- Of Mice and Men
John Steinbeck
- Literature Notes
- Lennie Small
- Of Mice and Men at a Glance
- Book Summary
- About Of Mice and Men
- Character List
- Summary and Analysis
- Character Analysis
- George Milton
- Curley's Wife
- Character Map
- John Steinbeck Biography
- Critical Essays
- Major Themes
- Major Symbols
- Structure of the Novel
- Full Glossary
- Essay Questions
- Practice Projects
- Cite this Literature Note
Character Analysis Lennie Small
Lennie Small is huge and lumbering and, in many ways, the opposite of George Milton . Where George has sharp features and definite lines, Lennie is "shapeless." Often he is described in terms of animals. He lumbers like a bear and has the strength of a bear, but his actions are often described like those of a dog.
Lennie's personality is like that of a child. He is innocent and mentally handicapped with no ability to understand abstract concepts like death. While he acts with great loyalty to George, he has no comprehension of the idea of "loyalty." For that reason, he often does not mean to do the things that get him into trouble, and once he does get into trouble, he has no conscience to define his actions in terms of guilt. Lennie only defines them in terms of consequences: "George is going to give me hell" or "George won't let me tend the rabbits." He is devoted to George like a dog is devoted to its master, and he tries to follow George's commands. There is a childlike wonder in Lennie that can be seen when he first sees the pool of water and slurps down huge gulps of water like a horse.
Lennie's greatest feeling of security comes from petting soft things. When the rest of the world gets complicated and scary, petting soft things helps Lennie feel safe. In petting dead mice, Lennie is doing something that makes him feel safe. Society as a whole would disapprove of what he is doing, but Lennie sees nothing wrong in his actions. When they have their farm, as George tells him at the end, Lennie will not need to be scared of bad things any more, and he can tend the rabbits and pet them.
Lennie's prodigious strength combined with his lack of intelligence and conscience make him dangerous, and he needs George to keep him out of trouble. George takes care of Lennie and makes the decisions for him. George also gives him advice and helps Lennie when overwhelming forces, like Curley , scare him. George keeps the dream out in front of the huge man as a goal: Their farm is a place where they can live together, have animals, grow their own crops and, in general, feel safe. Lennie has little memory, but the story of their dream is one he knows by heart. While George never really believes in this farm, Lennie embraces it with childlike enthusiasm. Every time he makes George tell their story, his enthusiasm excites George, too. Lennie's innocence keeps the dream alive, but his human imperfection makes the dream impossible to realize.
Previous George Milton
Of Mice and Men
John steinbeck, everything you need for every book you read., george milton, lennie small, curley’s wife.
'Of Mice and Men' Characters: Descriptions and Significance
Quentin Cohan is a graduate of Williams College with degrees in both English and History. He covered literature for ThoughtCo.
- Williams College
The two central characters in Of Mice and Men are George Milton and Lennie Small, two migrant field workers searching for farm work in southern California during the 1930s. When the book begins, George and Lennie have just arrived at a new ranch; there, George and Lennie—and, through them, the readers—meet a fascinating cast of characters.
Lennie Small
Lennie Small is a large, gentle-hearted migrant worker who has a mental disability. He relies on George Milton, his lifelong friend and fellow migrant worker, for guidance and safety. In George's presence, Lennie defers to his authoritative friend, but when George is not around, Lennie speaks more freely. Sometimes, he lets slip information that George told him to keep secret, like their plan to buy a plot of land.
Lennie loves touching anything soft, from fabric to a mouse's fur to a woman's hair. He is a classic gentle giant, never seeking to cause harm, but his physical power unintentionally leads to destruction. We learn from George that he and Lennie had to leave their last farm because Lennie couldn’t refrain from touching a woman’s dress and was ultimately accused of rape. When Lennie receives a puppy as a gift from one of the other field workers, he accidentally kills it by petting it too strongly. Lennie's inability to rein in his physical strength leads to trouble for both men, most notably when he accidentally kills Curley's wife.
George Milton
George Milton is both a domineering leader and a loyal protector of Lennie. The two men grew up together, but George exerts greater authority in the friendship because of Lennie's dependence.
George and Lennie frequently talk about getting land of their own. Lennie seems to take this plan very seriously, but George's commitment is less clear. For example, rather than saving money to buy land in the future, George blows his savings in one night while carousing at a bar.
