theme to the entire plot. 
     Prior to this point in the story, it wasn't exactly clear why George continued to stick around with Lennie, besides pure pity out of leaving a mentally challenged man to fend for himself in the Great Depression.  Now, it is slightly more clear.  Physically, Lennie is an extremely strong man.  This means that he is able to work very difficult and laborious jobs, while exerting only a portion of the effort.  Because of this, people love to have him work for them.  He is very agreeable, mostly due to his mental disability, and willing to do difficult work.  Working with Lennie very beneficial to George.  For example, if there is a very high paying job open at a ranch, then the head of the ranch will want Lennie to work there. However, Lennie won't accept the job unless George can work there as well.  So essentially, George can get jobs at places that he wouldn't be able to otherwise.  Lennie has many reasons to want to stay with George, such as how much he helps him and how nice he is to him.  Their friendship is defined differently by each person.  For Lennie, it is moral support and help with living a normal working life.  For George, it is out of pity and economic benefit.
     As the duo begin working at the ranch, they meet many new people.  Lennie, being a friendly person, begins talking to people and making new friends.  However, George cautions him against this.  I find this interesting, but very important and a useful safeguard for George to implement.  If Lennie becomes too friendly with people, he could grow more comfortable around them, and eventually make serious mistakes like he did by grabbing the ladie's dress.  It is better for everybody to keep their distance from him, and give him less of an opportunity to create problems.
     At this point in their story, Lennie and George's relationship is fairly consistent, but I feel that it will change soon.  As is with Lennie, problems will probably arise that affect their relationship.

The Likes of an Unjust Society

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Chapters 3 through 4...


   Jon, I feel like it was very good for you to research in order to find out what kind of mental disability Lennie might have in this story. When I started this book, I was pretty sure that it was some form of autism, and your research has almost confirmed that idea. So far, this book has given a lot of different reasons to believe that being autistic or having a mental disability is a disadvantage, while it is really not so due to the fact that one only needs others to understand his or her situation. Like you said before, these kind of people only need some sort of support, and Lennie has two forms of it with George and his mice.
   Although mice cannot stay with Lennie for long because of his tendency of killing them, George does stick up for his companion as often as he can, yet sometimes he falls short or isn't there to protect him. More can be seen about this older society and its ways when Curley starts to beat up Lennie just so that he can vent out his anger on someone too weak to fight back. Although George is here to protect Lennie this time, and he does it very well, the protector cannot always hover around the one he protects forever. For example, Lennie becomes a quick target for Curley's wife's taunts when George is not with him, and he has no way to really defend himself because he knows no better. "Lennie whined, 'I wisht George was here. I wisht George was here.'" (pg. 79). This shows that those thought to be weaker were bullied back then in an even worse fashion than it is done now, and that just reflects on how society worked then compared to how it works now in the West.
  Older thinking can also be seen in the way most of these characters treat Crooks' because he is black, and a connection between the two targets of these tragedies blooms almost immediately when they associate with one another. The only people that really even dare to talk to the stable-hand as if he was a normal person are Lennie and Candy, and this is only because neither of them really have a choice or know any better about what society may think. Curley's wife soon made all three men realize what the people of that time really thought of blacks and the mentally unstable when she talked to them in a harsh manner. "She turned to him in scorn. 'Listen, Nigger,' she said. 'You know what I can do to you if you open your trap?'" (pg. 78). This woman showed the men present just how much authority she had, yet she still confided in them to tell her tale of treachery since she knew they wouldn't dare reveal her secrets. The times in which this story takes place did not have much respect for different people, and although people may have mostly changed by now, many examples of such treatment can still be found, here and all around the world. 

