Of Mice and Men
by John Steinbeck
This is another one of those “classics” whose core theme is “people are mean, the world is awful”. To be fair, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a classic that doesn’t feature that theme.
Of Mice and Men is really famous, featured on high school required reading lists across the nation. It features two male protagonists, George and Lennie—the latter is mentally disabled—who are migrant workers in California. If you’re particularly interested in Great Depression stories about farmers, you’ll be less bored than the average reader who doesn’t really care one way or the other if George and Lennie achieve their farming dreams.
To me, the writing style feels very old, like it was written at the turn of the century—even though it was published in 1937—so some readers might find the book very dry. I’m extremely far from being a feminist, but I can’t really see many women liking the message of this story. Just as in the Bible, where there’s a woman, there’s trouble. I won’t spoil anything, but this is very much a “man’s classic”. Women beware.
Of Mice and Men is really famous, featured on high school required reading lists across the nation. It features two male protagonists, George and Lennie—the latter is mentally disabled—who are migrant workers in California. If you’re particularly interested in Great Depression stories about farmers, you’ll be less bored than the average reader who doesn’t really care one way or the other if George and Lennie achieve their farming dreams.
To me, the writing style feels very old, like it was written at the turn of the century—even though it was published in 1937—so some readers might find the book very dry. I’m extremely far from being a feminist, but I can’t really see many women liking the message of this story. Just as in the Bible, where there’s a woman, there’s trouble. I won’t spoil anything, but this is very much a “man’s classic”. Women beware.