Curley, the boss’ son, is an evil character in Steinbeck’s world. Even Lennie feels the sense of menace when Curley first comes into the bunkhouse. Curley is a “thin young man with a brown face, with brown eyes and a head of tightly curled hair.” According to Candy, Curley is […]
Read more Character Analysis CurleyCharacter Analysis Candy
Candy is “a tall, stoop-shouldered old man … . He was dressed in blue jeans and carried a big push-broom in his left hand.” His right hand is simply a stump because he lost his hand in a ranch accident. Now the owners of the ranch keep him on as […]
Read more Character Analysis CandyCharacter 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 […]
Read more Character Analysis Lennie SmallCharacter Analysis George Milton
George is described as physically small with very sharp features, an opposite to Lennie Small. Milton is the last name of the author of one of Steinbeck’s favorite works, Paradise Lost. In that epic poem, Adam and Eve fall from grace in the Garden of Eden. Because of their fall, […]
Read more Character Analysis George MiltonSummary and Analysis Chapter 6
Summary Lennie is by the deep pool of the Salinas River, waiting for George. He talks to himself, repeating that George will be mad and give him hell. From his memory, he creates his Aunt Clara, who stares disapprovingly and scolds him because once again he did not listen to […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 6Summary and Analysis Chapter 5
Summary Lennie is alone inside the barn, stroking a dead puppy. Worried that George will find out and won’t let him tend the rabbits, Lennie buries the dead pup in the hay and says that he will claim to have found it dead. But then he uncovers the pup and […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 5Summary and Analysis Chapter 4
Summary It is Saturday night, and Crooks is alone in his room when Lennie appears in the door. At first Crooks sends Lennie away, but eventually a conversation ensues in which Lennie says he came into the barn to see his pups, and Crooks warns Lennie that he is taking […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 4Summary and Analysis Chapter 3
Summary Alone in the bunkhouse, George thanks Slim for giving Lennie a pup. Slim comments on Lennie’s ability to work hard and mentions that it is obvious Lennie is not too bright. Slim then asks why Lennie and George go around together because most of the ranch hands he’s seen […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 3Summary and Analysis Chapter 2
Summary The next morning, George and Lennie arrive at the ranch and go to the bunkhouse. The old swamper, Candy, informs them the boss is mad because they were supposed to arrive the night before. After Candy shows them which bunks to take, the conversation turns to people at the […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 2Summary and Analysis Chapter 1
Summary Two men, dressed in denim jackets and trousers and wearing “black, shapeless hats,” walk single-file down a path near the pool. Both men carry blanket rolls — called bindles — on their shoulders. The smaller, wiry man is George Milton. Behind him is Lennie Small, a huge man with […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 1