Compare ‘Silas Marner’ and ‘Of Mice and Men’ Essay Example

around his birthplace of Salinas, Calif. 'Of Mice and Men' is taken from a poem by Robert Burns about a field mouse whose home is destroyed by ploughing.

The language in 'Silas Marner' belongs to the middle 19th Century. It is formal and quite artificial and very different from modern day speech. In the 19th century people were very hypocritical about subjects on sex and violence. There was a great deal of child poverty and child prostitution. Authors could not openly express their feelings, as society preferred to keep these things hidden.

The language in 'Of Mice and Men' belongs to the middle of the twentieth century. It is very simple and rough. It is the language uneducated working laboring men who have probably never been to school for very long. This may be due to the depression.

The depression began in 1929 when the American stock market crashed and sent the USA and most other countries into a disastrous economic depression. Businesses went bankrupt, workers were paid off and unemployment rocketed. Even banks and stock markets crashed. There was no money anywhere. Individuals could not meet their next rent payments and lost their homes as a result. Society suffered and went through a massive unemployment, poverty and despair. Society dictated much of how people acted and thought. Long periods of unemployment cause people to value security above all things.

Silas, the main character in 'Silas Marner' is an outsider, because he does not socialize with the other people in the community. They therefore feel that he is strange, as communities bonded a lot.

People immediately see Lennie, a character in 'Of Mice and Men' as an outsider when they

meet him, as he was simple and slow. He is not clever and finds it hard to follow rules. Due to the depression, education was not regarded as important. George his partner, we see as the story unfolds is like a father to him. He explains everything in a simple form. They care about one another and regard each other as their only family.

Silas is cast an outsider when he leaves Lantern Yard after being falsely accused of stealing the church's money, whilst looking after the sick deacon, who died in his care. Silas, we know, didn't steal the money but had had one of his epileptic fits. William his best friend stole the money in order to frame Silas so that he could marry his fianc�.

During this time it was seen as a crime to break off an engagement. If Sarah, Silas' fianc� had told the church that she no longer wanted to marry Silas and instead wanted to marry another man, then she could have been thrown into jail for 'breach of contract.'

Silas soon suspects William and he says to him 'you stole the money, and you have woven a plot to lay the sin at my door.' He truly loved Sarah and is heartbroken that he cannot remain in Lantern Yard. This deeply affects the rest of his life. This is the point of change for Silas as from this moment onwards we see his lack of trust towards everyone and the faith he once had in the church gone, as he does not for a long time return.

This is the theme of betrayal. Silas lost the two most important people in

his life and the deceiving act caused him to lose faith in God and trust for others. Lennie and George are outsiders and were forced out of Weed when Lennie held onto a lady's dress and the young woman screamed 'rape.' Lennie and George because of this have parties out looking for them and cannot return to Weed as they may be killed.

George depended on Lennie, as he was big and strong. Employers therefore thought he would be good in their field of work. George was continually advising Lennie to be careful about his actions, as jobs were scarce and so they desperately needed to keep the one that they had.

Godfrey, Silas' landlord's son, has many opportunities to tell his father about his wife Molly. He is ashamed of her for a number of reasons. Molly is from Batherly a less wealthy town than Raveloe. He feels that if he tells his father about her then he will cut him off from his will. To Squire Cass and the people of Raveloe, Molly will seem very inferior, and Godfrey a disgrace and shame to his family.

All the men on the Ranch have the opportunity to better their lives; instead every Saturday their weeks-earned wages is all blown on drinks and women. If they saved their wages and joined it to one another's, then they could fulfill the same dream that George and Lennie hope for. Their dream is to own their own house and be able to afford a lot of animals, (it was a sign of wealth in those days to own a lot of animals on your premises).

The Ranchmen could work together, supporting

one another to benefit them all. In both books we see that if these men had determination they could have achieved a better life for themselves. Godfrey although he does not mean to be, is very dishonest to his father Squire Cass.

Godfrey was very nasty to Molly, even though he financially supported her, and their child. He didn't spend enough time with her, and decided to live well apart from her. It was possibly because Godfrey pushed her away from him, and made her life feel separate from his, that she turned to using drugs. We learn that it is not easy for Godfrey to leave Molly, regardless of how little love he had for her because they have a child and Molly is its mother.

Curly, the son of the boss of the Ranch is extremely pugnacious. He is quite handy on the Ranch as he was a professional boxer. He therefore has the strength and ability to perform the tasks and work well. However, he diverts his strength to anger. He is constantly bullying the workmen. Curly feels left out because of the expectations he feels he must live up to, because he is the boss's son. He does not turn to anyone for help and support, and so does not have a friend and relies on himself. As he is "on his own on the Ranch" because his wife, 'the girl' (a female = inferior) is not his equal, he is an outsider in his own right. Even his father despises him because he is so cruel.

The fact that Godfrey in a way disowns Molly causes Molly to be an outsider also. Her

husband is very cruel to her, for not accepting her and excluding her from his life.