George sometimes complains about his care-taking role, but he is clearly committed to looking out for Lennie. However, his reasoning is never clearly explained. It may be that George stays with Lennie because the relationship gives him a sense of authority when his life otherwise lacks self-determination. He also likely takes comfort in Lennie’s familiarity, as the two men travel regularly and never stake much of a claim anywhere.
After Lennie accidentally kills Curley's wife, George chooses to kill Lennie. The decision is an act of mercy to spare his friend from suffering at the hands of the other field workers.
Curley is the aggressive, short-statured son of the ranch owner. He struts around the farm authoritatively and is rumored to be a former Golden Gloves boxer. Curley constantly picks fights, especially with Lennie; one such fight leads to Lennie crushing Curley's hand.
Curley wears a glove on one of his hands at all times. The other workers claim the glove is filled with lotion to keep his hand delicate for his wife. Curley is, in fact, very jealous and protective of his wife, and he frequently fears she is flirting with the other workers. After Lennie accidentally kills Curley's wife, Curley leads the other workers on a murderous hunt for the newcomer.
Candy is an aging ranch handyman who lost one of his hands years ago in an accident. As a result of both his disability and his age, Candy worries about his future on the farm. When Lennie reveals that he and George are planning to buy land of their own, Candy feels he has received a stroke of luck, and he offers up $350 in order to join them. Candy, like Lennie, genuinely believes in this plan, and as a result he is sympathetic towards George and Lennie throughout the novella, even going so far as to help George delay the hunt for Lennie following Curley’s wife’s death.
Crooks, who got his nickname because of his misshapen back, is a stable hand and the sole African American worker on the ranch. Because of his race, Crooks is disallowed from living in the barn with the other workers. Crooks is bitter and cynical, but nevertheless gets along well with Lennie, who doesn't share the other workers' racism.
Even though George has sworn him to secrecy, Lennie tells Crooks that he and George are planning to buy land. Crooks expresses deep skepticism. He tells Lennie that he’s heard all sorts of people talk about all sorts of plans, but that none of them ever actually happened.
Later in the same scene, Curley's wife approaches the two men, chatting flirtatiously. When Crooks asks her to leave, Curley's wife hurls racial epithets at him and says that she could have him lynched. The incident is humiliating to Crooks, who then has to apologize to Curley’s wife in front of Lennie and Candy despite being the wronged party.
Curley’s Wife
Curley's wife is a young, pretty woman whose name is never mentioned in the novella. Her husband, Curley, is jealous and distrustful, and he frequently snaps at her. She has a sweet side, demonstrated when she tells Lennie about her childhood dreams of movie stardom, as well as a cruel streak, as evidenced by the racist verbal attack she launches at Crooks. Curley's wife precipitates the book’s climax by asking Lennie to stroke her hair, whereupon Lennie inadvertently kills her. Curley's wife is less developed than other characters, and she seems to serve mostly to drive the plot forward and stir up conflict.
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Lennie Death Analysis
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Lennie. Although Lennie is among the principal characters in Of Mice and Men, he is perhaps the least dynamic. He undergoes no significant changes, development, or growth throughout the story and remains exactly as the reader encounters him in the opening pages. Simply put, he loves to pet soft things, is blindly devoted to George and their ...
Lennie Small Character Analysis. Lennie Small is the secondary protagonist in Of Mice and Men. He is a huge, lumbering man whose bearlike appearance masks a sweet, gentle disposition. Lennie has an unnamed mental disability—according to George, this is the result of an accident as a child, though this is likely untrue.
The essay analyzes Lennie's character development throughout the novel Of Mice and Men, exploring his relationship with George, his childlike innocence, and his physical strength. ... Curleys Wife Character Analysis Essay. One such character is Curley's wife, who is often misunderstood and overlooked by readers. Through a close examination of ...
Character Analysis Lennie Small. Lennie Small is huge and lumbering and, in many ways, the opposite of George Milton. Where George has sharp features and definite lines, Lennie is "shapeless." Often he is described in terms of animals. He lumbers like a bear and has the strength of a bear, but his actions are often described like those of a dog.
While George is small and shrewd, Lennie is a "huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, and wide, sloping shoulders.". He resembles a "bear" who "drags his paws" and "his ...
