How Steinbeck Set the Scenery
It is a novel about the natural world – “of mice” – and the social world – “and men.” The relationship between these two worlds is not one of conflict but of comparison; he invites us to witness the similarities between the human and animal worlds. All of this is accomplished with great economy and careful attention to word choices and repetition.
Steinbeck wisely begins this book with this idyllic scene, establishing a sense of purity and perfection that the world, which will prove to be cruel and predatory, cannot sustain. He uses imagery to portray the background of this story with vivid details such as “the golden foothill slopes” or “ willows fresh and green with every spring”. Steinbeck is also very precise in his descriptions, where as one writer would write “trees fresh and green”, Steinbeck specifically mentions willows and sycamores in order to give readers a literal view of the scene. These descriptions introduce the scenery to us as a fertile,verdant land. He describes the water in great detail. It is depicted to us as a sanctuary, “it has slipped twinkling” makes the water majestic and gentle.
The mentioning of rabbits within the first two pages also holds importance as the rabbits symbolize the farm that Lennie and George are obsequious over throughout the book. Steinbeck’s circumspect writing creates a background for the idealized friendship between the men and introduces the romanticized dream of farm life that they share. Within the first page, for example, he writes “a lizard makes a great skittering” as he runs amongst the leaves, then goes onto describe “a path beaten hard by boys” and “tramps”. Steinbeck uses the word skitter when describing the actions of the lizard, which belongs in the natural world, however, he describes the actions of the boy and the tramps as beating down. These two words embody the contrast between mice and men. Ultimately this contrast is what separates Lennie from his fantasized farm. It is lucid that Steinbeck
Steinbeck wisely begins this book with this idyllic scene, establishing a sense of purity and perfection that the world, which will prove to be cruel and predatory, cannot sustain. He uses imagery to portray the background of this story with vivid details such as “the golden foothill slopes” or “ willows fresh and green with every spring”. Steinbeck is also very precise in his descriptions, where as one writer would write “trees fresh and green”, Steinbeck specifically mentions willows and sycamores in order to give readers a literal view of the scene. These descriptions introduce the scenery to us as a fertile,verdant land. He describes the water in great detail. It is depicted to us as a sanctuary, “it has slipped twinkling” makes the water majestic and gentle.
The mentioning of rabbits within the first two pages also holds importance as the rabbits symbolize the farm that Lennie and George are obsequious over throughout the book. Steinbeck’s circumspect writing creates a background for the idealized friendship between the men and introduces the romanticized dream of farm life that they share. Within the first page, for example, he writes “a lizard makes a great skittering” as he runs amongst the leaves, then goes onto describe “a path beaten hard by boys” and “tramps”. Steinbeck uses the word skitter when describing the actions of the lizard, which belongs in the natural world, however, he describes the actions of the boy and the tramps as beating down. These two words embody the contrast between mice and men. Ultimately this contrast is what separates Lennie from his fantasized farm. It is lucid that Steinbeck