Steinbeck, John: 1902-1968
Of Mice and Men, 1937 - Information about the Book
- General Information
- The novel explores the themes of loneliness and isolation.
- Information from Wikipedia
- Facts
- The book takes its title from Robert Burns' poem To A Mouse, On Turning Her Up In Her Nest With The Plough, 1785 (Burn's original version and standard English translation). See especially the second last stanza with the line "The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley" (The best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry).
- "Of Mice and Men" appears on the American Library Association's list of the Most Challenged Books of the 21st Century.
- The novel was removed from Tennessee public schools in 1984 when the School Board Chair promised to remove all "filthy books" from public school curricula and libraries. This classic was also banned from a public school in Ohio in 1980. It was furthermore banned and challenged in the USA in 2017/2020 for "racial slurs and racist stereotypes, and their negative effect on students." ALA American Library Association
- Of Mice and Men takes place during an era in United States history called the Great Depression.
Steinbeck wanted his novel to reach the very workers he was writing about, but he knew that many poor farm workers were illiterate. He had seen theater troupes performing for farm labor camps, and he got the idea that he could write a novel that was made up almost entirely of dialogue, so that it could also be produced as a play.
Steinbeck had almost finished his first draft of the novel when his dog tore the manuscript to shreds. He wrote to his editor, "Two months work to do over again. I was pretty mad, but the poor little fellow may have been acting critically." He eventually rewrote the novel and it was published on this day in 1937. The play was produced soon after, and both the novel and the play were huge successes. Of Mice and Men has remained one of Steinbeck's most popular novels, and it's been made into a movie three times, in 1939, 1981, and 1992.
Garrison Keillor, The Writer's Almanac, February 6, 2004 - Explanations of places, etc.
- Idioms
- Characters
- Articles
- Why "Of Mice and Men" is Still Relevant: "American movies and television shows are still filled with the ultimate belief that you can go to Los Angeles and become a movie star or a rock star, that you can move to San Francisco or Silicon Valley and build the next Microsoft, the next Apple"
- The Meaning in a Nutshell. "As a novel that deals with life during the Depression, it advocates for people to look out for one’s fellow man and to be kind to each other."
- Audio (5:23)
'Of Mice And Men' Is More Than An American Story. NPR Radio; April 19, 2014
Transcript - Frank Lavallo discusses the novel with readers. From Evergreen Podcasts.