John Steinbeck, who wrote Of Mice and Men, wants you to know something. Steinbeck wants you to know that the American Dream, the dream of opportunity and prosperity, doesn’t apply to most people. Because most people are like George and Lennie—the main characters in this book. Of Mice and Men presents George and Lennie as pawns in a power game beyond their comprehension. In Steinbeck’s America, Big Money rules, and folks like George and Lennie are doomed from the start.