Lennie Small. Lennie Small is the secondary protagonist in Of Mice and Men. He is a huge, lumbering man whose bearlike appearance masks a sweet, gentle disposition. Lennie has an unnamed mental disability—according to George … read analysis of Lennie Small.
Sample Essay Outlines ... Lennie is a "huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, and wide, sloping shoulders." (Read our extended character analysis of Lennie Small.)
Quentin Cohan. Updated on January 23, 2019. The two central characters in Of Mice and Men are George Milton and Lennie Small, two migrant field workers searching for farm work in southern California during the 1930s. When the book begins, George and Lennie have just arrived at a new ranch; there, George and Lennie—and, through them, the ...
Lennie Small is a migrant worker like George Milton, his friend and travelling companion. Due to his mental disability, Lennie is completely reliant on George. Both share a dream of owning a farm together, a dream that Lennie wholeheartedly believes and wants to tend the rabbits at. He is described as a large, lumbering and childlike character ...
Of Mice and Men, Character Analysis: Lennie. by Alice. March 5, 2007; Article / Essay: General, General; 9 comments (3 reviews) In a world where friends were rare, two who travel together were looking for a little place to call home. Lennie small was one of them. ... Nice essay, but I think you should rearrange the structure of it a little bit ...
IGCSE English Literature (4ET1) Institution. Edexcel. Book. Of Mice and Men. This A* (grade 9) essay encompasses the analysis of the character of Lennie Smalls. It explores the conscious structural and linguistic features employed by the author (John Steinbeck) to highlight the character's influence on significant themes (racism, misogyny, and ...
Lennie Small is one of the main characters in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. Contrary to what his name suggests, Lennie is physically very large and strong. Contrary to what his name suggests ...
Lennie is the most interesting character in the novel because he differs from the other is many ways. Lennie Small ironically is a man of large stature and is very strong. He is child-like in his emotions and has a diminished mental capacity. Lennie's feelings are much like that of a normal person when you take into.
In the story Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck shows the protagonist of the story Lennie, as a sympathetic character. In the book, Lennie, a big strong guy and his friend George are on a journey away from their home town Weed, to a job on a ranch. Lennie is not the sharpest knife in the drawer and makes many mistakes.
853 Words4 Pages. Character Analysis: Lennie Small: Lennie is a common migrant worker. He is mentally weak or handicapped but he is also very large and strong physically. He is always dependant on his close friend George in order to get advices and to protect him from certain situations which he finds difficulty in understanding.
Lennie Small is one of the main characters in the book. He is mentally disabled and has the mind of a child. Lennie is a misunderstood character who has good intentions but doesn't understand the impact of his actions. The only character Lennie has a close relationship to George, who sees him as a burden blocking the way to his American dream.
Of Mice And Men Character Analysis Most of the characters in Of Mice and Men are the way they are because of a dream they have or had. In the great depression that is all the hope poor ranch workers had. Living in the 1930's, John Steinbeck probably was chasing a dream like the characters he was writing about. Some of the
Lennie Small. Lennie is George's friend and the two travel together. Lennie has a mental disability, making him dependent upon George to manage day to day life in the difficult environment in ...
Lennie's death conclusively demonstrates one of the novella's central ideas: according to the rules of the American economy, the weak and vulnerable cannot survive. At the end of Of Mice and Men, George spares Lennie from Curley's wrath by shooting Lennie in the back of the head after reciting their shared dream of owning a farm one final ...
In the climactic scene where George is forced to make the agonizing decision to kill Lennie, the tension between his love for his friend and the harsh realities of their circumstances is palpable. Steinbeck writes, "And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the mussel of it close to the back of Lennie's head."
Lennie Small is a character that readers are drawn to right from the beginning of the book. His innocence stands out from the grimey coverings of loneliness and hopelessness that the other characters wear. The reason Lennie is so innocent is because he has a mental handicap, one that prevents him from understanding complex human emotions such ...
Lennie Death Analysis. The death of Lennie in John Steinbeck's novel "Of Mice and Men" is a pivotal moment that raises questions about justice, morality, and the treatment of the mentally disabled. In this essay, we will analyze the circumstances surrounding Lennie's death and the ethical implications of the actions of the other characters.