Analyzing Character Development in "Of Mice and Men
Explore the development of the character Candy in "Of Mice and Men" through a series of questions focusing on his evolution, interactions, and thematic relevance. From his initial role as a friendly gossip to becoming a provider for a shattered dream, delve into how Candy's character unfolds and intersects with key themes like power, discrimination, work, and companionship.
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How is the character of represented? A 10 minute plan
Approaching a character question You must plan Be aware that all character questions need to address any development of the character. First question to ask: Does this character develop or change in any major way from the beginning to the end of the text? Second Question: Are there any obvious staging posts in this development Third Question: from whom does our information come in the text? With which themes do they interact?
Question 1: Consider Candy Bitter attack on the dead Curley s wife. Is bullied and becomes the provider of money for the dream Starts the text as a friendly gossip
Question 2 Dream shattered. Blames CW. Full team player in Crook s room Attaches to L&G as provider of money Dog victim of bullying Ggssips and into of CW Greets L&G focus on their absence intro of idea of Boss defensive
Question 3 Part 2: own words about all others and self Part 3 Bullied; omniscient narrator gives all emotion 5. own actions and words Part 5: Omniscient narrator - verb/adverb choice Part 3: Tells George aboui self Part 4 : sharing with Crooks/Lennie. Comments by CW about weakness
Question 4 Does your character relate to any key themes? Does the writer use him to shed light in any way? Candy: makes the Dream possible by providing money Clearly suffers anguish at the collapse of the Dream Is a victim in the Power theme Represents both the need to Work and the fragility of Work Companionship- the dog, the sense of betrayal of the dog, the need to join G&L and even Crooks Discrimination: his gossip sets up CW as a negative figure, he is careless about Crooks.
What is said (part 2) By Self He was sore as hell when you wasn t here Used to wash even after he ate See, the stable buck s a nigger nice fella too Effect created Proxy power knows Boss thoughts Defensive about his realm Unaware of casual racism and discrimination Enjoys salacious gossip Delays punchline for effect -gossip He has been caught Glove fulla vaseline I think Curley s married a tart I wasn t listening
By others said tall stoop shouldered old man Round stick-like wrist By/why Narrator intro. Delays info re hand Narrator descriptive, thin, weak Narrator- emphasizes the age difference Embarrassed in Boss presence George has summed him up Carlson on relationship with dog - cynical the old man shuffled to the door You was poking your big nose into our business Candy feeds him milk
Now, make a table of descriptors found from other sources: Character/ chapter quotation ? ?
So You have tracked the development each stage of the development receives one or two paragraphs. Don t just retell the story. Focus on the presentation of character. You have quickly noted a few key quotations You have Point(the character) , evidence (quotation) with a little discussion and analysis of language and reflection on the events taking place at the time. A good essay awaits.
Example Candy is first welcomed as friendly, but quickly reveals himself to be a gossip. Although he welcomes Lennie and George, he is swift ot gain power by seeming to be party to the Boss thoughts: He was sore as hell when you wasn t here
Or His vulnerability is exploited by Carlson Complete this example
NOW Over to you. All the characters in any text you are reading can be approached in this way. Try to plan quickly. Spot the hinge point when the development takes hold Focus on your key quotations.
