1. Each student needs to post at least once in the comments section of their period's blog post.
2. Posts should be about Day 1 or Day 2 reading, and can be either a discussion question, or an answer to someone else's discussion question.
3. Try to keep questions and answers roughly equal... if you see there are more questions than answers, add a question. If you see more answers than questions... pose a question!
Some additional suggestions:
- include page numbers if you're asking a question
- make sure it's clear who you're answering- either reply directly to a question, or state in your comment which question you're referring to
Example:
Question- Why does Curley's wife hurry away when Slim tells her that Curley went into their house? (32)
Answer- She might be afraid of Curley; perhaps she knows he's looking for her, and she's afraid he might be angry if he can't find her. We know Curley is pugnacious, so maybe he is easily angered and becomes abusive to his wife.
Why do you think that George started taking care of Lennie in the first place?
ReplyDeleteFrom my point of view, everyone needs a simple companionship to continue to have a purpose in life. As George and Lennie further tested their friendship and explored their limits towards one another, it became evident that George needed Lennie as much as the other way around. Being completely alone in the world is a scary thought so I believe that George really didn’t have a choice in the matter. Lennie, being mentally disabled, always requires someone there for him, or (as Anna had used this quote), “’somebody’d shoot [him] for a coyote…’” (Steinback, 13). From this we can conclude that George is taking care of Lennie, not only as a favor to Lennie, but to have company for himself; this allows him to escape the despair from loneliness.
DeleteI think George is taking care of Lennie because he feels as if he is his responsibility. Steinbeck writes, "'I want you to stay with me, Lennie. Jesus Christ, somebody'd shoot you dead for a coyote if you was by yourself. No, you stay with me. Your Aunt Clara wouldn't like you running off by yourself, even if she is dead'"(Steinbeck, 13). From this quote, we can infer that George may have been a very good friend of Aunt Clara's and would know how important Lennie was to her. Therefore, George is taking care of Lennie.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think Lennie is "dumb"? Do you think a horse really kicked him in the head (pg. 22)? If not, what happened that caused Lennie's intelligence to be so low?
ReplyDeleteJoshua Soong
I think Lennie is not literally dumb. Lennie seems to be born disabled and needs a person like George to set him in the right direction. There is a chance that Lennie's low intelligence could be due to an accident in the past but I am guessing that he was born with it.
DeleteTo Joshua Soong's Question: I think Lennie is "dumb" because he was born mentally challenged. On page 23, John Steinbeck wrote, '"I wasn't kicked in the head with no horse, was I, George?" "Be a damn good thing if you was," Geroge said viciously. "Save ever'body a hell of a lot of trouble."' This shows that Lennie was not kicked by a horse, meaning the challenge he has mentally is from another source, such as a birth defect in the brain. There is always a chance to have a birth defect and Lennie may have been just one of those people that were born with it. Other things that could have caused or contributed to Lennie's low intelligence is that he could have had an accident when he was little, or if he lived in extremely dense cities, he could have gotten poisoning, like from lead, which would affect his brain development greatly. Back then, there was pretty much unregulated emission of population and the filthy conditions. From what we have read, we can't determine the cause of Lennie's low intelligence, but chances are, he was probably born mentally challenged.
ReplyDeleteHow deep do you guys think is the bond between George and Lennie? Do you think either one of them will abandon the other in a dangerous situation?
ReplyDeleteI think that George and Lennie share a strong bond. As we learned from the first chapter, George had plenty of chances to abandon Lennie but always helps him instead. In the second chapter, he even stands up for him in front of Curley. Lennie always looks up to George in every way and will always do what he says. Lennie would be completely alone and helpless without George. In conclusion, I think neither of them would abandon the other in a dangerous situation.
DeleteAyush Samanta
I think George wouldn't leave Lennie unless he absolutely had to, such as if they were forced apart. George wouldn't abandon Lennie because they have a past that they went through together, and their bond is too strong for George to just give up on Lennie. Given the time and place of the story, dangerous situations could occur without George or Lennie having much control over if they are separated or not. Conclusively, I wouldn't completely rule out the possibility of the two separating, however I don't think George would abandon Lennie.
