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Gcse Of Mice and Men

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Reply 60
WOW! These notes are just brilliant. English must be easy for you. Please could you put up notes about Curley's wife and Slim, apparently they're favourates to come up.
Original post by natnalie
WOW! These notes are just brilliant. English must be easy for you. Please could you put up notes about Curley's wife and Slim, apparently they're favourates to come up.


Was this to me? I've put up notes for Curley's Wife and some for Slim here.

60% of my Language GCSE is at and A, and my Literature is currently at an A* - it hasn't been easy! It's taken lots of hard work... But I want the grades.

What exam board are you on? For my exam board Candy/Slim/Lennie are the favourites to come up this year... I'm assuming it's AQA?
Reply 62
Original post by PrinceUpsb
Any more absolutely wonderful gems like these?


This is really stretching it but if you can qualify it... Slim is isolated due to the respect others give him, he is cool minded as he knows that everyone is looking on to him, he gives others a chance for example when George told him about why they left the other ranches (Can't remember the name... it was to do with Lenny touching some child o.O). He was able to make an informed decision as he felt he could relate to others, however people cannot relate to Slim, and in that sense he feels isolated.

Kind of an interesting point if you can qualify it with quotes from the text and it will blow the examiner away.
Reply 63
Anyone got igcse edexcel literature on Tuesday?

Found some notes on injustice on my pc.

Crooks- Injustice is due to his skin colour, people don’t look past the skin.
He’s intelligent- Sad that he lives in a barn, and doesn’t deserve to be so lowly ranked among the men. The fact that he lives in a barn, connotes animal imagery, emphasising how low this rank is (medicine some his some animals). He has academic potential but this is wasted.
Admirable because he tries to rise up by reading, admirable as he has self respect/ integrity.
He felt the injustice as a child when his father did not want him to play with white kids so that he wouldn’t be hurt by the realisation of racism. This makes him bitter: ‘Nobody goes to heaven’. Also this reminds us that racism is learned rather than right, it’s due to people’s love for power over anything. Shown through Lennie as he comes to talk to him.
Crooks is stereotyped because people don’t look beneath the surface (superficial society). Only we see his potential and passion. Steinbeck does not agree with this, shown through Slim (the moral conscience of the book), Slim talks to him, and He calls him ‘Mr Slim’.
Beaten by the boss, called ‘crooks’ and ‘nigga’.
Bitter due to injustice, torture’s Lennie about George and wants to gain power.
The fact that he allows no-one in his room is ironic, it gives him the power which he wants, however simultaneously it drives people away and hurts him. Pride rules Crooks.
Apparently an A* point- Steinbeck gives no solution, like it is in real life, emphasising that it is too great a problem in society. Tries to rise up against Curley’s wife however is put straight back down.
Curley’s wife- Victim of discrimination
Men stay away from her, and is called a ‘tart’. She dresses provocatively- Red for danger. This danger due to Curley, and could get them in trouble. ‘Jailbait’.
She wants attention, because she is lonely, she dresses up to get this attention but in doing so, drives people away. Tells people she is lonely, and talks to Lennie even though he’s a ‘dum dum’, although this desire for attention is her downfall.
Men don’t like her because they can’t have her and don’t want to be sexually frustrated, which is selfish as they view her as a sex object.
She is sometimes hard to relate to such as when she says she could get crooks ‘strung up’.
Steinbeck doesn’t promote the discrimination, shown through Slim, who calls her ‘good lookin’. And discrimination is learned, shown by Lennie’s not minding her.
‘All the pain from her face was gone’- life was always a struggle, trying to impress people and be seen, showing she is happy in death.
Injustice due to her marriage could have been a star but ended up marrying a unloving husband. Shown by the only time we see them together is when she is dead, and Curley is mad possibly because Lennie has taken something which is his. Ownership of women in such times.
Okay here's a few things I remember from last year when I did my exam on 'Of Mice and Men':

Cyclical structure of chapter four where it starts with crooks rubbing his back and ends with it, you could perhaps say that Crooks is trapped in such a cycle and it is not possible for him to attain his dream.

''nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land'' = syntactic parallelism. I suppose it epitomises how there dreams will remain unfulfilled and this . And I found this short analyses about it on enotes:

Crooks is a very cynical man because of the way that he has been treated during his life. Because he is a Black man, he is forced to live in a separate room on the ranch away from the other men. He reads books to pass the time but has no real relationships with the other men who work on the ranch. His cynicism has made both his belief in God and in dreams disappear. So when Lennie first tells him about the dream he and George have of a farm, Crooks simply doesn't believe it can happen. That's why he says," Nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land." In other words, heaven doesn't exist for Crooks and neither do the fulfillment of dreams. He is sure Lennie and George will never achieve their dream of a farm or land.


Hands:

Hands do exist as an underlying symbol in Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Perhaps the most poignant image of hands comes with relation to Curley.

Curley's hands have dual meaning. One hand, the one without the glove, is meant to symbolize strength. Curley is very open about his fighting ability and it is even spoken about among the ranch-hands. Curley's other hand, the one with the glove, is one he protects with Vaseline--"Keepin' that hand soft for his wife."

The symbolism of Curley's hands change after his fight with Lennie. Curley underestimates Lennie's brute strength and Curley's hand is crushed. This symbolizes two very distinctive things. First, the crushing of Curley's hand depicts the crushing of Curley's ego. He has been beaten by a man he deemed weaker and less of a man than himself. Secondly, the crushing of Curley's hand represents the loss of his own sexual prowess/power. Lennie, by crushing Curley's hand, takes away both Curley's sexuality (the ability to please his wife) and his fighting past.

Outside of that, Candy's lack of a hand represent his inability to be a true man. He is unable to perform the tasks as well as the other ranchers and they look down on him for this. Lennie's hands simply represent a combination of brute strength and softness. It is Lennie's inability to comprehend his strength which results in the death of the animals he adores. As for Curley's wife's hands, they represent what is lacking on the ranch--a woman's touch.

Important things that I'm sure will get you your A*:

The book is a microcosm of the 1930's American Society when Crooks is the representation of the Black, Curly's Wife the representation of women, Candy of the old etc.

George and Candy are both very cynical they find it hard to believe or trust anyone where perhaps Lennie and Curly's Wife are the opposite they're isolated in their own ways and full of dreams both have their own dreams that they believe will come true however such dreams cannot survive, such innocence cannot survive in that society. Lennie's death (and Curly's wife earlier on) symbolises and makes poignant point that dreams cannot survive and neither can innocence. Furthermore everyone throughout the book finds it strange that Lennie and George come together they're together which is aired by the bosses' suspicion (can't remember the quote) which is justified as they're all isolated and are used to isolation. Their friendship is not only strange but it just cannot fit, it cannot survive and perhaps Steinbeck's ultimate point is that we all must end up in isolation and the only way that will happen is with Lenni's death.

Lennis' death is the death of many things and do remember to write about that.

They're all lonely.

Fraternity between George and Lennie. George is his keeper.

Context: Wall street crash, the great depression, time when Black or women did not have rights. Hence Curley's wife does take the mickey out of crooks but neither of them or different they're both the same ultimately.
I did this exam last year, don't underestimate the importance of context. Try and relate say, 3 out of 5 points you make to context, like the American dream, how black people were discriminated against, etc.
Also, if you get a question on Slim, the 'Slim don't need no high heeled boots' is a great quote to use if comparing his power to the forced authority of Curley. Also, the fact that Curleys wife wears red signifies danger, as red is a warning, threatening colour.
When Lennie killed himself at the end i broke into tears when we read out the book in class (back in the GCSE days).
Reply 67
does anyone have notes on the context??
tend some 'abbits George.. lol good good memories. Good luck guys.:smile:
Original post by Tplox
does anyone have notes on the context??


