47 pages 1 hour read

John Steinbeck

Of Mice and Men

Fiction | Novella | Adult | Published in 1937

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapters 1-2

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 1 Summary

The narrator describes the lush Salinas Valley south of nearby Soledad, California. The idyllic landscape boasts “golden foothill slopes” and “sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent limbs” (1). George Milton and Lennie Small walk neatly down a worn path and approach an algae-covered pool in a clearing. The men are dressed in identical farmhand attire: floppy black hats and head-to-foot denim adorned with brass buttons. George is small in stature, lean and sharp-featured, while his burly companion “walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws” (2). Contrary to his name, Lennie is big and lumbering. He rushes to drink heartily from the pool, “snorting into the water like a horse” (3). George grabs Lennie, warning him of the dangers of drinking stagnant water.

George then rubs his face with water to cool down, prompting Lennie to imitate his actions and other habitual gestures. Lennie looks to George for approval, but George is preoccupied, cursing the laziness of the bus driver who dropped them miles from their destination on a hot day. George loses his patience when Lennie again asks, “Where we goin’, George?” (4). George reminds him they are going to a different ranch to find work.

Related Titles

By John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

Cannery Row

John Steinbeck

Cannery Row

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

East of Eden

John Steinbeck

East of Eden

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

In Dubious Battle

John Steinbeck

In Dubious Battle

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

Sweet Thursday

John Steinbeck

Sweet Thursday

John Steinbeck

STUDY + TEACHING GUIDE

logo

The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights

John Steinbeck

The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck

The Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Harvest Gypsies

John Steinbeck

The Harvest Gypsies: On the Road to the Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

The Log From The Sea of Cortez

John Steinbeck

The Log From The Sea of Cortez

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

The Long Valley

John Steinbeck

The Long Valley

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Moon Is Down

John Steinbeck

The Moon Is Down

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Red Pony

John Steinbeck

The Red Pony

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Wayward Bus

John Steinbeck

The Wayward Bus

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

The Winter Of Our Discontent

John Steinbeck

The Winter Of Our Discontent

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

To a God Unknown

John Steinbeck

To a God Unknown

John Steinbeck

Plot Summary

logo

Tortilla Flat

John Steinbeck

Tortilla Flat

John Steinbeck

Study Guide

logo

Travels With Charley

John Steinbeck

Travels With Charley

John Steinbeck