Literature Trial ExamDrama and Prose

SECTION B: PROSEAnswer ONE question on ONE text from this section.You should spend about 50 minutes on your answer.

Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck

Either(a) Explore the role and character of Candy in

this novel.OR(b) How does Steinbeck use different settings in

this novel to convey his themes?(30 marks)

a) CandyExplore the role and character of Candy in this

novel.

• What are the main points you would/did make in response to this question?

If you didn’t do this question, jot down

any intelligent points that you could use in

your exam

Suggested points• Tick every time you’ve made one of these

points.• Jot down any intelligent points into your book.• These are only suggestions from the exam

board – I’ll be expecting you to have ideas of your own.

Candy’s Function• Candy is the 'old swamper' who is first to greet

Lennie and George when they arrive at the ranch.

• He assists them in getting to know who’s who on the ranch, passing opinions on Curley, Curley’s wife and Slim among others.

• Candy performs an important role in giving the reader and Lennie and George information about the ranch and its inhabitants.

Candy’s Life• Candy is an old man with an injured hand. He

is no longer able to do the heavy work on the ranch.

• He is friendly but is also quite a fragile figure. • His only companion is his elderly sheep dog to

which he is very much attached. • He has a small amount of money as

compensation for the injury to his hand

Candy as a literary device• Candy encompasses Steinbeck’s themes of

disability, loneliness and insecurity. • He argues with Carlson about having his dog put

down but submits reluctantly to the majority decision when Slim agrees it’s the best thing to do.

• The shooting of Candy’s dog foreshadows the shooting of Lennie at the hands of George at the end of the novel. Candy’s words: ‘I ought to have shot that dog myself’ are significant in the context of George’s decision to shoot Lennie himself

Candy and the dream• Candy wants to be part of George and Lennie’s dream of

owning ‘a little place’. He listens in to their conversation and offers to contribute financially to the purchase of the place.

• At first George and Lennie are reluctant to bring him in to the plan but he convinces them, not only with his money, but with offers to do the cleaning and cooking and to leave his share of the farm to them in his will.

• Candy’s contribution to the purchase of the farm makes the possibility of them achieving their dream much closer. This adds to the poignant ending of the novel – the ranch is so near but yet so far

Candy and other characters• Candy is easily intimidated. • He fears Curley’s temper and the prospect of

being ‘cann’d’. • When he and Lennie are in Crooks’s room

when the other men have gone into town, his attempts to stand up to Curley’s wife are easily quashed by her threats

Candy at the end• It is Candy who discovers the body of Curley’s

wife in the barn. • He alerts George to the situation first and

raises the alarm without incriminating George. • He realises the loss of the dream.

IDEAS OF YOUR OWN??

b) SettingsHow does Steinbeck use different settings in

this novel to convey his themes?

• What are the main points you would/did make in response to this question?

Suggested points• Tick every time you’ve made one of these

points.• Jot down any intelligent points into your book.• These are only suggestions from the exam

board – I’ll be expecting you to have ideas of your own.

If you didn’t do this question, jot down

any intelligent points that you could use in

your exam

Time and place• Steinbeck’s novel is set in the 1930s during the Great

Depression. This setting of high unemployment, poverty and the isolation brought about by temporary, itinerant work provides the context in which Lennie and George’s unusual friendship is explored.

• The geographical setting is the Salinas valley in California, a place Steinbeck knew well, where farming was the main form of work available.

• How is this ‘big’ setting important?

First Setting• The first setting used in the novel is the clearing by the pond

where Lennie and George set up camp after the bus driver gives them a ‘bum steer’ and drops them off too early.

• Steinbeck’s vivid description is very effective and introduces his concise style. His description draws the reader into the novel quickly and his use of imagery provides a sense of place and time.

• This is a very important place in the novel as it is where Lennie is told to return if anything goes wrong: ‘I want you to come right here an' hide in the brush’.

• Why start here?

The Last Setting• The clearing by the pond is also the last setting in the novel,

giving the piece its symmetrical structure. • It’s calm. ‘The deep green pool of the Salinas River was still in

the late afternoon. Already the sun had left the valley to go climbing up the slopes of the Gabilan mountains and the hilltops were rosy in the sun.’

• It is here that Lennie goes after inadvertently killing Curley’s wife. He meets George there when the posse are out searching for him and it is here that George shoots him in the back of the head to ensure that he is not harmed by the aggressive and vengeful Curley.

• Why end here?

Bunkhouse• The bunkhouse is another setting used by Steinbeck to

show life on the ranch. • This is where the men sleep and spend time when they

are not working. ‘Inside, the walls were whitewashed and the floor unpainted.’

• Upon arriving in the bunkhouse, George finds the cast off things belonging to its previous inhabitants such as bug spray. This is not a permanent home for any of the men.

• The bunkhouse is the scene where the fate of Candy’s dog is decided and where Curley attacks Lennie.

Crooks’s Room• Crooks’s room is another important setting in the

novel. • Steinbeck describes it in detail. ‘There were battered

magazines and a few dirty books on the special self over his bunk. A pair of large gold-rimmed spectacles hung from a nail on the wall above his bed.’

• This setting offers the reader insight into the lonely life of Crooks. He is shown to be an intelligent man who is segregated from the ranch as a whole because he is black.

The Barn• The barn is the location where Curley’s wife is

killed by Lennie when he accidentally breaks her neck.

• Steinbeck uses the contrast between light and shade in the barn to create atmosphere.

• Light is often obstructed by Curley’s wife in the novel to show her negative force over the future of the men’s dream.

IDEAS OF YOUR OWN??

Give yourself a mark – be as realistic as possible!

Level Mark A01/A02/A04

Level 1

1-6 •Limited knowledge and understanding of the text evident•Comments about the writer’s use of characterisation/ theme/ plot/ setting for literary effect show limited appreciation of the writer’s craft •Engagement with the text is basic, examples used are of limited relevance •Where response requires consideration of two or more features, limited balance is evident

Level 2

7-12 •Some knowledge and understanding of the text evident•Comments about the writer’s use of characterisation/ theme/ plot/ setting for literary effect show some appreciation of the writer’s craft •Engagement with the text is basic, examples used are of partial relevance •Where response requires consideration of two or more features, partial balance is evident

Level Mark A01/A02/A04

Level 3 13-18 •Sound knowledge and understanding of the text evident•Comments about the writer’s use of characterisation/ theme/ plot/ setting for literary effect show sound appreciation of the writer’s craft •Engagement with the text is sound, examples used are clearly relevant •Where response requires consideration of two or more features, a clear balance is evident

Level 4 19-24 •Thorough knowledge and understanding of the text evident•Comments about the writer’s use of characterisation/ theme/ plot/ setting for literary effect show sustained appreciation of the writer’s craft •Engagement with the text is sustained, examples used are fully relevant •Where response requires consideration of two or more features, a thorough, balanced approach is evident

Level 5 25-30 •Assured knowledge and understanding of the text evident•Comments about the writer’s use of characterisation/ theme/ plot/ setting for literary effect show a perceptive appreciation of the writer’s craft •Engagement with the text is assured, examples used are fully relevant •Where response requires consideration of two or more

Past Paper Questions1. Explore how Curley’s wife and one other

character in the novel are affected by prejudice.2. The novel was first published in 1937. What is

it about the themes of the novel that continue to attract readers?

3. Show how the characters of Candy and Crooks are presented in this novel.

4. Explore the importance of friendship in Of Mice and Men.