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As you progress through the book, pause after each chapter to reflect on characters, their power dynamics and connections to important themes.

For each week, you will need to find evidence that could show a character’s intention, accountability, dominance, and submission.

This activity will help you identify and consider meaning and purpose the author is trying to portray through his text.

You will need to include a poster or any graphic representation (using your creativity) of what you are trying to demonstrate in your reflection.

Creativity, Organization, Production and Analysis shall be graded. Your teacher shall monitor your advance in your work every week.

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George, a ranch hand, is Lennie's friend and caretaker.

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Lennie Small is a migrant worker and George’s friend.

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Slim is the leader of the mule team whom everyone respects.

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The swamper, who lost his hand.

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The son of the ranch owner.

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Curley is a thin young man with a brown face, with brown eyes and a head of tightly curled hair.

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Curley is a very aggressive and violent.

He is newly married and he is very jealous .

He takes advantage of the power to treat people cruelly.

Curley attacks Lennie because he is jealous of Lennie's enormous stature, but he ends up crushing his hand after Lennie squeezes it too hard. (Chapter 3)

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[Curley’s] eyes passed over the new men and he stopped. He glanced coldly at George and then at Lennie. His arms gradually bent at the elbows and his hands closed into fists. He stiffened and went into a slight crouch. His glance was at once calculating and pugnacious. (Chapter 2, page 25)

He backed until he was against the wall, and Curley followed, slugging him in the face. Lennie’s hands remained at his sides; he was too frightened to defend himself.(Chapter 3, page 63)

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Curley's possession.

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Beautiful young woman with long black hair and full red lips.

She often wears a simple dress and red shoes with little ostrich feathers on them.

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She is flirtatious.

Curley's wife is not valued as a person.

Her character demonstrates the negative attitude towards women that men may have had at the time.

Due to this isolation and misogyny, Curley's wife feels very lonely.

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"She smiled archly and twitched her body. Nobody cant blame a person for looking, she said. (Chapter 2, page 31)

"Im trying to find Curley, Slim. (Chapter 2, page 31)

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The black stable worker

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He is the only African-American on the ranch, and he has a deformed spine.

Crooks is a lively, sharp-witted, black stable-hand, who takes his name from his crooked back.

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Crooks is isolated from the others because of his skin color.

He is described as proud and aloof, but readers get the sense that Crooks acts aloof due to aching loneliness.

He is lonely, making him resentful and bitter towards the other characters.

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Yes sir. Jesus, we had fun. They let the ****** come in that night. Little skinner name of Smitty took after the ******. Done pretty good, too. The guys wouldn't let him use his feet, Smitty says he would have killed the ******.

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The one who shoots Candy's dog.

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A powerful, big-stomached man.  He is a large, powerful man.

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He is a bitter and self-centered man.

Carlson is also friendly, pleasant to the other workers, and pays close attention to what is going on.

Carlson shoots Candy's dog because it is old, sick, and no longer able to work as a sheep dog.

Carlson is not easily frightened. This is especially clear in an encounter he has with Curley.

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"God awmighty, that dog stinks. Get him outta here, Candy! I dont know nothing that stinks as bad as an old dog. You gotta get him out" (Chapter 3, page 44)

"Why´n´t you shoot him, Candy" (Chapter 3, page 44)

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George is described as a small, quick, intelligent man.

Of dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features.

With strong hands, slender arms, and a thin and bony nose.

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George is a protective man, who cares for Lennie .

The two men are friends since they were children.

Sometimes George gets mad when Lennie gets into trouble.

George often has to think quickly in order to cover up for Lennie’s mistakes.

George recognizes that his friendship with Lennie is special because men like George would not have had friendships due to moving around so much for work.

George seeks the American Dream in the form of a piece of land where he and Lennie can live.

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"The first man was small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose." (chapter 1, page 2)

So you forgot that awready, did you? I gotta tell you again, do I? (Chapter 1, page 4)

No-look! I was just fooling, Lennie. ´Cause I want you to stay with me." (Chapter 1, page 13)

"I know a little place we can get cheap, but they ain't giving it away" (chapter 3, page 56) (They are talking about their dream of having a farm.