The girl on the ranch throughout the whole book is never given a name and is addressed by everyone, as 'the girl.' This is rude and suggests that she is not important, and inferior to them. The men speak of 'the girl' very crudely, assuming that she is only out to start trouble. 'I seen 'em poison before, but I never seen no piece of jail-bait worse than her.' The men relate the girl to poison and bait, waiting for her chance to strike and cause trouble.

In the two novels the women are looked down on, and seen as a threat to the men. They are seen as trouble. The men think they will lose the respect others show to them if they welcome the females into their lives, any closer than they already are. Molly and 'the girl' are trying to better their lives by adding what it lacked, friendship.

There are many people cast as outsiders in 'Silas Marner' for different reasons. Silas when he first arrives in Raveloe is called an 'alien' by the people, as it was unlikely people would travel out of their hometown, unless they were gypsies. In 'Silas Marner', when something went wrong, the outsiders are considered to be the culprits and have caused the problem. 'Some tramps been in that's all.' This is the first accusation made by someone other than Silas about the theft of his money. Silas accuses Jem Rodney of stealing the money that he had saved his entire life, because he had seen him wondering about in the woods

nearby. The moment Silas says he suspects Jem Rodney, the other men doubt him, and name outsiders who they have seen arriving in their town. (Chapter 7)'Jem Rodney! If it were you who stole my money give it me back - and I won't meddle with you - I'll let you have a guinea.'

Silas because he was once an outsider to the town (now having spent years there), considers it wrong and unfair to accuse new members of the community. Having been falsely accused of something himself, he feels it is only fair to accuse someone with proof, and does not want to put the blame on the wrong person. He does not take the men in the Rainbow's suggestion when they say 'some tramps' must have taken it.

It is revealed later on in the novel that it is really Dunsey, Godfrey's younger brother who stole Silas' money all those years ago, and, therefore respect Silas' judgment of not accusing the wrong person, as the consequence may have been fatal to the accused.

In 'Of Mice and Men' there are a number of outsiders. Crooks is the only black person on the Ranch. He is the only educated person and far more intelligent than any other on the Ranch. He has many books in his room. He has deep eyes and is very quiet and patient. He became disabled when a horse kicked him on his back, and is now poorly looked after by the government. They give no money to people with disabilities.

Although very intelligent, Crooks is looked down on by the people on the Ranch, 'cause I'm black...I can't play because I'm black. They

say I stink.' This indicates during this time there is a lot of racism as well as prejudice. Just because Crooks is black he cannot play in the same place as the other men on the Ranch. He has his own bunk in the harness room, a little shed that leans off the wall of the barn. This shows that because he is black he cannot sleep in the same building also.

All the men on the Ranch differ in some way. Candy, a swamper on the Ranch is old and lives with his dog, that he is very attached too. Candy is also disabled. He received a small compensation after losing his arm at work. He is lucky as he has money saved in the bank, and an income at the end of every month. However, he really survives on the kindness of his boss.

He is an outsider because like all the rest of the men, he lacks something in his life. He cannot provide for himself and needs help. With no family and support he cannot do much for himself, but obey the orders given to him by his boss.

The fact that Dunsey stole Silas' money when his father is rich, makes us wonder why he did as he did, and causes Dunsey himself to be an outsider. If he could not ask his father for money, then the relationship between them must not have been a strong one. We already know from the dialogues that Godfrey and Dunsey have, that they do not get on well. Dunsey blackmails Godfrey, by threatening to tell their father about Molly and their child, unless Godfrey submits

to his desires. This makes Dunsey an outsider, as he has no life. Very often he does (Chapter 8) 'not come back for a few days' as he would be out drinking or with women. He, like Curly, is a shame to his father. However, he feels if their father knew Godfrey's secret, he would be the more favorable one. Dunsey is an outsider as he is very much alone.

Slim, is a tall man with 'gravity in his manner'. He has great authority amongst the people. His ageless face makes him all the more unpredictable. People like him because his speech is slow to make him more understandable, along with his friendly tone of voice. He moves like a majesty and talks even to Crook with a lot of respect.

Slim is an outsider as he is unique in the sense that, everyone respects him. During the time of the depression everyone was out for themselves and this often led to people being unkind to others. Slim does not show anger; however, if the inward anger he may possess comes out, it will be more deadly and disastrous than anyone could imagine, as it is the most vicious.

Silas finds true happiness in Eppie at the time his money is stolen from him. He believes the child is sent to him by God, and that it is his duty to take care of the child, so he continues to bring her up as his own. His life changes for the better. He gradually becomes happier and restores his faith in the church once again.

His most trusted friend George kills Lennie. George feels it is best for the

both of them, as Lennie only causes trouble. Without George, Lennie is bound to get into serious trouble, and this could easily lead to him being murdered by someone else. George will now continue to live life on the Ranch as a Rancher.

The fact that each outsider does not communicate with someone they trust, leads their life on the wrong path and disrupts their way of life.

Each outsider is miserable, or doing not as well as he or she could because they do not have support from a friend or society to feel wanted and/or accepted. The concept that Silas found happiness in a child, and Lennie in George reveals that people are more happy when they have someone they feel close to, who they love and trust and vice versa.