“Of Mice and Men” is a play written by John Steinbeck during the 1930’s. Likewise, the play is also set during that time. The play, which centers around two farmer hands’ struggle to achieve their ambitious dream of owning a farm of their own despite harsh external conditions, aims to reflect the lives of middle-class Americans during the Great Depression. The play’s main element, in my opinion, is the fact that it was set in a time of struggle for all socioeconomic classes due to the upperclassmen’s financial catastrophe. Steinbeck brilliantly explores individual struggles in different characters in the play and how they are hidden within a much bigger societal problem that is experienced not only nationally but globally as well. These struggles include racist and sexist discrimination that clearly dominated …show more content…
“Of Mice and Men” is set in Soledad, California, USA. Soledad happens to be located in the southeast of Salinas, where many farms were found during the Great Depression era. There are many immigrants who live in Soledad, like George and Lennie, who migrate in hope of finding work as ranch hands in farms. An interesting fact about Soledad is that it means ‘solitude’ in Spanish. Whether or not Steinback intended this, it perfectly reflects one of the major themes in “Of Mice and Men”, as most characters are completely terrified of ending up alone.
Economic struggles in the 1930’s.
During the 1930’s, the United States witnessed a period of immense struggle, called the Great Depression, when Wall Street’s stock market crashed. People from all socioeconomic classes experienced financial troubles and unemployment rates went as high as affecting around 15 million Americans, who make up a third of the country. The average salary dropped up to 40%, which immediately impacted farming prices as well as other businesses because people could not afford to spend large amounts of