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George seems to be used by Steinbeck to reflect the major themes of the novel: loneliness, prejudice, the importance of companionship, the danger of devoted companionship, and the harshness of Californian ranch life during the 1930s. This happens because George was a migrant worker at the time, and this can probably be related to Steinbeck's life.

He is the character with whom most readers will identify, as he symbolizes the difficulty of trudging through the everyday world when you’re just an ordinary guy.

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Lennie is described as a very large, slow man.

He's very strong, but cannot control himself.

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He is obsessed with stroking soft things, such as puppies or mice.

He does not mean to cause harm but is not aware of his own physical power.

Lennie is very innocent and sweet-natured.

He always focused on simple pleasures, like his dream to have rabbits in his farm with George.

Lennie only gets aggressive when he feels that his friendship with George is threatened.

He's mentally handicapped, so he acts like he is a child.

Lennie is cheerful and forgets things that make him unhappy.

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"Behind him walked his opposite, a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide sloping shoulders;" (chapter 1, page 2)

Lennie covered his face with huge paws and bleated with terror. He cried, Make ’um stop, George. (chapter 3, page 63)

" "I forgot", Lennie said softly. "I tried not to forget". Honest to God, I did, George." " (chapter 1, page 4)

Lennie cried out suddenly-"I don´t like this place, George. This ain't no good place. I wanna get outta here" (Chapter 2, page 32)

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Lennie's physical vastness is emphasized because it is linked to the problems this causes later in the book, like the fight with Curley in chapter 3.

Steinbeck described Lennie using animalistic language (paws and bleated), showing his lack of understanding.

Lennie is symbolic of the archetypal "wise fool," who is mentally inferior but able to reveal the best and the worst of others.

Lennie exposes the weaknesses of society, especially ignorance, understanding and cruelty.

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He was a jerk-line skinner, the prince of the ranch.

Slim is tall, ageless, and an expert in his job.

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Slim is the most respected character on the ranch.

He is calm and thoughtful.

He has compassion and insight.

A quiet, observant man.

He convinces Candy that it is time to give up his dog.

Slim does not demand authority but is revered by the rest of the men on the ranch because of his natural influence.

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Slim is portrayed by Steinbeck as a man who other men aspire to be like. Steinbeck writes that ‘he moved with a majesty only achieved by royalty’. I think he shows that there was some life in men at the time, they could be kind and caring, just like Slim. They aren’t all just plain migrant workers who save up their money until the end of the month, so they could consume alcohol and venture to the nearest brothel.

Slim is symbolic of the archetype of the hero, king, or leader. He represents those few who, in their wisdom and strength, seem larger than life.

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"A tall man stood in the doorway. When he had finished combing his hair, he moved into the room, and he moved with a majesty only achieved by royalty and master craftsmen. He was a jerk-line skinner, the prince of the ranch, capable of driving ten, sixteen, even twenty mules with a single line to the leaders. He was capable of killing a fly on the wheeler's butt with a bull whip without touching the mule. (Chapter 2, page 33)

"He ain't mean, said Slim. I can see Lennie ain't a bit mean." (Chapter 3, page 41)

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Candy is a tall, stoop shouldered old man', who has lost his right hand.

Candy is also described through his dog, 'a drag-footed sheep dog, gray of muzzle and with pale, blind old eyes'.

Candy, rather like his dog, is old, infirm and weak.

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He works as a cleaner on the ranch.

He feels that as he gets older, he is useless and worthless as a person. This is reflected in the way Carlson shoots his dog.

Candy feels that without a job, he has nothing to offer society.

Before his death, Candy's dog is his only real companion. This leads him to become involved in George and Lennie's dream of having their own farm.

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You seen what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasn’t no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebody’d shoot me. But they won’t do nothing like that. I won’t have no place to go, an’ I can’t get no more jobs. (Chapter 3, page 60)

George half-closed his eyes.I gotta think about that. We was always gonna do it by ourselves.Candy interrupted him,I’d make a will an’ leave my share to you guys in case I kick off, ’cause I ain’t got no relatives or nothing... (Chapter 3, page 59)

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Steinbeck creates Curley, who symbolizes the "small" people who may feel inferior and overcompensate by inflating or flaunting their power and status.

