For example, “Slowly, like a terrier who doesn't want to bring a ball to its master, Lennie approached, drew back, approached again” (Steinbeck 9). This individual quote is significant in the book because it shows Lennie’s understanding of obedience rather than loyalty. Throughout the novel he is called a terrier, is said to resemble a horse when he drinks, and several times is described as having paws. The animal imagery goes to show that Lennie can’t control himself any more than an animal can. He is enormous and doesn’t always understand what he is doing.
Given these points, the similarities and differences between Of Mice and Men, the movie and the book, become more clear. Lennie acts like George’s child while George tells him what to do and takes care of him. He loves touching anything soft, such as rabbits, puppies, and Curley’s wife’s hair. In contrast, Lennie is only referred to as an animal in the book when there are words outside of dialogue to describe him. The author also makes him seem much larger than he looks in the movie. This proves that it can be necessary to read a book and watch it’s movie to develop a well-rounded opinion of the