Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck John

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck Born on February 27 th, 1902 in Salinas, CA. Best known for Of Mice and Men (1937), and The Grapes of Wrath (1939), both focus on the lives of the working-class poor during the Great Depression. Used a very natural, realistic style. Awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962. Died December 20 th, 1968 30 novels published, three of which came out after his death.

Of Mice and Men Written in 1937. George and Lennie are two migrant farm workers during the Great Depression. Title refers to a line in the poem "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns. Originally intended to be a play - in many ways structured like one - long scenes, stage-direction like descriptions, and large amounts of dialogue. Periodically banned in the U. S. for a variety of reasons: "profane" language, morality, violence, sexism, racism, and the depiction of the mentally challenged.

Setting of Of Mice and Men The novel is set in the farmland of the Salinas Valley, where John Steinbeck was born The ranch in the novel is near Soledad, which is south-east of Salinas on the Salinas River. The countryside described at the beginning of the novel, and the ranch itself is based on Steinbeck’s own experiences.

Historical Background of Migrant Workers Before technology created farm machinery, humans had to do a lot of the farm work by hand. 1880’s -1930’s thousands of men would travel the countryside in search of work, including the harvesting of wheat. Earn $2. 50 or $3. 00 a day, plus food and shelter. 1930’s unemployment rate was high in the U. S. So many men searching for work, agencies were set up to send farmworkers to where they were needed. George and Lennie were given work cards from Murray and Ready’s, which was one of the farm work agencies.

The American Dream From the 17 th Century onwards, immigrants have dreamed of a better life in America. Many people immigrated to America in search of a new life for themselves or their families. Many others immigrated to escape persecution or poverty in their homeland. These immigrants dreamed of making their fortunes in America.

American Dream For many this dream of riches became a nightmare. Horrors of slavery. Horrors of the American Civil War. Growing number of slums that were just as bad as those in Europe. Great corruption in the American political system which led to many shattered hopes.

The Great Depression The idea of an American Dream for many was broken when in 1929, the Wall Street crashed, marking the beginning of the Great Depression In addition, terrible drought and environmental conditions created the turmoil for farmers known as the Dust Bowl.

The Great Depression Before the 1930 s, America was enjoying economic triumph. The idea of credit – buy now, pay later – was introduced and people bought everything they could. Unfortunately, this time of enjoyment and prosper would soon be over.

The Great Depression One of the major causes of the Great Depression was the collapse of the Stock Market on “Black Tuesday, ” October 29, 1929. In a single day, a record sixteen million shares were traded and $30 billion dollars vanished into thin air. Two months after the original crash in October, stockholders had lost more than $40 billion dollars.

The Great Depression Another cause of the Great Depression was bank failures. Throughout the 1930’s over 9, 000 banks failed. Bank deposits were uninsured and thus, as banks failed, people simply lost their savings. Surviving banks, unsure of the economic situation and concerned for their own survival, stopped being as willing to create new loans.

The Great Depression With the stock market crash and the fears of further economic woes, individuals from all classes stopped purchasing items. This then led to a reduction in the number of items produced and thus a reduction in the workforce. As people lost their jobs, they were unable to keep up with paying for items they had bought through credit and their items were repossessed. The unemployment rate rose above 25%, which meant even less spending to help alleviate the economic situation.

The Dust Bowl The Dust Bowl was also causing the morale of the country to become increasingly despair. Late 1920’s - early 1930’s, the Great Plains suffered a severe drought. In 1934, windstorms covered the Great Plains and uplifted the soil, blowing massive clouds of dust all over the plains. Thousands were forced to leave their homes. 89 million acres of land was severely damaged or destroyed. Most people traveled to California to restart their lives.