Curley is used by Steinbeck to symbolize the pessimistic outlook, at the time of the Great Depression.

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Candy is symbolic of people who are undervalued and discriminated against because of their age or disability.

The character is used to portray the subject of dreams. He is easily intrigued by George and Lennie's dream. This demonstrates how contagious dreams were because they were the only things ranch hands could hold on to and hope for. (this was in the context of the 1930s during the Great Depression).

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Curley’s wife is symbolic of Eve. She is symbolic of women everywhere who are repressed by male-centered societies.

Steinbeck wrote Curley's Wife as the property of Curley, and this makes reference to the explicit gender inequality seen in the 1930s.

Curley's Wife is an important plot tool used by Steinbeck to add tragedy to the book. She begins as a similar character to Eve in the Garden of Eden. She brings evil into men's lives by tempting them in a way they cannot resist.

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Crooks is symbolic of people who are discriminated against because of their race. Steinbeck created him to represent racism and symbolize the marginalization of the black community occurring in the 1930s.

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Carlson is symbolic of people who are oblivious to the feelings of others, and who can only be concerned about something if it affects them personally.

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A ranch hand who had a minor part in the story.

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A young man with sloping shoulders

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A laborer on the Salinas ranch where George and Lennie go to work.

Aggressive, nosy, and always looking to be where the action is.

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"Bill and me worked in that patch of field peas. Run cultivators, both of us. Bill was a hell of a nice fella" (chapter 3, page 47)

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The name Whit means white or a small part. Steinbeck chose this name because Whit plays a very small role in Of Mice and Men.

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The Boss and Curley´s father.

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The stocky, well-dressed man in charge of the ranch, and Curley’s father.

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The boss interrogate George and Lennie when they arrive for their first day of work.

He is curious about George always answering for Lennie and thinks that something suspicious is going on.

He seems to be a fair-minded man.

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"The boss was expecting you last night, the old man said. He was sore as hell when you wasn't here to go out this morning" (Chapter 2, page 18)

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The boss represents the system that traps all the workers in the story. Steinbeck uses it to show that migrant workers did not have complete freedom in their work during the Great Depression.

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Lennie´s aunt

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She is described as "a little fat old woman. She wore thick bull's-eye glasses and she wore a huge gingham apron with pockets, and she was starched and clean."

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Is Lennie Small's aunt who adopted him as a baby and cared for him until she died

She placed George Milton with Lennie's care and told him to take care of her nephew.

She doesn't actually take place in the story.

She serves as a powerful memory for both George and Lennie.

She did not understand Lennie's disability but gave him mice and soft things to pet.

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"Him and me was both born in Auburn. I knew his Aunt Clara. She took him when he was a baby and raised him up. When his Aunt Clara died, Lennie just come along with me out working. (Chapter 3, page 40)

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It may be that Steinbeck adds a moment about Aunt Clara to give insight into George and Lennie's past.

Lennie's visions of Aunt Clara are symbolism of his subconscious coming to the surface of his mind and haunting him with his most deep and painful thoughts.

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An old dog and the best friend of Candy.

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A former sheep dog, incredibly old with no teeth and advanced rheumatism.

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Candy’s dog is old, lame, and blind.

Candy allows Carlson to shoot his dog in the back of the head.

The death of Candy's dog is a significant foreshadowing of other events.

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Carl's right, Candy. That dog ain't no good to himself. I wisht somebody'd shoot me if I got old an' a cripple.” (Chapter 3, page 45)

"I´ll shoot him for you. Then it won't be you that does it" (Chapter 3, page 45)

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The dog of Candy is a parallel to Candy himself.

For Candy, his dog represents Candy’s fear of being singled out for his own weakness and the unforgiving atmosphere at the ranch.

Candy's dog represents the fate that awaits anyone who has outlived their purpose.

Steinbeck uses the dog to show how Candy feels and what can happen in the end. Candy and her dog were elderly and disabled, so they couldn't do their jobs well. The dog can foreshadow the next chapter, or just relate to Candy's feelings and the feelings of other people who have the same problem during the Great Depression.