Of Mice and Men Study Questions

What happened to Lulu's puppies? How is this significant?

He drowned 2/7 because the Lulu couldn't feed them. It is significant because the puppies will not be strong if they do not get food, so he saves the trouble and drowns them. This shows that they are not sentimental people.

"I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny." Who says this line? Discuss the power structure of the ranch. Which characters have power? Which don't? Where does Crooks rate in terms of power on the ranch?

Curley's wife says this. The boss and his son, Curley and his wife have power. Slim has some power because he was able to threaten Curley to not tell anyone about his fight with Lennie. The ranchmen and stable buck don't have any. Crooks rates to the very bottom in the power of the ranch.

Name the character who says this line: "Whatever we ain't got, that's what you want. God a'mighty, if I was alone I could live so easy."

George

Look carefully at the dialogue between George and Lennie right before the shooting. What's interesting about the way George is talking?

George's tone is monotonous. He knows what he has to do and doesn't want to do it. He wants Lennie to be thinking of good things when he dies.

Of Mice and Men is set in which decade?

1930s

When was Of Mice and Men published?

1937

Describe the activities that show Lennie behaving as an animal.

He bobs his head like a horse. He is like a dog; reluctant to obey his owner. His hands are like paws.

In which state is the story set?

Califronia

Who is the first person to discover the dead body of Curley's wife?

Candy

Carlson wants to put Candy's dog out of its misery. Candy wants the dog to remain alive. Who's right? Why? Also, symbolically connect the dog to Candy himself.

Candy is right because the dog is like family to him. If they need a new dog, they can get another one. But the dog should be able to die peacefully. Plus, it's not Carlson's dog. They connect to each other because they are both crippled. It is also gave him a purpose, because Candy couldn't do anything and would have to leave soon anyway.

How much money does Candy have? Where did he get the money? Why is Candy so keen to join George and Lennie on their dream farm?

He has $300. He got 250 after he lost his hand. He saved $50 on his own. If he lives with George and Lennie, he knows he has a safe place for when he gets too old to do anything.

How did Crooks get his name?

He has a crooked back

Why does Crooks have more items than most of the other men? Take a look at his belongings. Choose three specific items and explain what they show about this character.

He has more possessions because he is not moving around like the other one. He has a gun because he has no one to protect him. He has dictionary and books because he has no one to talk to, so he has to entertain himself. He has an alarm clock because he is responsible for waking himself up.

When Lennie runs away, he takes the dead puppy with him saying, "I'll throw him away... It's bad enough like it is." What does this show us about his mental state?

He is panicking and is not thinking straight. He is not really realizing that he just murdered a person. He does not realize the difference between killing a person and an animal. All he knows is that he has done something bad and he has to get rid of one of them, so he takes the puppy. This shows how mentally unstable he is.

Why is George unhappy when he returns to the ranch? Is he right to be upset? Explain your answer.

He is upset because Lennie and Candy told Crooks about the ranch house. I think he does have the right to be upset because he specifically told both of them not to, and he had a good reason for keeping it a secret.

List the reasons that Lennie gives to explain how the puppy is responsible for its own death? Are Lennie's arguments valid? Why or why not?

He says that the puppy was 'biting' him. He says that the puppy should've been able to handle his petting because it is bigger than a mouse. His arguments are not valid because of how immature his excuses are.

What is Carlson's problem with Candy's dog?

He smells. He can barely walk because he is so old. He doesn't have food so he cant eat. He's nearly blind. He proposes to shoot him and replace him with one of the new puppies.

Describe activities that show George acting as Lennie's guardian/parent.

He tells him to not drink the water. He supplies the food. He demands his mouse from him.

Lennie has just maimed the boss' son. What does Slim do to ensure that George and Lennie won't get fired.

He threatens that if he gets Lennie fired, Slim will tell everyone that Lennie snapped his are in one punch. Slim tells Curley, "Tell your dad that if you got your hand stuck in a machine."

What do you think will happen to George now?

He will probably live the same life that every other lonely ranch man.

Of the new characters in this chapter, which one do you like best and why?

I like Slim because he is very polite and confident and is nice to Lennie and George.

I know that you want to despise Curley's wife, but this chapter helps us to see her in a slightly different light, changing her from a static character to one who is more dynamic. Now that you know a bit of her background, how have your feelings changed about her? Explain.

I still don't have a lot of respect for her. She is very lonely, and didn't get to live the life she wanted. She just wanted to make some friends. But, I do pity her because of how desperate she is. Society contributed to her wrong ways. But she is still not a nice person.

Why do you suppose Curley chose his wife to marry? What's the irony of this decision?

I think Curley chose her because she's tramp. He married her for his pleasure. He married her for all her qualities such as beauty and flirtatiousness. The irony is that Curley may be in charge of the ranch, but when he goes home, she has power over him.

Slim says, "You had, George... I swear you had." Is this true? What would have happened if George had waited another five minutes?

I think he had to because it is not fair that George has to constantly give up on a good life for Lennie's needs. If he would waited another five minutes, Lennie would've had a much painful death.

Despite the racial segregation of the time, Crooks asks to join Candy and Lennie on the dream farm. Later he says he was "jus' foolin'. I wouldn't want to ho no place like that." What causes the change of his heart?

I think that Crooks was hoping that he could possibly have a non-lonely life. But then, Curley's wife crushes every hope of his to be free from loneliness by telling Crooks she has complete authority over him.This discourages him into thinking that he has no choice but to be alone.

How is the setting different in this chapter? How do your feelings change because of the difference?

It is in Crooks room in the barn. Crooks is very lonely and I pity him. We know this because of how isolated it is from everyone.

