Of Mice and Men - General Questions

Question 1

What is unusual about George and Lennie?

Answer 1

1) They stick together, when most migrant workers are loners.
2) They are so different to each other - George is small and intelligent whereas Lennie is big and dumb.

Question 2

What influenced John Steinbeck?

Answer 2

1) The poem “To a mouse”.
2) The fact that as a teenager, he spent his summers working as a hired hand on neighbouring ranches, where his experiences impressed him deeply.

Question 3

What is the poem “To a mouse” about?

Answer 3

A mouse who had dreamed of a safe, warm winter but instead faced the harsh reality of cold, loneliness and possibly death.

Question 4

What is the most visible kind of strength shown in the novella?

Answer 4

Weakness.

Characters feel at their strongest when they use other’s weaknesses.

For example, Curley’s wife feels at her strongest when she threatens to have Crooks lynched, and Crooks feels at his strongest when he criticises Lennie’s dream and tries to say something bad has happened to George.

Question 5

What does Candy offer George and Lennie, and what does this show?

Answer 5

Candy offers his entire life savings to get a place with them. This just shows how desperate he is, both to meet The American Dream and to cure his Loneliness.

Remember, George and Lennie would be strangers to Candy, and he’s offering up all of his money!