Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck The story of two migrant farm workers: their dreams, friendship, and struggle to survive in depression era California.

Of Mice and Men Context: The Great Depression https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2RuXXclnKSI start :29

The American Dream: What do you think of when you see these symbols? American dream reflection worksheet

“All men are created equal, …they have the rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

Are any of these concepts in your American Dream?

The American Dream From the 17th Century (1600 ) onwards, immigrants have dreamed of a better life in America. Many people immigrated to America in search of a new life for themselves or their families. Many others immigrated to escape persecution or poverty in their homeland.

These immigrants dreamed of making their fortunes in America. American Dream cont’d These immigrants dreamed of making their fortunes in America. For many this dream of riches became a nightmare.  there were horrors of slavery,  there were horrors of the American Civil War, there was a growing number of slums that were just as bad as those in Europe there was also great corruption in the American political system which led to many shattered hopes

Author: John Steinbeck Of Mice and Men -One theme in the story is of the American dream Of Mice and Men is a novella: a fictional narrative, shorter than a novel

John Steinbeck Born in Salinas, California, on February 27 Parents encouraged his love of writing Learned about ranch life as a teen during summers These experiences would help him create rich characters and beautiful descriptions of the land Graduated from Salinas High School in 1919 Attended Stanford University His attendance was poor, and he only took classes that interested him (for example, writing, literature, and marine biology)

John Steinbeck The works he is best known for are Of Mice and Men (1937), and The Grapes of Wrath (1939), both of which focus on the lives of the working-class poor during the Great Depression. He wrote using a very natural, realistic style. In 1962, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He died on December 20th, 1968. He had 30 novels published, three of which came out after his death.

Of Mice and Men was written in 1937. It tells the story of George and Lennie, two migrant farm workers during the Great Depression. The title refers to a line in the poem "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns. The story was first written as a play, and is in many ways is set up like one, with several long scenes, stage-direction like descriptions, and a lot of dialogue. The novel has been banned periodically in the United States for a variety of reasons, including profanity, morality, violence, and the depiction of the mentally challenged. (intellectually disabled)

Setting of Of Mice and Men Where: The novel is set in the farmland of the Salinas valley, where John Steinbeck was born The ranch in the novel is near Soledad, which is south-east of Salinas on the Salinas river. The countryside described at the beginning of the novel, and the ranch itself are based on Steinbeck’s own experiences.

Setting of Of Mice and Men When: 1930’s, Depression Era

The Fields of Salinas, California

The Great Depression

The Great Depression & Dust Bowl The idea of an American Dream for many was broken when in 1929, when Wall Street crashed, marking the beginning of the Great Depression. In addition, terrible drought and environmental conditions created the turmoil for farmers known as the Dust Bowl.

The Great Depression Before the 1930s, America was enjoying economic triumph. The idea of credit – buy now, pay later – was introduced and people bought everything they could. Unfortunately, this time of enjoyment and prosper would soon be over.

Cause and Effects of the Great Depression causes effects

1930s: MASS UNEMPLOYMENT What 2 words does this newspaper use to show how bad the situation was?

The Great Depression: 2 Major Causes “Black Tuesday”, October 29th , 1929. In a single day, sixteen million shares were traded--a record--and thirty billion dollars vanished into thin air. $30,000,000,000 Two months after the original crash in October, stockholders had lost more than $40 billion dollars. $40,000,000,000

The Great Depression: 2 Major Causes, cont. Bank Failures. Throughout the 1930s over 9,000 banks failed. Bank deposits were uninsured and thus as banks failed people simply lost their savings. Surviving banks, unsure of the economic situation and concerned for their own survival, stopped being as willing to create new loans.

The Great Depression: Effects With the stock market crash and the fear of more economic problems, individuals from ALL socioeconomic groups stopped purchasing items. Less items were then produced so fewer workers were needed. 2. As people lost their jobs, they were unable to keep up with paying for items they had bought through credit and their items were repossessed. (ex. car taken away) The unemployment rate rose above 25% which meant, of course, even less spending to help alleviate the economic situation.

Great Depression Depression Era Stock Market Crash (October 24th 1929) Panic lead to the deepest economic depression the nation had ever known Lasted until 1939, when WWII broke out Businesses went bankrupt, banks closed, factories shut down, farms were foreclosed upon (repossessed by banks) 1 in 4 were unemployed in 1933 25% of all people able to work were not working

Brother, can you spare a dime? Al Jolson 1931

Letters from home reflection worksheet

Depression: Effects on farmers Cause Effects were forced to produce more goods in order to earn the same amount of money. The depression also led to a drop in the market price of farm crops.

THE FARMERS. The farmers situation was made worse when America was hit by a series of droughts and many farms could no longer operate. How would the droughts mean there was more unemployment?

