Of Mice and Men: What's in a Name?
by Joshua Powell



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Some parents go to great lengths to choose their child's name while others pick names from the air or follow a family tradition. An author is similar to a parent, often taking hours or days to pick the perfect name to represent their character or characters. John Steinbeck is no exception when considering the two main characters of his novel, Of Mice and Men. The names George Milton and Lenny Small are meaningful in the context of the story and the characters.

In this tale of friendship and trust set in the 1930's, we are introduced into the lives of two men, George Milton and Lenny Small. The role each plays in their relationship is quickly established to the audience within the first few scenes. However, a deeper analysis beneath the surface of these character introductions will establish the nature of George and Lenny prior to observing their personal habits, behaviors and actions. How could we know their behaviors before hand? By simply analyzing their names we can draw certain conclusions as to their individualism and perhaps draw similar conclusions to the events that will take place as we read the novel.

The name "George" dates back to the times of the Greeks. This name has its roots established in the Greek culture, as it is derived from the Greek word, "georges", meaning "earth worker." This name has coincidentally been entrusted to many national and respected leaders. For example, our first president was named George, and we have had two presidents named George Bush. England has endured rule under several Kings named George, as has Greece. Thus George is respectively associated with leadership and power and it is here where the meaning of George Milton's name becomes evident. Steinbeck may or may not have selected the name "George" for such reasons but the characteristics of the name are all too conveniently embedded in our character to not be questioned or examined. George Milton is obviously the stronger, dominant figure in Lenny and his relationship. George always controls the situation and speaks for himself and Lenny as if they were one singular person, similar to the way a leader may speak for his people or country. Also, the very meaning of the name is all too coincidental for the character's meaning. As mentioned above, George translated from Greek does indeed mean "earth worker" and according to the English meaning, it also means "farmer."

Lenny Small, the last name appearing to be an outright joke about his frame, is also questionably titled. To fully breakdown the characteristics of Lenny Small we must address him by his full name, assuming that Lenny is a short form of Leonard. In analyzing this name we come to find that perhaps the character is a contradiction from the beginning. Leonard is a Germanic name meaning, "lion brave." Lenny Small, as we see, is anything but "lion brave" and constantly demands direction and drive from George. Why would John Steinbeck associate such a name with a character that he developed as an extreme opposite? One may conclude that the association of a lion may be used to compare Lenny's own strength to that of the animal and yes, perhaps Lenny's mentality can be attributed to this as animals are always seen as inferior to humans. Lenny is constantly downgraded as an individual and in fact the only time he displays any superiority is when he uses his strength, similar to the way a lion may display his superiority to other animals.

Another conclusion one may draw from research involves the association of saints to these two characters. Leonard is the name of a 5th century saint who resided as the patron of peasants and horses. Lenny and George could be viewed as peasants, aimlessly wandering the countryside in search of a home, financially disadvantaged and always under the rule of a superior figure (i.e. ranch bosses). Perhaps the association to this saint could help explain Lenny's infatuation with petting soft things, as horses are very soft to touch, and if we notice he seems to be the most relaxed when he is settled in the barn with his pup, surrounded by horses.

However, more meaningful is the saint name associated with George's saintly nature. St. George is a legendary hero for slaying a fire-breathing dragon who threatened the city of Palestine. This allusion is extremely significant to the novel. George plays the role of St. George, and Curley's wife could be thought of as the city of Palestine, threatened by the fire-breathing dragon portrayed by Lenny. The dragon invades the city and St. George slays the dragon, similar to the way Lenny invades Curley's wife by killing her and George in the end comes to the conclusion he must slay Lenny. One cannot help but think Steinbeck had some insight into these legends and saints when creating his characters and plot.

In the end we are left with either a handful of coincidences or a list of qualities an author skillfully incorporated into what we now consider a classic novel with underlying themes and complexities. Steinbeck has always been regarded as a classic novelist and perhaps it is his use of subtle symbolism that subconsciously helps us to relate to his form of character development. Nonetheless, with all supposed symbolism aside, Of Mice and Men will always be regarded as a great novel and contain valuable moral sympathies no matter how far one may dissect implied meanings of a character's individualism.