In the novel "Of Mice and Men," by John Steinbeck, one can see that being pulled in separate directions for ones desires can make that choice mare difficult. Desires and dreams are the main distractions for most of the characters, and you can see that through their actions. As you read, it is clear that no-one's desires or dreams made it through, they all ended in disaster and destruction. This book shows this through Candy and his dog, Curley's Wife, and George and Lennie.
Candy had a dog and the desire to keep him and everyone else's desire to put him down was too much to bare. "'Well-hell! I had him so long. Had him since he was a pup Carlson said 'The way I'd shoot him, he wouldn't feel nothing' At last Candy said softly and hopelessly, 'Awright-take 'im.'" (Steinbeck, 44, 45, 47). Candy had no intention of letting them kill his dog. But, it is important to realize that everyone in the house was telling him that he needed to put him down due to the smell and how old the dog is. Candy being pulled in the directions of keeping his dog and pleasing them was too much to bare, and also goes along with the theme of broken dreams within the book. In the novella, it also shows when Curley was picking at Lennie whenever they first showed up, and Lennie didn't want to hurt him and start any trouble. However, George told him to stick up for himself when Curley tried to attack Lennie. First thing to remember is that Lennie never wanted to start trouble and had said he would stay in the back and just not talk, but Curley had another plan in mind, when Curley attacks Lennie, he was going to let him. Then George told Lennie to do something, which interfered with Lennie's desire to not do anything and George desire for him to do something. Thus, repeating the action of doing the desire of what others want instead of yourself.
In the start of the book it describes Curley's Wife as evil and seductive, then it twists to show that, just as everyone else, her life has secrets and broken dreams too.