The Dust Bowl The increase in farming activity across the Great Plains states caused the precious soil to erode. This erosion, coupled with a seven-year drought that began in 1931, turned once fertile grasslands into a ‘desert like’ region known as the Dust Bowl.

The Dust Bowl

1930s Dust Bowl

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYOmjQO_UMw The Dust Bowl In addition to the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl was also causing the morale of the country to become increasingly desperate. Throughout the late 1920s and early 1930s, the Great Plains suffered a severe drought. In 1934, windstorms covered the Great Plains.  They easily uplifted the soil, blowing massive clouds of dust all over the plains. Thousands of people were forced to leave their homes because of the Dust Bowl.  89 million acres of land were severely damaged or destroyed.  Most people traveled to California to restart their lives.

Historical Background: Migrant Workers Before the invention of farm machinery, humans had to do a lot of the farm work by hand. Between the 1880s and the 1930s thousands of men would travel the countryside in search of work. Such work included the harvesting of wheat.

These workers would earn $2.50 or $3.00 a day, plus food and shelter. During the 1930s, the unemployment rate was high in the U.S., and with so many men searching for work, agencies were set up to send farm workers to where they were needed. In the novel, George and Lennie (the two main characters) were given work cards from Murray and Ready’s, which was one of the farm work agencies.

1930s Salinas Valley Lettuce Pickers

This era affected the whole world during the 1930s, but even in the midst of hardship, some people’s dreams survived. Thousands of people made their way west towards California to escape from their farmlands in the mid-West that were failing due to drought. The characters of George and Lennie dreamt of having a “little house and a couple of acres” which was their own dream.

The History of Migrant Farmers in California During the Great Depression, economic and ecological forces (the Dust Bowl) brought many rural poor and migrant agricultural workers from the Great Plains states, such as Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas, to California.

WHAT DID THEY DO?. People heard that in California the soil was still good and there was plenty of room and opportunity for work. If you were a farmer from Oklahoma in the 1930s what would you do?

Many migrant workers from the Midwest and South (notably, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas), migrated to California in search of work.

The American Dream… Hundreds of thousands of farmers packed up their families and few belongings, and headed for California, which, for numerous reasons, seemed like a promised land. The state’s mild climate promised a longer growing season and, with soil favourable to a wider range of crops, it offered more opportunities to harvest.

… is shattered!! Despite these promises, though, very few found it to be the land of opportunity and plenty of which they dreamed.

1930s California Migrant Camp

1930s Migrant Family

Why California? reflection worksheet

So Why The Title Of Mice and Men? Inspired by a poem written by Robert Burns:- From the poem: The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men / often go awry Meaning: No matter how hard or well we plan for something, our plans can often fail to become reality...or worse, they can end up going terribly wrong.

Title’s Allusion But Mouse, you are not alone, To A Field Mouse On turning up her nest with the plough, Nov, 1785 Wee, sleeket, cowran, tim'rous beastie, O, what panic's in thy breastie! Thou need na start awa sae hasty, Wi' bickering brattle! I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee, Wi' murd'ring pattle! I'm truly sorry Man's dominion   Has broken Nature's social union, An' justifies that ill opinion, Which makes thee startle, At me, thy poor, earth-born companion, An' fellow-mortal! I doubt na, whyles, but thou may thieve; What then? poor beastie, thou maun live! A daimen-icker in a thrave 'S a sma' request: I'll get a blessin wi' the lave, An' never miss't! Thy wee-bit housie, too, in ruin!    It's silly wa's the win's are strewin! An' naething, now, to big a new ane, O' foggage green! An' bleak December's winds ensuin, Baith snell an' keen! Thou saw the fields laid bare an' wast, An' weary Winter comin fast, An' cozie here, beneath the blast, Thou thought to dwell, Till crash! the cruel coulter past Out thro' thy cell. That wee-bit heap o' leaves an' stibble, Has cost thee monie a weary nibble! Now thou's turn'd out, for a' thy trouble, But house or hald. To thole the Winter's sleety dribble, An' cranreuch cauld!    But Mousie, thou are no thy-lane, In proving foresight may be vain: The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men, Gang aft agley, An' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain, For promis'd joy!   Still, thou art blest, compar'd wi' me! The present only toucheth thee: But Och! I backward cast my e'e, On prospects drear! An' forward, tho' I canna see, I guess an' fear! by Robert Burns But Mouse, you are not alone, In proving foresight may be pointless: The best planned schemes of Mice an' Men, Often go awry, And leave us nothing but grief and pain, Instead of promised joy!

Fact or Fiction? Although Of Mice and Men is a fictional story it is deeply rooted in historical fact. The high unemployment resulted in many people travelling to find work. They could be hired and fired at the boss’ will (farm owners were very powerful)

Of Mice and Men: Themes Themes to Consider as we Read: Friendship Loneliness Mental Disability Racism Strong vs. Weak Dreams vs. Reality