Have you ever read a book that you were sure is the greatest book you have ever read, or
possibly thought that it is high –quality literature? As it turns out, many articles of literature published in these modern times are considered to be ‘good’ or ‘quality’ literature, however the standard by which literature is judged is weakening. One reliable way to change this, to decide if a piece of literature is in fact quality, is to test said literature against the standard described in John Steinbeck’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech.
Out of this standard, would Of Mice and Men be considered quality literature? According to
Steinbeck, “only the human heart in conflict with itself seemed worth writing about.” Only the readers of mere children’s stories do not expect to read about pain and misery. It is a fact of life, and should not be excluded for any type of literature. Also as spoken by Steinbeck, “The ancient commission of a writer has not changed. He is charged with exposing our many grievous faults and failures, with dredging up to the light our dark and dangerous dreams for the purpose of improvement.” Quality literature, on the other hand, is common to show such conflict and sorrow. Diving deeper into each character’s heart; their problems and faults shown, awaiting the readers input on improvement.
As far as a character’s inner conflict in the book Of Mice and Men, One example character for this is George himself. In Steinbeck’s book, George exhibits symptoms of a melancholy
jealousy for the life he could have had without his companion Lennie. For instance, George actually says something seemingly cruel to Lennie. ‘George still stared morosely at the fire. “When I think of the swell time I could have without you, I go nuts. I never get no peace.” This quote proves as a symptom of inner conflict within George. He indirectly shows how much he wished and dreams of how his life could have been without Lennie, but also it can be
inferred exactly how much He loves Lennie, otherwise he would have ditched Him
long before this story took place.
An example in Of Mice and Men of conflict within a character, or whose faults and weaknesses are shown, is Candy, the lonely old man resident to the minds of readers but never outspoken. As was said by Candy himself, “I oughtta of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn’t of let no stranger shoot my dog.” Candy here is feeling and showing an exceptional amount of pain in his words. By saying this, Candy is showing one of his faults, lacking the will to kill what he has loved since its birth, but also lacking the love he needed to put his old companion out of its misery. By Steinbeck’s clever use of feeling implemented into character, Steinbeck has shown one of the faults of humans, lacking the proper amount of compassion. However, John Steinbeck has provided room for improvement by having George shoot his companion, Lennie, at
the close of the story.
There are obvious similarities between Steinbeck’s quality of literature standard and his book, Of Mice and Men. The reader needs to know of Steinbeck's standard for literature and whether or not Of Mice and Men can be considered good, quality literature. The reader, however, should be able to decide for his or her self their position of the subject of judging quality literature. Quality literature makes a phenomenal impact on society as a whole. Readers need this kind of literature to connect with others on a higher intellectual level, as well as understanding other literature of this sort. The reader should connect with the piece in any way possible if they wish to truly enjoy the literature.
