Of Mice And Men Fate and Suffering

In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck illustrates that even with perseverance, fate is inevitable and will destroy hope and whatever plans are made, resulting in suffering. One aspect of fate is that it is inevitable, and man fails to control it with planning, seen when George, Lennie and Candy are in the bunkhouse, waiting to hear the sound of a gunshot signaling the death of Candy’s dog. “Almost automatically George shuffled the cards and laid out his solitaire hand.

He used a deliberate, thoughtful, slowness. Lennie reached for a face card and studied it, then turned it upside down and studied it. ‘Both ends the same,’ he said. ‘George, why is it both ends the same?’”(Steinbeck 55). Comparable to the futile struggle against the Dust Bowl, Steinbeck displays powerlessness with the cards. The design of the cards is symbolic of fate, which has ultimate control and no matter the situation, or how one selects to handle it, that same result of suffering will persist.

It always “ends the same”. The laying down of cards is a metaphor for making plans, so no matter how George plans with a “deliberate, thoughtful, slowness”, the outcome of fate is always the same. George is “automatically” drawn to shuffle the cards, revealing human nature to take control of one’s future. When faced with the threat of losing control, one will “shuffle the cards” and set up to find control, much like how shuffling of cards sets up the game of solitaire.

Get quality help now

Sweet V

Verified

Proficient in: Books

4.9 (984)

“ Ok, let me say I’m extremely satisfy with the result while it was a last minute thing. I really enjoy the effort put in. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

Humanity has this optimism that control is possible, and chooses to believe that putting in an effort will result in a better outcome. Steinbeck applies irony here in that men try to take control by “shuffling cards” so that they can beginning planning for the game ahead, but at this point their fates have already been determined, in fact, by the shuffling.

Foreshadowing the death of Candy’s dog, the cards depict the idea that while man may have a slight deterrent on…