DeleteElizabeth Klevickis
This comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteEven though George nor Lennie may not show their bond, they have a very strong bond between them. I don't think that neither of them will abandon either one because George could have abandoned Lennie easily in 1st chapter. George loves Lennie and he shows his love when he stands up for Lennie in the confrontation of Curley. I think that both George and Lennie both got each others back in a dangerous situation.
DeleteOn page 32 and 33, Lennie doesn't want to stay, but George explains that they need to stay and collect a little more money before they leave. As the section progresses a little more, they meet Slim, who leads the group that they work in, who seems to be a decent person. Do you think that they will stay and continue working, or will they leave and find other opportunities?
ReplyDeleteAnd this is Ryan T.
DeleteIt is already firmly established in the first chapter that George has the authority in his relationship between Lennie. Due to Lennie's mental capabilities, or in this case, the lack thereof, the outcome of any decision being made that concerns the both of them greatly relies on George's opinion of the matter. It seems, as of right now, the problems that are present are not large enough to deter George from working on the ranch and keeping Lennie too. I believe that they will only leave if a large mishap occurs that can affect Lennie and George's immediate fututre, such as the event that happened in Weed.
DeleteOn page 14, Lennie explains what sets them apart from other migrant workers. He says, “‘But not us! An’ why? Because...because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you, and that’s why’” (Steinbeck 14).
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think are the benefits of having a companion during this time period? Why would most migrant workers still travel alone?
Irene Han
Having a companion during this time period helps, especially for Lennie, get and maintain a job. Especially since so many factors such as discrimination and the need for paying jobs are working against them. Most migrants would travel alone since jobs were constantly changing and people migrated everywhere in the search for a job.
DeleteIn response to Irene's question,
ReplyDeleteThe benefits of having a companion during the journey George and Lennie are having is to have accompany each other their journey. Like mentioned in the story, they have each other to look after while a lone migrant worker has no one to look after he/she. Most migrant workers would prefer to work alone because they wouldn't have to take care of them and another person in this case. Lennie is pretty much a kid and like George does not like taking care of 2 people. Most migrants workers could not afford this type of setback to their work and their pay.
Jai Vumma
On page 32, George yells at Lennie for saying Curley's wife is pretty. He says, "Don't you even take a look at that b**tch" (32). Why does George get so mad? Also, George describes Curley's wife as a "piece of jail bait" (32). How exactly can Curley's wife land Lennie in jail?
ReplyDeleteSharon Wang
Judging by Curley's wife's behavior, I'd say that she's... well, not exactly the most respectable woman around. Throughout pages 31-32, she was sort of showing off her body and the whatnot to the men, like she was trying to seduce them. I don't think she's very loyal to Curly at all; As Lennie says, "Bet she'd clear out for twenty bucks" (32). I suppose that she could be able to land Lennie (or any other man, for that matter) in jail by seducing them and causing some trouble in general. Eventually, the public finds out and blames Lennie for adultery or stealing away Curly's wife or something of the sort, and he ends up in jail. George knows about this kind of stuff and tries to keep Lennie from getting in trouble from it, which is why George ends up getting mad.
DeleteOn page 27, the old swamper told some gossips about Curley, like what is inside Curley's left glove, to George. It says, "The old man was reassured. He had drawn a derogatory statement from George. He felt safe now, and he spoke more confidently" (27). Why do you think the old man felt almost like relieved after telling those things to George?
ReplyDeleteOn page 32, Lennie is thinking of leaving. He says ,"I don' like this place, George. This ain't no good place. I want to get out of here." Do you think Lennie will actually leave by himself or will he follow George's orders and stay?
ReplyDeleteI think Lennie will probably stay because he always follows George's orders. However, since Curly seems to be giving Lennie a hard time, Lennie might actually think about leaving.
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