![]() And in December of that year, the New York Times reported that Ft McClellan, Alabama, “chaplains objected to a Christmas Eve screening of (Milestone’s ) Of Mice and Men, condemning it beforehand as ‘morbid and degenerate,’ and as a result General Haskell ordered the showing be cancelled.” Book, play and film – coming in quick succession – disturbed many Americans in part because they chipped away at the nation’s faith in the incantatory dream: a new beginning, a tidy home. In February 1940, the film was banned in Australia. ‘The Police Bureau in Providence, Rhode Island, denied a license to the “low down” play in June 1939. I was intrigued by the introduction of my copy of Of Mice and Men that provides some insight into the act of banning Steinbeck’s classic novel of American life in times past. Steinbeck’s novella was a quick read that I managed to turn over in just a morning. ![]() I was fortunate enough to be able to squeeze in a session with Of Mice and Men this holiday break. As a voracious reader, I do like to dabble in traditional and modern classics from time to time, if my schedule allows. Although I did not study Steinbeck’s work at school, I am familiar with The Grapes of Wrath, which I examined in depth as part of my media studies curriculum in my graduating year. Taking advantage of banned book week 2020, I decided it was high time that I experienced the work of highly praised American author John Steinbeck. Of Mice and Men is an enduring modern classic, embraced by audiences and generations worldwide. But when disaster strikes, with Lennie at the very centre of this tragic incident, questions of friendship, loyalty and protection prevail. In order to achieve this dream, the two men continue to search for work in the Salinas Valley locale of California, an area hit hard by the depression. They long to own a piece of land and farm their own property. George and Lennie toil on despite their hardship and loneliness. Together this twosome continue their fight for freedom and for recognition in a society that condemns them. These two migrant ranch workers are on the fringes of society. This novella traces the lives of George Milton and Lennie Small. Of Mice and Men is considered as one of John Steinbeck’s keynote works. Steinbeck’s novella, which was published in 1937, is my first experience of this Nobel Prize winner’s writing and it also represents my entry for the 2020 Banned Book Week read for the Pop Sugar Reading Challenge. ![]() John Steinbeck’s novel represents an ode to life during the depression in the United States as two transient farm workers search for a life free from control, starvation and prejudice. Of Mice and Men is considered a modern classic. Tackling universal themes, friendship and a shared vision, and giving a voice to America’s lonely and dispossesed, OF MICE AND MEN remains Steinbeck’s most popular work. Eventually they find work on a ranch, but their hopes are doomed as Lennie – struggling against extreme cruelty, misunderstanding and jealousy – becomes a victim of his own strength. A dream that one day they will have some land of their own. Drifters in search of work, George and his simple-minded friend Lennie, have nothing in the world except each other – and a dream. ![]()
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