Just link it to the american dream and how vapid and empty it is.
The Wall Street Crash and how it led to the great depression which affected everyone so fatally. Left al isolated.
The ranch is a microcosm of America
Inequality of black and women

That is all the context you need at GCSE's trust me, anymore is not necessary just con concentrate on your analysis
Reply 70
does anyone know what questions may come up??
hi..
what is the exam on tuesday (poetry or of mice and men plus an insector calls)

also does anybody know a site where i could print off the poems together..i have lost my anthology OOPS!!1
Reply 72
on tuesday its if mice and men
Reply 73
Original post by James A
When Lennie killed himself at the end i broke into tears when we read out the book in class (back in the GCSE days).


um, Lennie doesn't kill himself, George kills him...
Original post by rali
um, Lennie doesn't kill himself, George kills him...


Yeah sorry, the bottom line is that Lennie was killed and that was what made me a little teary reading it
Original post by Roshniroxy
Okay here's a few things I remember from last year when I did my exam on 'Of Mice and Men':

Cyclical structure of chapter four where it starts with crooks rubbing his back and ends with it, you could perhaps say that Crooks is trapped in such a cycle and it is not possible for him to attain his dream.

''nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land'' = syntactic parallelism. I suppose it epitomises how there dreams will remain unfulfilled and this . And I found this short analyses about it on enotes:

Crooks is a very cynical man because of the way that he has been treated during his life. Because he is a Black man, he is forced to live in a separate room on the ranch away from the other men. He reads books to pass the time but has no real relationships with the other men who work on the ranch. His cynicism has made both his belief in God and in dreams disappear. So when Lennie first tells him about the dream he and George have of a farm, Crooks simply doesn't believe it can happen. That's why he says," Nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land." In other words, heaven doesn't exist for Crooks and neither do the fulfillment of dreams. He is sure Lennie and George will never achieve their dream of a farm or land.


Hands:

Hands do exist as an underlying symbol in Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Perhaps the most poignant image of hands comes with relation to Curley.

Curley's hands have dual meaning. One hand, the one without the glove, is meant to symbolize strength. Curley is very open about his fighting ability and it is even spoken about among the ranch-hands. Curley's other hand, the one with the glove, is one he protects with Vaseline--"Keepin' that hand soft for his wife."

The symbolism of Curley's hands change after his fight with Lennie. Curley underestimates Lennie's brute strength and Curley's hand is crushed. This symbolizes two very distinctive things. First, the crushing of Curley's hand depicts the crushing of Curley's ego. He has been beaten by a man he deemed weaker and less of a man than himself. Secondly, the crushing of Curley's hand represents the loss of his own sexual prowess/power. Lennie, by crushing Curley's hand, takes away both Curley's sexuality (the ability to please his wife) and his fighting past.

Outside of that, Candy's lack of a hand represent his inability to be a true man. He is unable to perform the tasks as well as the other ranchers and they look down on him for this. Lennie's hands simply represent a combination of brute strength and softness. It is Lennie's inability to comprehend his strength which results in the death of the animals he adores. As for Curley's wife's hands, they represent what is lacking on the ranch--a woman's touch.

Important things that I'm sure will get you your A*:

The book is a microcosm of the 1930's American Society when Crooks is the representation of the Black, Curly's Wife the representation of women, Candy of the old etc.

George and Candy are both very cynical they find it hard to believe or trust anyone where perhaps Lennie and Curly's Wife are the opposite they're isolated in their own ways and full of dreams both have their own dreams that they believe will come true however such dreams cannot survive, such innocence cannot survive in that society. Lennie's death (and Curly's wife earlier on) symbolises and makes poignant point that dreams cannot survive and neither can innocence. Furthermore everyone throughout the book finds it strange that Lennie and George come together they're together which is aired by the bosses' suspicion (can't remember the quote) which is justified as they're all isolated and are used to isolation. Their friendship is not only strange but it just cannot fit, it cannot survive and perhaps Steinbeck's ultimate point is that we all must end up in isolation and the only way that will happen is with Lenni's death.

Lennis' death is the death of many things and do remember to write about that.

They're all lonely.

Fraternity between George and Lennie. George is his keeper.

Context: Wall street crash, the great depression, time when Black or women did not have rights. Hence Curley's wife does take the mickey out of crooks but neither of them or different they're both the same ultimately.


This was great, especially the bit on Curley's hands. Never looked at it that way before, thank you!
Original post by Mediterrasian
This was great, especially the bit on Curley's hands. Never looked at it that way before, thank you!


