Of Mice and Men paper assignment LITERARY ANALYSIS STRUCTURE

OF MICE AND MEN REVIEW: In addition to a thesis statement, an introduction includes: An attention-getting first sentence. The name of the author and the title of the book. A preview of points that will be used to support the thesis statement.

Of Mice and Men Now, we move on to writing structure: Writing in present tense Because literature is timeless, it is written about in present tense. For example, George and Lennie are on an endless quest for their dream because the story starts anew each time a new reader picks up the book. They are forever in the circumstances of the book. To a new reader, Lennie is mentally challenged, not was. Even after you finish reading the book, Slim still moves with the majesty of a master craftsman.

Of Mice and Men So let’s look at some samples of how the world in the book is caught in time. It never ends. Original: When Lennie killed the mice and puppy, when Carlson killed Candy’s dog, and when the heron ate the snake; this all foreshadowed what happened to Lennie at the end.

Of Mice and Men Notice how all of the verbs or action words are in the past tense: killed the mice; killed Candy’s dog; the heron ate the snake; all foreshadowed what happened to Lennie. The solution: simply convert the verbs to present tense. Revised: When Lennie kills the mice and puppy, when Carlson kills Candy’s dog, and when the heron eats the snake; this all foreshadows what happens to Lennie at the end.

Of Mice and Men Now you try one: Original: George and Lennie had more than just a friendship; they were different than any other ranch workers.

Of Mice and Men Your correction should look like this: George and Lennie have more than just a friendship; they are different than any other ranch workers.

Of Mice and Men OK, your next challenge: writing in third person. This simply means taking “I,” “we,” “us,” “my,” “mine,” and “our” out of your writing. Those are first-person words (pronouns). In this type of paper, you need to write in third person. Think of it as becoming a professional critic for this paper. You don’t need to say things like “I think.” It’s implied that you know. Does it make your opinion the only right one? No, but this is your reading of the book. When someone reads your paper, you become a source who knows what you are saying.

Of Mice and Men First-person example: Friendship can teach us some strange but meaningful lessons. Solution: Simply remove “us.” Friendship can teach some strange but meaningful lessons.

Of Mice and Men Now you try changing one from first person to third person: My final example is a little more vague. Just before the scene where George kills Lennie, a heron snatches a snake out of the water.

Of Mice and Men You could have done something like this: Although subtle, the encounter between the heron and the snake provides a meaningful illustration of foreshadowing.

Of Mice and Men Now, let’s look at effective transitions. A transition is a word or phrase that joins the thought or point in one paragraph with the thought or point you want to make in the next paragraph. This makes your writing flow in a smooth and logical pattern. Let’s try to create one for these two paragraphs.

Of Mice and Men (This is the last sentence of the prior paragraph): Never once does George take advantage of Lennie’s stupidity. George regards Lennie as too good of a friend. (This is the first sentence of the next paragraph): Crooks is the stable buck. He has a bent back, and he is an African American.

Of Mice and Men (Let’s put them together as they would appear in an essay): Never once does George take advantage of Lennie’s stupidity. George regards Lennie as too good of a friend. Crooks is the stable buck. He has a bent back, and he is an African American. This feels disjointed. We need to create a transition that can help link the two paragraphs/ideas. Feel free to add a few words or change a few words if necessary.

Of Mice and Men Does yours look something like this? Never once does George take advantage of Lennie’s stupidity. George regards Lennie as too good of a friend. However, Crooks, the lonely stable buck, has no such friend. Crooks, whose name comes from his bent and damaged back, is the only African American on the ranch. See how the word “however” and the phrase “has no such friend” ties this paragraph to the idea expressed in the prior paragraph: friendship. Lennie and George are friends. They have each other. Crooks has no friends. He is lonely.

Of Mice and Men Try one more: The mice, puppy, and Curley’s wife are so weak compared to Lennie, they cannot survive. Candy’s dog is the last example of foreshadowing in the book. Create an effective transition. Feel free to add more words, or change words, as necessary.

Of Mice and Men How does yours compare to this one? The mice, puppy, and Curley’s wife are so weak compared to Lennie, they cannot survive. In much the same way, Steinbeck uses another animal, Candy’s dog, to foreshadow the decision George faces at the end of the novel in regard to Lennie. The phrase “in much the same way” is the link between the two paragraphs.

Of Mice and Men Putting the text to work In this form of writing, it’s very effective (and in this assignment, required) to use passages from the book to help support your points. This not only provides “evidence” for your points, it also adds multiple voices to your writing (as long as you don’t overdo it). Let’s see how this works. Let’s say we’re still writing our paper about Crooks.

