Essay on The American Dream According to John Steinbeck

The American Dream John Steinbeck, author of many classic American novels, greatly influenced modern American literature. Steinbeck often referred to the Salinas Valley of California in his writing. He often referred to the settlers and the adversities they had faced during the migration to the Salinas Valley area. With novels such as Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath, Steinbeck explained the harsh reality of the severe hardships the settlers faced to accomplish the American Dream. These novels share many similarities in regard to their themes. To understand Steinbecks work, we must first understand Steinbeck. John Steinbeck was born in Salinas, California in 1902. His father was a treasurer for the county. Steinbecks mother†¦show more content†¦They crave the opportunity to work, land to call their own and being their own bosses by working off of that land. George and Lennie feel that they are different than other migrant workers because they have dreams and they rely on each other. Ge orge and Lennie find work on a farm bucking barley. On this farm they meet the laborers as well as other characters of this novel including Candy (an older laborer), Crooks (the black stable hand), the boss, Curley (a short man who happens to be the bosses son), Curleys wife (a lonely woman easily excited by the attention of men), Carlson (a ranchhand) and Slim (the local authority figure). The characters in this novel all seem to want to transform their lives and are not able to do so. Curleys wife, a failed actress, is living day to day hoping that she will be able to fulfill her lifelong dream of acting. Slim, has nothing to show for a lifetime of laboring. He, just like George and Lennie, had hoped and dreamed for many years to own a piece of land to call his own. He has to live with the realization that he will probably die laboring just as he has done for so many years before. Crooks, on the other hand, has more of a sociological issue to deal with. He dealt with constant rac ial issues preventing him from accomplishing the American Dream. He has struggled to be treated as a human being because he has been oppressed by the white workers for so many years. TheShow MoreRelated The American Dream According to John Steinbeck Essay934 Words   |  4 PagesJohn Steinbeck, author of many classic American novels, greatly influenced modern American literature. Steinbeck often referred to the Salinas Valley of California in his writing. He often referred to the settlers and the adversities they had faced during the migration to the Salinas Valley area. With novels such as Of Mice And Men and The Grapes Of Wrath, Steinbeck explained the harsh reality of the severe hardships the settlers faced to accomplish the American Dream. These novels share many similaritiesRead MoreAnalysis Of The Sphinx And Of Mice And Men 1493 Words   |  6 PagesSphinx destroying itself and Oedipus to later take the throne in the city the Sphinx was guarding. In many ways, the Sphinx is analogous to the American Dream where many people are devoured by it while a small quantity ever â€Å"solve the riddle† and achieve their American Dream. In the 1937 novelette, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck incorporates the American Dream in the setting of the Great Depression in Tyler’s Ranch , California . During the Great Depression, many workers went into an exodus from theRead MoreThe Futility Of Dreaming By John Steinbeck942 Words   |  4 Pagesnature is to move into the future. John Steinbeck s novella, Of Mice and Men explores this theme of futile desire through various relationships and character complexes. This fictional story begins by introducing two men with a relationship built from the very foundations of love. As the novel progresses, we begin questioning innate truths. Steinbeck uses his literary prowess to entwine us within a story of loneliness, loss and morality. The characters hopes and dreams, regardless of outcome, are aRead MoreJohn Ste inbeck s Of Mice And Men1429 Words   |  6 Pageshave dreamed on achieving the american dream but few have achieved it. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Steinbeck writes a marvelous story about the hardship of achieving the unobtainable american dream. Steinbeck describes the elusive american dream in Of Mice and Men by comparing and contrasting the american dream with the characters in the novel. The american dream has many interpretations depending on who you ask. Some might say the american dream came from the declaration of independenceRead MoreIs It Really A Dream?933 Words   |  4 PagesIs It Really A Dream? The American Dream is defined as â€Å"a life of personal happiness and material comfort as traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S† (Dictionary.com). This so called â€Å"dream† is an idea that has distinguished both America and her people for centuries. For generations, the American Dream has powered hope for hard-working Americans to achieve a better life - to ful-fill this dream. But over time, the idea of this dream has been criticized. In The Great Gatsby and in Of MiceRead MoreThe American Dream : The American Dream?1106 Words   |  5 Pagesaverage, Americans work 43 hours per week out of a total of 120 hours, take out the recommended sleep time and we work 43 out of 80 total hours. Therefore we work more than half the time in our daily lives. The larger part of Americans believe in The American Dream. so employees believe in working excessively for the chance of being rich, having expensive objects and being successful. The problem The American Dream i s getting less and less possible each and everyday. The American Dream is centralRead MoreJohn Steinbeck s Of Mice And Men1365 Words   |  6 PagesJohn Steinbeck was an author who never wrote without a purpose, though the purpose was not always the same, there was always one. In the novella, Of Mice and Men he wrote with a meaning that was close to his heart. Steinbeck wrote this novella in the middle of the Great Depression for the purpose of showing how this was affecting the citizens of the United States. He wrote Of Mice and Men in order to show how the Great Depression was the final straw in the destruction of the American Dream. InRead MoreForeshadowing In Of Mice And Men Analysis1257 Words   |  6 PagesHow does Steinbeck Use Foreshadowing in his Text? Foreshadowing is the way an author uses clues to show the reader what happens later in the book. In 1937 John Steinbeck published the American classic, â€Å"Of Mice and Men,† a short story that tells the tale of George and Lennie, two migrant workers during the Great Depression. George, a small quick man, and his companion, Lennie, an enormous man with the mind of a child. They begin work at a ranch and come across Crooks, Candy, Slim, Curley, Curley’sRead MoreInterpretations Of The American Dream1718 Words   |  7 PagesInterpretations of American Dream There exist kinds of interpretations and instructions along the very term ‘American Dream’ ranging from its definition, the different concepts of people about it and its ultimate aim to the doubts upon its realization. Alfonzo Reyas, a Mexican humanist, says that â€Å"America is a utopia†¦ it is the figure of human hope† (qtd. In Parrington Jr. Preface). James Truslow Adams, who was firstly coined the phrase in his 1931 book The Epic of America, however, defined it as a â€Å"dream of aRead MoreThe Significance of Dreams in of Mice and Men839 Words   |  4 PagesThe Significance of Dreams in Of Mice and Men A major motif of John Steinbeck s Of Mice and Men is the American dream and the drive to attain it. The life of a ranch hand is grim, yet the characters in the novel are still vulnerable to dreams of a better life. The dream of owning land, called the American dream by some, is what motivates George and Lennie in their work on the ranch. It is their friendship that sustains this dream and makes it possible. While the dreams are credible to the