Sunday, September 5, 2010
Speaking of Pathos...
"What I like about the poem is the way the speaker (the farmer) talks throughout the poem. It's like as if he himself went through what the mouse went through. The way he talks is like he empathizes the poor mouse.. poooor mouse :)" [Josh's talking about the speaker in the poem]. Do you expect John Steinbeck's narrator to relate to his characters the same way the farmer does in the poem vis-a-vis the mouse?
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I do expect John Steinbeck's narrator to relate to his characters the same way the farmer does in the poem vis-a-vis the mouse. I can't actually prove it, but seeing how John Steinbeck got the title OMM from this poem "To a Mouse," I'm sure John Steinbeck would take it further and relate the story of OMM to the poem as well.
ReplyDeleteI myself expect John Steinbeck's narrator to relate his characters the same way the farmer does in the poem vis-a-vis the mouse as well. Because Steinbeck was able to make the relation and have "To a Mouse" inspire "Of Mice and Men," I believe he has the same strength in many other works of his. Some research that I did stated that Steinbeck's best-known works deal intimately with desperately poor California wanderers who had came out from their hardships and achieved a somewhat spiritual triumph. Another point is that "Of Mice and Men" was also in effect from America's Great Depression era. These events may have been the moments that prompted John Steinbeck to make the relations that he does,and he may may be speaking through his narrator and characters through the same idea of letting history inspire the relationships of humanity and nature, or anything actually, no matter what the circumstance. There will always be a certain theme according to these accounts.
ReplyDeleteYes, I do expect John Steinbeck’s narrator to relate to the characters the same way the farmer does in the poem. There is a reason John Steinbeck chose the poem “To a Mouse.” The reason behind this is that John Steinbeck was able to make a relation between his narrator and the farmer in the poem. By using the poem “To a Mouse” as his source for the title of his novel, “Of Mice and Men,” he was able to create a solid notion of what his novel might be about. He wanted to express what his novel might be about through the title alone, to grab the audience. I mean, what an awesome way to begin a story. With the title alone, he was able to convey his purpose! I have to say that is smart on his part.
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Alana Chargualaf’s comment as well. She has provided the same evidence I have encountered and deem it valid and thorough. John Steinbeck has made a relation between the farmer and the mice from the poem to the characters in his novella. The characters featured in the poem “To a Mouse” can be compared to the characters in John Steinbeck’s novel by comparing the farmer to George, and the mice to Lennie. George can be compared to the farmer because he is more privileged than Lennie who has a mental disability. We could also compare them differently. We could compare the mice being both George and Lennie because they are both outcasts of their society, and the farmer could be all those who are better off than the “mice” of their society.