Of Mice and men - Naturalism
Of Mice and Men employs a very particular type of realism called "naturalism," a type of literature where the narrator looks at the characters as though they're above them, like ants. The narrator is an observer. Naturalist novels often depict the world as a place where you have to fight to survive in a universe that has no morality and doesn't care about you.
In Naturalism the settings are realistic, the characters are common (like you and me) and the point of view is objective. Objective POV does not try to change the story ending to make it good or bad, they tell the story like it is.
We will be focusing on the first two paragraphs of the novella to re-read and see the naturalistic elements Steinbeck used. You are going to highlight or underline the parts of paragraph 1 and 2 that describe the scenery.
Then on page 2, you are ALSO going to underline/ highlight the description of George and Lennie.
Part of appreciating naturalism is being able to visualize the setting and characters.
In your notes, please use colors or markers to illustrate what you visualize from reading, BOTH the setting and the characters (George and Lennie) from the notes of chapter one, paragraph 1-2.
In Naturalism the settings are realistic, the characters are common (like you and me) and the point of view is objective. Objective POV does not try to change the story ending to make it good or bad, they tell the story like it is.
We will be focusing on the first two paragraphs of the novella to re-read and see the naturalistic elements Steinbeck used. You are going to highlight or underline the parts of paragraph 1 and 2 that describe the scenery.
Then on page 2, you are ALSO going to underline/ highlight the description of George and Lennie.
Part of appreciating naturalism is being able to visualize the setting and characters.
In your notes, please use colors or markers to illustrate what you visualize from reading, BOTH the setting and the characters (George and Lennie) from the notes of chapter one, paragraph 1-2.