Background of Of Mice and Men

1. Of Mice and Men
The Background to the Novel

2. The Novel
• Of Mice and Men is
basically a story
about George and
Lennie and what
happens to them.
• It is also about how
the times they lived in
(1930s USA) affected
their whole lives.

3. Why did Steinbeck write it?
• John
Steinbeck
once worked
on a ranch so
he knew
about the
conditions
people had to
work in.

4. He also knew about the millions of people in America
between 1930-1936 who couldn’t find work and who
were constantly on the move with their families and
their possessions, trying to find work and trying to
stay alive.

5. What Steinbeck saw during these years affected
him deeply. As a writer, he felt it was his duty to
write about how people were suffering.

6. The Setting
The novel is set on a ranch in Soledad, near the Salinas Valley in
California. This is where Steinbeck was born and grew up.

7. Migrant Workers
• Migrant workers travel
from place to place in
search of work.
• In the novel, these
workers are lucky to
have work but they will
have to move on once
the job finishes.

8. Conditions on the Ranch
• The workers were paid little money in
return for working long shifts doing hard,
physical work.
• They stayed in bunkhouses – often up to 8
men sleeping in a small room.
• They would be fed the cheapest of food.
• If they complained, they would be sacked.

9. A Bunkhouse

10. The Dustbowl
In California, years
of drought and
intensive farming
practices led to the
top soil being blown
away. This meant
large areas of
countryside where
nothing would
grow.

11. True/False Quiz
1. Of Mice and Men was written by John Steinbeck.
2. It was set in New York, America.
3. George and Lennie are migrant farm workers.
4. Migrant workers stayed and worked in one place.
5. Millions of people were out of work during the Great
Depression.
6. John Steinbeck did not care about them.
7. Unemployed people travelled all over America looking for
work.
8. The Dustbowl meant large areas of land could not be
farmed.

12. True/False Quiz Answers
1. Of Mice and Men was written by John Steinbeck. True
2. It was set in New York, America. False
3. George and Lennie are migrant farm workers. True
4. Migrant workers stayed and worked in one place. F
5. Millions of people were out of work during the Great
Depression. T
6. John Steinbeck did not care about them. F
7. Unemployed people travelled all over America looking for
work. T
8. The Dustbowl meant large areas of land could not be
farmed. T