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Of Mice and Men 107726 Views
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Description:
Break out the tissues. Of Mice and Men isn't an easy one to stomach.
- Form / Novel
- Themes / Dreams, Hopes, and Plans
- Themes / Friendship
- Themes / Isolation
- Themes / Innocence
- Themes / Freedom and Confinement
- Themes / Justice and Judgement
- Themes / Visions of America
- Themes / Violence
- Themes / Prejudice
- Themes / Weakness
- Themes / Women and Femininity
- Themes / Man and the Natural World
Transcript
- 00:07
Of Mice and Men, a la Shmoop:
- 00:11
With friends like George, who needs enemies? We've all seen things that look like they
- 00:19
don't belong together . . . . . . or couples that seem more than a little
- 00:25
odd . We may even look at our own parents . . .
- 00:29
. . . and wonder what the heck they ever saw in one another.
Full Transcript
- 00:37
Same goes for friendships. George and Lennie, the two main characters
- 00:41
of John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men, are about as different as two friends could possibly
- 00:45
be . . . . . . but they've got each other's' backs.
- 00:51
They've travelled the country together . . . . . . worked together . . .
- 00:53
. . . and endured the hardships of the Great Depression together.
- 00:57
So, if they're such BFFs . . . . . . and George loves Lennie so much . . .
- 01:02
. . . how could he possibly bring himself to take his friend's life?
- 01:08
Well, he must have been furious when he heard about what Lennie had done to Curley's wife.
- 01:17
Maybe he reacted out of anger, seeing as how his own job and dreams of owning a farm were
- 01:21
circling the drain. Haven't we all had moments where our rage
- 01:25
gets the best of us? Maybe George just snapped.
- 01:33
It could easily be a simple case of temporary insanity.
- 01:37
Then again, maybe George thought Curley and his gang might be coming after him too . . .
- 01:45
. . . and killed his friend to make sure he couldn't make any more trouble for him.
- 01:52
We all know what it's like being friends with someone who gets us in trouble.
- 01:57
Maybe George just simply had enough. But here's another thought.
- 02:04
What if he took his friend's life because he did love him so much?
- 02:09
Lennie, who is mentally challenged, couldn't have understood the consequences of his actions.
- 02:20
George knew Curley's lynch mob was coming . . .
- 02:22
. . . and knew what they would do to his friend. Maybe he was trying to protect him the only
- 02:30
way he knew how. Telling Lennie of better times. Filling his
- 02:33
mind with happy thoughts, so when George pulls the trigger, his friend would leave the world
- 02:38
on his own terms. Doesn't that prove he cared about his friend?
- 02:58
Or was he only trying to make it easier on himself?
- 03:03
What's your verdict? Did George do the unthinkable to punish his
- 03:06
friend for ruining his life . . . . . . could it be that he really went off
- 03:09
the deep end. . . . . . or did he commit the ultimate act of
- 03:12
love by saving his friend from an angry lynch mob?
- 03:16
Shmoop amongst yourselves.
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