1. Of Mice and Men A Brief Background in Notes
Ready
Junior English

2. Setting of the Novella-Physical Setting
Farm country of California’s Salinas valley (South of San Francisco, North of Los Angeles)

3. Setting of the Novella-Time Period
Farmers, even today, employ temporary laborers to harvest the crop.
The time period of the book is during the Great Depression ( )
The stock market crashed on “Black Thursday” October 27, 1929 sending many out of work and depleting banks of all their money leaving many penniless.
By 1933, the gross national product decreased from billion to 55.7 billion
The breadth and depth of the crisis made it the Great Depression.

4. The Migrant Worker
During the 1930’s, some 1.3 million American’s migrated from the Midwest (often called Oakies and Arkies for the large number from Oklahoma and Arkansas) and the Southwest to California to find work. This was due to the appeal of California’s extended growing season and hope for jobs to be had.
Due to the desperate times, migrant workers were often the hot topic as people argued over their treatment and pay.
Because the labor pool was vastly disproportionate to the job openings available, going wages went down considerably.
When migrants weren’t working, they were looking for work.

5. The Relationship
The two main characters in the novel are George and Lennie.
Lennie suffers from retardation and George has assumed responsibility for caring for him.
Imagine how difficult it would be to care for a disabled person if you were forced to keeping moving from place to place in order to live.
How do difficult relationships such as George and Lennie’s make life more worthwhile?