Lonliness And Friendship Essay, Research Paper

In Of Mice and Men, written by George Steinbeck, George and Lennie s vision is of a place of their own, where they can live and have rabbits and can be protected from hurt. As the two men think about their dreams of the future, Candy, Crooks, and even Curley s wife reveal that they also have dreams of a life far different from this present one.

George trusts Lennie too much and as a result, Lennie kills both Curley s wife and George s dream at the same time. The relationship between George and Lennie is unique in that the farmhand is usually an isolated person. It is emphasized that two workers are virtually never seen together. Lennie and George have an attachment and understanding between them; their relationship is different and valuable. Their basic relationship is seen to be the starting factor in their dream. Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest men in the world. They don t belong no place . With us it ain t like that. We got a future. We got somebody to talk to that cares about us .

The theme of loneliness is explained in many ways. Old Candy has only one dog and when it is killed, he hears of George and Lennie s dream and attaches himself to them so that he won t end up someday totally alone and friendless. Even after Lennie kills Curley s wife, old Candy still wants to join George and carry out the dream. Also, Crooks is betrayed to be on the verge of destruction, because a guy needs somebody to be near him Don t make no difference who the guy is, as long as he is with you. Crooks would be willing to come to the farm and work for nothing just to have the opportunity to communicate with people.

Curly s wife ultimately is one of the loneliest people, Her behavior is so hated, that no one comes very sympathetic, but she makes herself so offensive because she is driven by her loneliness. She is overwhelmed by her isolation, from Curly, that she can only regret her situation. She seeks out Lennie s friendship because the other men fear Curly and will have nothing to do with her.

If George and Lennie s relationship did not exist, the killing of Lennie would not hold the tragedy because, now George s life has become as lonely, and as frustrated, as the lives of Curly, Candy, and Curly s wife.

Two important aspects of human nature brought out in the story are: the ability to dream and the desire to have someone to share the dream with.