OF MICE AND
MEN
BY
JOHN STEINBECK
JOHN STEINBECK
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BIRTH: February 27, 1902
DEATH: December 20,1968 (heart
disease)
EDUCATION: Attended Stanford
University over a period of six years
before dropping out in 1925, without a
degree in order to become a writer.
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Worked odd jobs for 5 years before
becoming successful.
Won Pulitzer Prize in 1940 for his novel,
The Grapes of Wrath.
Won Nobel Prize for Literature in 1962
JOHN STEINBECK BIOGRAPHY
AN INTERVIEW WITH STEINBECK
OF MICE AND MEN BACKGROUND
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Genre: Fictional Novella
(tragedy)
 Published in 1937,
adapted to the stage in
1938.
 Play-novelette
Setting:1930s-California
(south of Soledad).
Historical Setting
 The Great Depression
 The Dust Bowl
 Stock Market Crash of
1929
Physical setting
 clearing
 ranch
 bunkhouse
OF MICE AND MEN BACKGROUND
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Chapter divisions: No distinct chapter numbers
of titles.
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The book has many characteristics of a play.
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Large amounts of dialogue
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Few characters
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Descriptions at the beginning and end of each
section are similar to the stage directions
found in a play
OF MICE AND MEN BACKGROUND
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One of the most challenged books of the 21st
century
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One of the top ten most frequently
challenged books in 2001.
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Great example of Realism and Naturalism!
THINGS TO LOOK FOR AND TAKE
NOTES OVER WHILE READING
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1) Foreshadowing
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2) Symbolism
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3) Types of conflict
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4) Characters’ Dreams
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5) Characters
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Foils
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Characterization
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Archetypes –a character
that is based on a basic
pattern or mold of human
nature.
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6) Characteristics of
Naturalism and Realism
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Examples of animal
imagery-Symbolic imagery
that uses animal
characteristics to describe a
human.
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7) How the story is an allegory
to Adam and Eve’s fall from
grace?
 Paradise Lost by John
Milton