Below you will see some sample blog posts to
Of Mice and Men. Let's examine them to see what the writers did. For
each sample, what did the writer do that was effective? What was not
effective? What makes a strong blog response? What will you have to do as a
writer when you start to blog in our class?
Sample
#1
In
chapter 5, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck displays Lennie’s thought, actions,
and ultimate effect on others, when Lennie is placed in a pressure situation.
Chapter 5 takes the reader to the barn where we find Lennie has accidentally
killed one of the pups. ”And Lennie said softly to the puppy, ‘Why do you got to
get killed? You ain’t so little as mice. I didn’t bounce you hard.’ He bent the
pup’s head up and looked in its face, and he said to it, ‘Now maybe George ain’t
gonna let me tend no rabbits, if he fin’s out you got killed,” (p 85). That
quote allows the reader to infer that Lennie responds very childishly when
presented with a consequential situation. That inference is made by Lennie
blaming the dog for dying, instead of blaming himself, much like a child does
when they do something bad. The quote also shows everything revolves around the
dream farm for Lennie. Another quote, that shows how Lennie responds in
different consequential situations, comes when Curley’s wife wanders into the
barn to find Lennie still struggling to find a solution for killing the puppy.
Curley’s wife begins to converse with Lennie, but Lennie remembers George’s
warning to stay away from Curley’s wife. ”I get lonely,’ she said. ’You can talk
to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad. How’d you
like not to talk to anybody.’ Lennie said, ‘Well, I ain’t supposed to. George’s
scared I’ll get in trouble.’ She changed the subject. ’What you got covered up
there,” (p 87). Lennie then proceeds to answer Curley’s wife, forgetting all
about George’s warning. From this excerpt the reader can infer that Lennie can
be easily distracted and is somewhat gullible, very much like a child, these
qualities of Lennie’s lead to trouble for Lennie. The inference is based on
Lennie going from refusing to talk to Curley’s wife, because of George, to
conversing with Curley’s wife the next line. A third excerpt, where Lennie
response to pressure situations is exhibited, comes later in his conversation
with Curley’s wife. Curley’s wife begins to almost seduce Lennie by letting
touch Lennie touch her hair. ”Look out, now, you’ll muss it.’ And then she cried
angrily, ‘You stop it now, you’ll mess it all up.’ She jerked her head sideways,
and Lennie’s fingers closed on her hair and hung on. ’Let go,’ she cried. ’You
let go,” (p 91). From the quote a reader can infer that Lennie panics when
something occurs which Lennie did not foresee. That inference can be made from
Curley’s wife beginning to struggle and Lennie only grips her hair harder. Also
the reader can infer Lennie does not think rationally when in situations he did
not foresee, because Lennie both suffocates and breaks Curley’s wife’s neck when
Curly’s wife becomes frightened and starts to yell for help.
Sample
#2
I liked the imagery and the detail it had. I could
picture the scene unfolding. It helped me imagine the scene taking place. I also
liked the way Lennie and George interact. It reminds me of a Bugs Bunny episode
called "Bugs and Thugs". The scene was easy to follow, there weren't any bad
things to say about it. There was nothing that could have been done better in my
opinion.
Sample#3
The ending of "Of Mice and Men" saddened me a lot.
Lennie was by far the character I liked to the most. He added humour and sadness
into the book. I think George did the right thing in killing Lennie. Lennie would only cause himself and the
others around him more pain. The thing that justified George's choice to kill
Lennie was that he wanted Lennie to be happy when he died. If he had let Curley
shoot him, Lennie's last few moments would have been terrible. Even if Lennie
was simply put in jail, he still wouldn't have been happy. Curley would have
made sure Lennie was miserable in jail. People would have laughed at him and
hurt him. George killed Lennie out of love.
Sample #4
John
Steinbeck's award winning book Of mice and men throughout the 5th chapter
exhibit the theme common theme of loneliness but also violence within innocence.
This chapter strongly shows loneliness in one of the characters that hasn't been
shown as much as others. On page 86 the book takes place in the barn where
Lennie sits as Curley's wife appears the two begin to talk but as the book
reaches page 87 Curley's wife opens up like Crooks did to Lennie and says, "I
get lonely. You can talk to people but I can't talk to nobody but Curley. Else
he gets mad." That was the first display of loneliness in this chapter but also
the first time we really see this side of Curley's wife, she confesses her
unhappiness in her marriage, her lonely life, and her broken dreams. When I read
this Curley's wife went from a character that I didn't care about more
specifically she doesn't even have a name but now knowing about her loneliness
she begins to become more of a in-depth character that i thought could become a
main character later on. This is when the theme of violence comes in. Lennie and
Curley's wife have been talking about how Lennie loves to feel soft things and
that why he always pets the pups and mice, but also so excited about the rabbits
that he gets all worked up. Curley's wife doesn't see the violence within Lennie
because he is such an innocent guy an tries to calm him on page 90 by saying
"But my hair is soft, fine.'Course I brush it lots.That makes it fine. Here feel
right here" as she lets Curley feel here soft hair. Come page 91 she gets angry
for Lennie messing her hair up that she yells freaking Lennie out. Lennie
reacted in a violent matter of shaking hold tightly to her hair until her neck
accidentally snapped and she lie dead. This is really the first time the theme
of violence has happened but to foreshadow I feel it will happen again due to
Curley's rage at Lennie for the murder on his wife