When talking to Slim about Lennie, George says, "Funny... I used to have a hell of a lot of fun with 'im. Used to play jokes on 'im 'cause he was too dumb to take care of 'imself. But he was too dumb even to know he had a joke played on him... Tell you what made me stop that. One day a bunch of guys was standin' around up on the Sacramento River. I was feelin' pretty smart. I turns to Lennie and says, 'Jump in.' An' he jumps. Couldn't swim a stroke. He damn near drowned before we could get him. An' he was so damn nice to me for pullin' him out. Clean forgot I told him to jump in. Well, I ain't done nothing like that no more." What does this passage show us about Lennie? About George? About Slim?

It shows that Lennie is very gullible and oblivious. He isn't very smart. George obviously has authority of Lennie and has used it unresponsively in the past. Slim is an easy person to talk to.

Why does Curley, the boss' son, automatically hate Lennie?

Lennie is bigger than him, so Curley is jealous.

Why does Curley attack Lennie? Look closely at the scene. At what point does Lennie react/defend himself? What's the significance of this?

Lennie was laughing. Curley thought he was laughing at him for the vaseline on his hand. The significance is that he will listen to any command that George says. George tells Lennie to go all in and beat Curley up.

Physically describe Lennie and George. What's interesting about the contrast?

Lennie: big, clumsy, shapeless face, large pale eyes, wide sloping shoulders, walks heavily, animal-like George: small, quick, sharp, strong, features, more cautious. What is interesting about this contrast is that usually, the bigger man will lead the smaller one. But, it's the opposite.

The last guy who slept in George's bunk just got up and 'quit, the way a guy will.' What does this shoe us about the lifestyle of the ranch men?

Most men will only work on a ranch for a temporary job. They don't have a plan for the future. It is a very stressful lifestyle because of the surprising event that don't have warning. that happen to them

What's interesting about the last paragraph?

No one shows any emotion except George. Carlson and Curley have no emotion whatsoever. Slim is the only one with compassion.

Why did Aunt Clara give Lennie a rubber mouse? Why didn't he like it?

She gave him a rubber mouse because he killed every mouse he got. He didn't like it because it had no fur to pet.

Explain what happened to Curley's wife that led her to meet and quickly marry Curley?

She met a Hollywood man, who lied to her and said that she could have a great life because of him. This was obviously a lie, but she believed it. Curley was the only one left.

When Curley's Wife is discovered by the men, which one of them tenderly checks her vital signs and pronounced that she is, in fact, dead?

Slim

When all of the ranchers enter the barn, which one of them inspects Curley's wife's neck? What does this show us?

Slim inspected her neck. Slim is at least a little concerned. Curley does not get upset at all. He was just happy that he got an excuse to kill Lennie. This also shows that Slim does the hard and compassionate things on the ranch.

What is Lennie's last name?

Small

What are the two card games that George half-heartedly plays during this chapter? Assign some symbolic significance to either or both of the card games in the chapter.

Solitaire and Euchre. Solitaire is a solo game, which George plays.

What is Susy's place? What does the popularity of Susy's place show us?

Susy's club is whorehouse; a strip bar; a place where prostitutes are. The men are craving some kind of connection with someone.

What was the boss' Christmas gift to the men? What did they do for fun that night? What's the significance of this?

The boss gave them a gallon of whiskey. They got in a fight for fun. They beat up the stable buck. This they live a violent and rough lifestyle.

As Lennie is hiding in the brush waiting for George, he has two hallucinations. Describe the two separate hallucinations and explain how each are meaningful to Lennie and the reader.

The first one is Aunt Clara. Aunt Clara is talking in Lennie's voice saying that she is disappointed in how he let George down. The second one is a rabbit. This one, also talking in Lennie's voice tells him that he is crazy and can't take care of himself. They both talk about everything Lennie fears the most.

Now that you've finished the chapter, explain what the death of the puppy foreshadows. Also, the puppy can be seen as a symbol. How so?

The puppy foreshadows the death of Curley's wife. It also foreshadowed the death of their dream farm. A puppy is very innocent and sweet. But, so it symbolizes Lennie's innocence. When it dies, it shows that Lennie is no longer innocent.

Why can't Candy and George still get the dream farm? Explain why George turns away from Candy in chapter 5.

They are not going to have enough money without Lennie's stake. George realizes all it is is talk and that it will never go any further. It was George and Lennie's dream, and he can't even bear the thought of doing it without him.

How are George and Lennie different than other ranch workers?

They have each other.

Why are George and Lennie are different from the other men?

They look out for each other

What's the name of the town where George and Lennie last worked? What happened that caused the two men to run away from this town?

Weed — Lennie petted a woman's dress.

Other than the death of the puppy at the beginning of chapter 5, what clues have there been throughout the book that lead up to Lennie's killing of Curley's wife?

When Curley's wife first saw Lennie, Lennie needed George's help in knowing what to say. We knew that if Curley's wife and Lennie were alone together, it would not end well. The girl in Weed may have got away, but the same thing happened except Curley's wife got away.

At what point did George decide he was going to have to kill Lennie? Look back over the end of ch. 5 for clues?

When George found the dead puppy he knew it was time.

Whose gun did George use to end Lennie's life?

carlson

After killing Curley's wife, which pair of figures appear and scold Lennie?

a giant rabbit and aunt clara

Disappointed with her life, Curley's wife wonders where she would be if she had become...?

an actress

Name the character who says this line: "A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you. I tell ya, a guy gets too lonely an' he gets sick."

crooks

Which literary technique is seen when Lennie first kills the puppy, and then later kills Curley's wife?

foreshadowing

Who did Curley's wife suspect stole her letters?

her mother

With Lennie's last name and his physical appearance, what literary technique is Steinbeck using?

irony

Up in Weed, Lennie scared a girl when he grabbed her dress. What color was the girl's dress?

red