Of Mice and Men The effects of this isolation become clear when Crooks confides in Lennie during a poignant moment in Crooks’s room. Lennie’s mental retardation and short memory span gives Crooks the confidence to bare his soul without fear of getting in trouble. After painting a terrifying picture for Lennie of life without George – whom Lennie travels with, idolizes, and loves – Crooks turns his harsh words inward. He tells Lennie how hard it is to be shunned by the other men, and how lonely it gets in the barn with just books to keep Crooks company.

Of Mice and Men There’s nothing wrong with that paragraph. However, it becomes even more effective if we let Crooks do some of the talking, like this: The effects of this isolation becomes clear when Crooks confides in Lennie during a poignant moment in Crooks’s room. Lennie’s mental retardation and short memory span give Crooks the confidence to bare his soul without fear of getting in trouble. After painting a terrifying picture for Lennie of life without George – who Lennie travels with, idolizes, and loves – Crooks turns his harsh words inward, saying about his own lonely life that, “A guy needs somebody – to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody” (72).

Of Mice and Men We have used Crooks’s own words to help support our point. Because they are Crooks’s words, we put them in quotation marks. Notice that we put the page number, in parentheses, where the quote comes from. In this paper, we’re only using material from one source, so we do not need to identify the author with the page number; simply use the page number. Because the quote is shorter than four typed lines, we can just include it in the same paragraph as the writing that comes before it.

Of Mice and Men However, if we use quoted material that is five lines or longer, we make it a separate paragraph; we indent all lines on the left; we take away the quotation marks; and we leave it double-spaced, like this: The effects of this isolation becomes clear when Crooks confides in Lennie during a poignant moment in Crooks’s room. Lennie’s mental retardation and short memory span gives Crooks the confidence to bare his soul without fear of getting in trouble. After painting a terrifying picture for Lennie of life without George – who Lennie travels with, idolizes, and loves – Crooks turns his harsh words inward on his own empty life: S’pose you didn’t have nobody. S’pose you couldn’t go into the bunkhouse and play rummy ‘cause you was black. How’d you like that? S’pose you had to sit out here an’ read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain’t no good. A guy needs somebody – to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. (72-73)

Of Mice and Men Now, one last step. We have to complete our point with a concluding thought after the quoted material. It would look something like this (PLEASE NOTE: THIS WOULD ALL BE DOUBLE SPACED) After painting a terrifying picture for Lennie of life without George – who Lennie travels with, idolizes, and loves – Crooks turns his harsh words inward on his own empty life: S’pose you didn’t have nobody. S’pose you couldn’t go into the bunkhouse and play rummy ‘cause you was black. How’d you like that? S’pose you had to sit out here an’ read books. Sure you could play horseshoes till it got dark, but then you got to read books. Books ain’t no good. A guy needs somebody – to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. (72-73) It’s clear that Crooks is aware of the damage loneliness is doing to his soul and that he envies the relationship George and Lennie share. This prompts him to offer to work for free if he is allowed to join George and Lennie’s dream of owning their own place. Crooks is willing to work merely for room and board if it means having human companionship to stave off his devastating isolation. A final note: Your follow-up discussion after the quote should be at least as long as the quote itself. Also, do not indent the follow-up paragraph.

Of Mice and Men One last requirement: Format your first page according to MLA style (all double-spaced): Your first and last name Your Last Name 1 Mr. Johnston  Communications 9 Honors  19 February 2013 TITLE IS CENTERED

Of Mice and Men Now, let’s practice this with a miniature essay based on the activity you did with “To A Mouse.”

Naturalism Now that we have translated “To A Mouse,” review your notes on Naturalism. Compose a short essay (three to four paragraphs) in which you interpret the poem through a Naturalistic lens. In your essay: Include an introduction with a thesis statement: a sentence that indicates your interpretation of this poem: Robert Burns’s poem “To A Mouse” reveals/indicates/shows that… Cite specific lines in the poem to support your analysis. Burns demonstrates this in the third verse: “I’m truly sorry Man’s dominion…”

Naturalism Compare your analysis of the poem to the Naturalistic themes in Of Mice and Men. How can the naturalistic message of the poem be directly mapped onto the naturalistic aspects of the novel? For example, you might consider the conditions the mouse in the poem faces and the conditions George and Lennie face. Structure Your essay should be written in third person (take out the personal pronouns: “I” “me” “my” “us” “we” “our”; avoid second-person “you”). Also, write in present tense: Burns states that (not stated); The mouse cowers in fear (not cowered).

Naturalism REMINDERS: All writing assignments are typed, double-spaced, 10-point type. Format essays per MLA style. Create a title: something stronger than “To A Mouse” or “Naturalism in ‘To A Mouse’” As noted after the “Diner” paper, form paragraphs and indent them.