Of Mice and Men and Lord of the Flies Analysis
danskeLaura Valentiner-Bohse
‘An exploration of friendship in Lord of the Flies and of Mice and Men’
In both Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck evident components of friendship are persuaded throughout the storyline, particularly in Lennie and George’s friendship in Of Mice and Men and Ralph and Piggy’s friendship in Lord of the Flies. In both books the authors focus on the natural dependence human beings have on each other. Of particular importance is the bond the characters share being outsiders, the dependence they have on one another, the respect they share, the theme of survival, the sacrifice that comes with love and the contrast in their personalities.
The two books show the unique significance of the strong bond the characters share of being the outcasts. In Lord of the Flies when the boys led by the malicious character Jack turn on Ralph and Piggy ultimately leaving the two to stand together lost. This strengthens an already growing companionship between the boys to the readers, as they have no other choice than to work together. Likewise, in of Mice and Men George reminds Lennie that it is just the two of them, up against the world when saying ‘Guys like us, that work in ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family… With us it ain’t like that’. The word ‘us’ gives readers the sense of unity between the two and when referring to ‘they’ he differentiates between the other guys and the two of them thus creating a special bond between the two of them.
Another great factor of friendship within the two books is the dependence they have on each other; of course this dependence varies from each character in each book. In Lord of the Flies it is obvious from the moment that Piggy meets Ralph he recognizes his leadership skills and so he clings on to Ralph by frantically following him in the opening scene, ‘the fat boy hung steadily at his shoulder’ in hope of surviving on the island and his
‘An exploration of friendship in Lord of the Flies and of Mice and Men’
In both Lord of the Flies by William Golding and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck evident components of friendship are persuaded throughout the storyline, particularly in Lennie and George’s friendship in Of Mice and Men and Ralph and Piggy’s friendship in Lord of the Flies. In both books the authors focus on the natural dependence human beings have on each other. Of particular importance is the bond the characters share being outsiders, the dependence they have on one another, the respect they share, the theme of survival, the sacrifice that comes with love and the contrast in their personalities.
The two books show the unique significance of the strong bond the characters share of being the outcasts. In Lord of the Flies when the boys led by the malicious character Jack turn on Ralph and Piggy ultimately leaving the two to stand together lost. This strengthens an already growing companionship between the boys to the readers, as they have no other choice than to work together. Likewise, in of Mice and Men George reminds Lennie that it is just the two of them, up against the world when saying ‘Guys like us, that work in ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family… With us it ain’t like that’. The word ‘us’ gives readers the sense of unity between the two and when referring to ‘they’ he differentiates between the other guys and the two of them thus creating a special bond between the two of them.
Another great factor of friendship within the two books is the dependence they have on each other; of course this dependence varies from each character in each book. In Lord of the Flies it is obvious from the moment that Piggy meets Ralph he recognizes his leadership skills and so he clings on to Ralph by frantically following him in the opening scene, ‘the fat boy hung steadily at his shoulder’ in hope of surviving on the island and his