This is a mind map for the character of George from of mice and men. I'm currently studying it for my GCSE English exam, so may not be in enough detail for higher levels (e.g. A level)
Appearance: George is "small and
quick, dark of face, with restless eyes
and sharp, strong features."
This suggests that George may be
unhappy because of his 'restless eyes',
but also that he's intelligent and has a
strong personality.
He looks after Lennie, and is
responsible for him.
He therefore feels responsible to shoot Lennie, even though
its hard, because its better for him to do it. This can be
seen as heroic of George, even though its murder.
Slim: "That ain't no good, George."
George: "I know, I know."
George is very level- headed, and has his life in
control. We can see this because he likes to keep
healthy and is clean-living.
The part of his life which is out of control is Lennie.
"what the hell kind of bed you giving us,
anyways. We don't want no pant rabbits."
George is caring, but he is
also fearful of being lonely.
" 'I ain't got no people,' George said, 'I seen the guys that go
round the ranches on their own. That ain't no good. They don't
have no fun. After a long time they get mean.' "
But it appears as though George
shouldn't be scared of this. The only
people in the book who are truly happy
have no relationships with other people.
E.g. Slim, The Boss, Carlson.
George is also very modest.
"I ain't nothing to scream about, but
Lennie there can put up more grain
alone than most pairs can."
This also shows George's love for
Lennie, even though at the beginning of
the book, he seemed mean towards
him.
George is a good judge of
character.
" You keep away from Curley, Lennie."
George represents a lot of men in that time, who,
like him, wanted to have something of their own.
Having that dream made Georges work bearable,
but when Lennie died, the dream died as well.