Of Mice and Men chapters 1-2: Lennie and George

Since this is the beginning of the novel, the relationship between Lennie and George is not very clearly defined yet.  It is very obvious that Lennie has some form of mental retardation, but the severity of said handicap is not yet apparent.  This definitely has a large impact on their relationship.
     "When I think of the swell time I could have without you, I go nuts. I never get no peace." (Men, 13)  Lennie is clearly a burden on George in more than a few ways.  George and Lennie consider themselves ranchers, moving form one location to the other, slowly building up a 'stake', spending it all in a local town, and moving on to the next ranch.  They never live anywhere for very long.  George partially attributes this to Lennie and the number of mistakes he makes. "You can't keep a job and you lose me ever' job I get.  An' that ain't the worst. You get me in trouble.  You do bad things and I got to get you out." (Men, 12)  Lennie's mental problems cause him to make major mistakes at his job and lose it, so he has to keep travelling.  Apparently he also gets in a lot of trouble, since he is not informed of some basic social graces. "Jus' wanted to feel that girl's dress-jus' wanted to pet it like it was a mouse- Well, how the hell did she know you jus' wanted to feel her dress?" (Men, 12)
     He thoroughly enjoys kinesthetic feedback, such as touching different materials.  Lennie specifically enjoys petting mice, considering how soft they are.  I did a little outside research and found that Lennie displays many of the symptoms of adult autism. (webmd.com) Some significant symptoms Lennie displays include obsessive habits, significant problems developing nonverbal communication skills, and relying on others heavily.

"Autism-Symptoms." Web MD. 12 Apr. 2010. Web.

Night Chapters 7-9: Family Implications

At this point in the story, Elie's father is close to death.  Elie is undergoing a moral conflict of how to treat his father.  In his last days, Elie's father refuses food and asks only of water, which aggravates his sever dysentery.  If I were in Elie's shoes, it would be very difficult for me to decide how to treat my father.
     On one side, I could deny him all food and accelerate his path to inevitable death.  This gives me more food and increases my chances of survival since I'm taking his ration as well.  He will also appreciate not having to suffer as long in a life that will end soon no matter what he does.  "It's too late to save your old father, I said to myself.  You ought to be having two rations of bread, two rations of soup..." (Night, 105)
     On the other side, I could continue feeding and caring for my father.  After all, he is my only remaining family member, one who has faithfully stayed by me throughout everything we have endured.  It only seems wrong for me to abandon him in the moment he needs me most, when he is on the brink of death.  "I knew that he must not drink. But he pleaded with me for so long that I gave in.  Water was the worst poison he could have, but what could I do for him? With water, without water, it would all be over soon anyway..." (Night, 104)
     Elie chose to stay by his father's side, and I don't blame him for his decision.  Even if it seems short-sighted to continue providing sustenance for a man doomed to die, Elie could not mentally accept abandoning his father.
     However, his father's demise seemed especially graphic to me.  After surviving constant starvation and overworking, his death was caused by his skull caving in from a nazi's truncheon.  If his father had remained quiet and quelled his madness, he could have survived for maybe another day.  But his madness ultimately killed him.
     Not being able to accept his father's death left indelible effects on Elie's mental state.  "Bending over him, I stayed gazing at him for over an hour, engraving into myself the picture of his blood-stained face, his shattered skull." (Night, 106)  He simply had no more energy to show emotion.  At some point prior to his physical death, Elie's father died in spirit.  Elie accepted this and moved on, blindly caring for him out of natural compassion towards his father.  I find this to be an extremely selfless act, one that few people could display in such difficult times.

Night Chapters 5-6: Elie's Life

After spending a significant amount of time in the camps, I find that Elie's daily life has become fairly routine.  Earlier in the book, when he was first taken to the camps,  the book was filled with sections about how Elie is scared and worried.  Now, after living in the camps for a while, none of this is present.  This is especially significant, considering he is going through harder things now than he was then.  A natural order has worked its way into his life, and he has been exposed to so much death and misery that it has less of an effect on him. In the beginning of chapter 6, Elie feels no fear at the words of the SS. "The SS made us increase our pace.  'Faster, you swine, you filthy sons of bitches!' Why not? The movement warmed us up a little." Elie has even progressed to the point where he sees the positive aspects of doing the grueling tasks assigned to him in the camps.  He has crossed over the mental boundary that causes fear and worry; He knows and accepts that worrying will not make him live longer.
     However, there is still one thing that he worries constantly about.  His father, in his old age, is a prime target for the weekly selections that weed out weak or old people that can no longer work effectively.  Elie's father is his only remaining link to his past life.  He loves his father deeply, and to lose him would have a large effect on his morale and will to survive.
     Strangely, Elie does not think too highly of the value of friends.  They are important to him, yes, but in times like this, people tend to form bonds stronger than most normal friendships due to the terrible things they have to go through.  However, he still is as close to his friends in the camps as he was at home.
     I think Elie's distance from his friends might be due to his other focuses at this time.  He spends a lot of time questioning the actions of his god and interacting with his father.
     At this point in the book, Elie is essentially looking past the difficulty of his work and high chance of death, and is instead spending time with his father and dwelling on his faith in religion.