Of Mice And Men Character Essay George

Essay, Research Paper

Of Mice and Men Character Essay

Character : George

George, a character in Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck 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.” (Steinbeck, Pg.2) George was Caucasian and it looked as if he had stepped out of an old movie containing drifters, better known as migrant workers. Although physically George was very small, he had complete control over his companion Lennie, the way a father controls a son.

George not only controlled Lennie but he also looked out for him and he wanted him to be happy. An example of this is how he constantly reminds Lennie of their dream, to work on their own farm, much like the dreams of other migrant workers. “Sure, we’d have a little house an’ a room to ourself, little fat iron stove an’ in the winter we’d keep a fire goin’ in it. It ain’t enough land so we’d have to work too hard. Maybe six, seven hours a day. An’ when we put in a crop, why, we’d be there to take the crop up. We’d know what come of our planting.” (Pg. 58) George had taken care of Lennie, every step of the way, just like his Aunt Clara told him to. “He ain’t much of a talker, is he? No he ain’t but sure is a hell of a good worker.”(Pg. 21-22) George even went as far as talking for Lennie to get him a job at the ranch, something not many workers would have done for eachother. Even though George acted like a father figure to Lennie and fathers are supposed to protect their children, George knew that he would not be able to protect Lennie from Curly, who was out to kill him. “Slim said “ya hadda George, I swear ya hadda”.”(Pg. 107) It was clear by the end of the book that George only had one way to protect Lennie from his problems, which were rapidly increasing. “And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head. The hand should violently but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger.”(Pg. 106) Only one thing stood in between Curly and Lennie, and that was George. Even though George treats Lennie kindly and with an open heart, his image portrayed to the other characters was still a small fighter.

However strong he was portrayed, George never got cocky because he knew his boundaries, especially when it came to Lennie. He was very aware of the fact that he could not control Lennie. “Leggo his hand Lennie leggo. Slim, come help me while the guy got any hand left.”(Pg. 64) He never got conceited because George always knew there could be someone bigger, stronger or tougher than him. One thing George had in his image that he was proud of was not being part of Lennie’s family. “Well, that was a lie. An’ I’m damn glad it was. If I was a relative of yours I’d shoot myself.”(Pg. 24) I think even though George said he would shoot himself if he had been part of Lennie’s family, George set up a relationship with Lennie that made him seem like part of the family. George being the father, and Lennie, the son. With a reputation as good as his, the others treated George with respect and like one of the guys, inviting him to do things like go into town with them and other social activities.

The characters were very nice to George, enjoying times playing horseshoes and other things to keep them busy. “George said, “Anybody like to play a little euchre?” “I’ll play out a few with you,” said whit.”(Pg. 48) The characters would sit together and play games such as euchre, now with one extra, but they had no problems with George playing. George, unlike Lennie, fit in perfectly with the rest of the drifters. The other characters were also very understanding, especially Slim and this shows when he said, “ya hadda George, I swear ya hadda”(Pg. 107) after George had brought the luger to the back of Lennie’s head and in less than a second ended a friendship and a war. The friendship between Lennie and George and the war between Lennie and Curly. The only character that does not treat George with respect is Curly, the Boss’s son and a real in the ass to all the workers. “George said, “S’pose he don’t want to talk?” Curly lashed his body around. “By Christ, he’s gotta talk when he’s spoken to. What the hell are you getting’ into it for?””(Pg. 25) Curly had an inferiority complex because he was small so he felt the need to lash out at the people who worked on his fathers ranch, knowing that he had more, not necessarily physical, power then the rest of them did put together. He knew that he could get them fired and this made him act cocky when the other workers were around, especially George and Lennie. George knew by the end of the book that although he did not like curly, he would most likely be working on that farm for a long time.

George and Lennie’s original idea was never really going to happen. Even though George and Lennie would go back to it non-stop, George knew that he making a good living on the ranch they were at. I don’t think George was about to throw all that away so he could chase the “American Dream”, being able to work for himself and not worry about Boss’s or other workers, which he had a notion he probably wouldn’t reach anyway, with or without Lennie.