Transcript Of Mice and Men”

“Of Mice and Men”
Marginalisation
Feedback 2013/14
The Basics
• Use of inverted commas around title
• Mean= slang. Use unkind/cruel. Men means that you
won’t spend money.
• Don’t use “nasty”
• Use “effective” rather than “good”
• You don’t need to use capital letters fro themes or the
word black.
• Do use capial letters for the “Great Depression”
• Themes are “explored”: not used.
• Themes are NOT techniques.
• Do not use “you”.
Introductions
• Don’t give me lots of plot details I don’t need!
• In your final sentence, tell me what you are
going to discuss in the order you intend to
discuss it. Don’t tell me that you are going to
write about setting if you aren’t going to mention
it.
• Remember, what a book is about is the theme.
• Marginalisation leading to loneliness, leading
to bitterness and unhappiness and the need
for a dream.
Topic sentences
• The P of PEAR is the point or the Topic
Sentence.
• Linking words?
• Lennie Small is a victim of social injustice
because of his learning difficulties.
• Firstly, through the characterisation of the main
protagonist, Lennie Small, Steinbeck explores
the theme of social injustice.
Intermediate Two Question
Choose a prose work of fiction or non-fiction, which
deals with an important human issue: for example
injustice, or poverty, or scientific discovery, or
religious belief, or any other issue which you regard
as important.
Identify and explain what the issue is and go on to
describe the ways in which the writer has made the
work thought provoking
•Other words that the SQA use instead of
theme are TOPIC and SUBJECT.
•When they talk about “an important human
issue”, they also mean theme.
“Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck is a novel which
deals with the important human issue of marginalisation
in society. The novel is set in America during the Great
Depression of the 1930’s. All of the main characters are
on the margins of society as they are mostly very poor,
itinerant workers. I feel particular sympathy for Crooks,
the black stable buck and Curley’s wife, the only
woman who lives on the ranch.
• Marginalised – why?
• Loneliness – evidence
• Effects – cruelty toward others
• Effects – need for a dream.
Key Point 1 – Initially, Steinbeck highlights the issue of social injustice through his
descriptions of the conditions that itinerant workers face.
Find evidence (primarily from the first section)
To illustrate the difficulty of finding work.
To illustrate the dreadful living/work conditions.
To illustrate the loneliness they suffer.
Analysis points to include…
Contextual information about employment situation – (Great
Depression/machinery/dustbowl etc)
Forced to travel great distances to find work (hitching/walking)
Faced with terrible living/work conditions/low pay etc when they found work.
They were alienated from their labour – didn’t reap the rewards.
Being forced to move around to find work means they have no they can’t
settle/no family etc leads to insecurity and loneliness.
This loneliness fuels the need to have dreams.
End with a sentence about how economic difficulties and recession
contribute/worsen the marginalisation of the most vulnerable groups in society to
link on to the next point.
Crooks
What do we learn about marginalisation from Crooks?
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We know that he is marginalised because he is black. Can you find any evidence
from early in the novel that shows how Crooks is treated because he is black.
He pretends he doesn’t want any company because he is proud and doesn’t want
anyone to know how lonely he feels.
He is very lonely – find an example.
As he is a victim and on the very margins of society, he is cruel to Lennie. He
behaves this way because Lennie is one of the very few people in society who is
weaker than Crooks. Crooks’ loneliness has made him bitter and he takes pleasure in
making someone else feel as unhappy as he is.
As a result of being so lonely and unhappy, Crooks dreams of a better life. For
Crooks, this can take two forms; he thinks about his past when he was with his
brothers and is much happier and he asks Candy if he can come and work on the
farm with them
After Curley’s wife reminds Crooks of his position in society by threatening him,
Crooks says he doesn’t want to live on the farm anymore. This shows that Crooks is
very marginalised and very lonely. He doesn’t believe that his future can change,
because he is black, and his future seems very lonely and bleak.
Crooks
•Candy tell G and L that the boss “gives the him hell when he’s mad.” The boss does
this because Crooks is black.
•“This here is my room. Nobody got any right in here but me.” (part 4)
•“I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick.” (Part 4)
•“Crooks’ face lighted with pleasure in his torture.”
•Crooks reminiscing about his two young brothers and the chickens they would watch
together on the farm. Crooks looks to the past for comfort more than the future as the
future is so bleak.
•“…if you guys…would want a hand to work for nothing – just his keep, why I’d come
and lend a hand.” Crooks hesitates; expects to be rejected.
•“Crooks had reduced himself to nothing.”
•“I didn’t mean it. Just foolin’. I wouldn’t want to go no place like that.”
Curley’s Wife
• Curley’s wife is on the margins of society because she is a woman
in a very male environment, the ranch.
• Think about how the men talk about women in general. Are they
respectful?
• How do they talk about Curley’s wife; are they respectful?
• We know that Curley’s wife is very lonely. Give an example.
• Curley’s wife, like Crooks, is used to being a victim. Also like
Crooks, this has made her angry and she bullies Crooks to make
herself feel better.
• Again, like all the other characters, Curley’s wife is so unhappy
because she is lonely that she, too, dreams of a different life. You
will need to explain what her dream is and what it tells us about
people on the margins of society. (people who live on the margins or
who are “left out”, need dreams so they can pretend that life will get
better.
•“I seen ‘em poison before, but I never seen no piece of jailbait worse than her.”
(part 2) George
•“Think I don’t like to talk to someone ever’ once in a while.”
•“They left all the weak ones here.” (part 4)
•“Standin’ here talkin’ to abunch of bindle stiffs – a nigger an’ a dum-dum and a
lousy ol’ sheep – an likin’ it because there ain’t nobody else.” (part 4)
•“I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.” (part 4)
•“And then her words tumbled out in a passion of communication, as though she
hurried before her listener could be taken away.” (part 5)
•Coulda been in the movies, an’ had nice clothes – all them nice clothes like they
wear.”
•“And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for
attention were all gone from her face.” (part 5)
George
You are going to write about how George suffers from social injustice because he is poor and
an itinerant worker. He suffers more than Lennie because Lennie isn’t lonely as long as he is
with George. Moreover, Lennie doesn’t think about the future so Lennie is not as afraid as
George.
George is a victim of social injustice because he is poor and an itinerant worker.
He copes with this in his friendship with Lennie.
Quote about their friendship.
Explain why this is so important.
Response to the question.
They also have a shared dream. Explain what it is.
Quote.
Explain why this dream is important and why people on margins need a dream.
Response to the question.
Make the point that when George is forced to shoot Lennie at the end of the novel that he will now be as
lonely as the other men.
Quote “He usta like to hear about it so much…”
Explain why George won’t go ahead with buying the farm without Lennie.
Response to question- shows how hard it is for people on margins of society to change their lives;
explain what you think of this.
Key Point 4 – Formal topic sentence and
well constructed key point about the
marginalisation of Lennie because of his
learning difficulties.
Consider the way he is thought of by the
boss, the way he is picked on by Curley,
his reliance on George and any other
relevant information about social injustice,
loneliness and the need for a dream.
Your task.
• I’m going to give you twenty minutes to
rewrite a section of this essay on one of
the characters.
• To be done in groups on flip chart paper.