1. Of Mice and Men
By John Steinbeck

2. I. HISTORICAL FICTION
A. A type of fiction (or false, untrue, story) that shows versions of people or events from history. Historical Fiction will either:
i. present famous events from points
of view not recorded in history, OR
ii. use real historic events to add to a
fiction story, OR
iii. be true for the most part, but the
names of people and places have
been changed.

3. II. Setting of Of Mice and Men
A. The setting of the novel is California in the 1930s on farmland of the Salinas Valley.
B. The ranch in the novel is near Soledad, which is south-east of Salinas on the Salinas river.

4. The Fields of Salinas, California

5. The Beauty of Salinas
GABILAN MOUNTAINS

6. III. Migrant Workers are men who traveled from ranch to ranch looking for temporary work
A. Before technology created farm machinery, humans had to do a lot of the farm work by hand.
B. Between the 1880s and the 1930s, thousands of men would travel the countryside in search of work.

7. Migrant Workers continued
C. These workers would earn $2.50 or $3.00 a day, plus food and shelter.
D. 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.

8. E. Some jobs on a Ranch: i. “Skinner”- or a mule driver ii
E. Some jobs on a Ranch: i. “Skinner”- or a mule driver ii. “Swamper”- cleans the bunkhouse iii. “Stable Buck”- works with the horses

9. F. Other Ranch Terms:
bunkhouse- large open room with narrow beds or cots for ranchers to sleep ‘

10. G. A Bindlestiff is a hobo, especially one who carries a bedroll.

11. IV. The American Dream The American Dream is supposed to mean:
You can be successful if you work hard and live morally.
America is the land of opportunity.
Freedom to work hard and be happy is a part of the Constitution.
The Dream gives equal opportunity and freedom to follow goals, without discrimination.

12. B. The idea of an American Dream for many was broken when in 1929, the Wall Street Stock Market crashed, marking the beginning of the Great Depression, which caused country-wide hunger and poverty.
C. Thousands of people made their way west towards California to escape from their farmlands in the Midwest that were failing due to drought.

13. V. Main Characters: Lennie & George

14. A. Lennie Small Lennie is a very large, child-like migrant worker.
Due to his mental disability, Lennie completely depends on George, his friend and traveling companion, for guidance and protection.
Lennie is gentle and kind but does not understand his own strength.
He loves to pet soft things, such as small animals, dresses, and people’s hair.

15. B. George Milton
George is a small, smart man who travels with, and cares for, Lennie.
Even though he talks about how much better his life would be without Lennie, he obviously cares about Lennie very much.

16. VI. Themes A. Humans Dream and Set Goals
George and Lennie have a dream: to make enough money to buy their own land and be their own bosses. Lennie will be allowed to tend his own rabbits.

17. Themes continued
B. Humans Desire Friendship Even though George and Lennie have each other, other characters in the novel are very lonely and just want a friend or companion.