You're welcome and good luck ! If you have anymore questions feel free to PM me :smile:
Original post by Roshniroxy
Okay here's a few things I remember from last year when I did my exam on 'Of Mice and Men':

Cyclical structure of chapter four where it starts with crooks rubbing his back and ends with it, you could perhaps say that Crooks is trapped in such a cycle and it is not possible for him to attain his dream.

''nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land'' = syntactic parallelism. I suppose it epitomises how there dreams will remain unfulfilled and this . And I found this short analyses about it on enotes:

Crooks is a very cynical man because of the way that he has been treated during his life. Because he is a Black man, he is forced to live in a separate room on the ranch away from the other men. He reads books to pass the time but has no real relationships with the other men who work on the ranch. His cynicism has made both his belief in God and in dreams disappear. So when Lennie first tells him about the dream he and George have of a farm, Crooks simply doesn't believe it can happen. That's why he says," Nobody never gets to heaven and nobody gets no land." In other words, heaven doesn't exist for Crooks and neither do the fulfillment of dreams. He is sure Lennie and George will never achieve their dream of a farm or land.


Hands:

Hands do exist as an underlying symbol in Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Perhaps the most poignant image of hands comes with relation to Curley.

Curley's hands have dual meaning. One hand, the one without the glove, is meant to symbolize strength. Curley is very open about his fighting ability and it is even spoken about among the ranch-hands. Curley's other hand, the one with the glove, is one he protects with Vaseline--"Keepin' that hand soft for his wife."

The symbolism of Curley's hands change after his fight with Lennie. Curley underestimates Lennie's brute strength and Curley's hand is crushed. This symbolizes two very distinctive things. First, the crushing of Curley's hand depicts the crushing of Curley's ego. He has been beaten by a man he deemed weaker and less of a man than himself. Secondly, the crushing of Curley's hand represents the loss of his own sexual prowess/power. Lennie, by crushing Curley's hand, takes away both Curley's sexuality (the ability to please his wife) and his fighting past.

Outside of that, Candy's lack of a hand represent his inability to be a true man. He is unable to perform the tasks as well as the other ranchers and they look down on him for this. Lennie's hands simply represent a combination of brute strength and softness. It is Lennie's inability to comprehend his strength which results in the death of the animals he adores. As for Curley's wife's hands, they represent what is lacking on the ranch--a woman's touch.

Important things that I'm sure will get you your A*:

The book is a microcosm of the 1930's American Society when Crooks is the representation of the Black, Curly's Wife the representation of women, Candy of the old etc.

George and Candy are both very cynical they find it hard to believe or trust anyone where perhaps Lennie and Curly's Wife are the opposite they're isolated in their own ways and full of dreams both have their own dreams that they believe will come true however such dreams cannot survive, such innocence cannot survive in that society. Lennie's death (and Curly's wife earlier on) symbolises and makes poignant point that dreams cannot survive and neither can innocence. Furthermore everyone throughout the book finds it strange that Lennie and George come together they're together which is aired by the bosses' suspicion (can't remember the quote) which is justified as they're all isolated and are used to isolation. Their friendship is not only strange but it just cannot fit, it cannot survive and perhaps Steinbeck's ultimate point is that we all must end up in isolation and the only way that will happen is with Lenni's death.

Lennis' death is the death of many things and do remember to write about that.

They're all lonely.

Fraternity between George and Lennie. George is his keeper.

Context: Wall street crash, the great depression, time when Black or women did not have rights. Hence Curley's wife does take the mickey out of crooks but neither of them or different they're both the same ultimately.



Wow!! This is really good and really helped me!!! Thankyou soooo much for putting this up, this is amazinggg you are amazingggggg :smile::smile::smile::smile::smile:
Original post by Gomez Hendrix
hi..
what is the exam on tuesday (poetry or of mice and men plus an insector calls)

also does anybody know a site where i could print off the poems together..i have lost my anthology OOPS!!1



What exam board are you on?
Original post by Tplox
does anyone know what questions may come up??


What exam board are you on? Different exam boards have used different themes/characters already.

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