Steinbach wrote his novel Of Mice and Men then changed the genre of his book to a drama. He does this to convey a different to his audience. .
In the novel, the ending is more promising. It leaves George walking away with Slim, discussing their plans to go have a drink. It seems as if George moves on and accepts what he has done to Lennie. George seems to become friends with Slim, and the ending of this novel walks off with him. It leaves the reader thinking that George may go on working at the ranch and may even live the dream that Lennie and him had shared. He may go on to share that dream with Candy or Slim or he may stay with Slim on the ranch for the rest of his life. The novel makes it clear that George will move on.
In the performance of this novel, Steinbach changes the end to a drama type ending. The last scene leaves George alone in a boxcar with only the memories of him and Lennie. He sees the friendship and loving relationship he has destroyed. He sits alone only with himself to blame for what has happened. The boxcar that he sits in is dark and plan and I believe that in a symbolism of what George feels inside with out Lennie.
Steinbach changes his ending in his novel and play to show a more dramatic side, that everyone has been in that boxcar of darkness. .
Megan Lambert.
The article "Making Things Whole" helps relate the characters George and Lennie to a realistic situation. .
In the article a young man named Phil has a mental disability like Lennie, but both of them are very strong physically. Phil's boss has multiple sclerosis and is unable to do anything physically but is very intelligent, George is like him in the fact that he is very smart and is weaker than his partner is. But together both pairs make a whole person. Lennie and Phil are the physical part of the pair and Phil's boss and George are the brainpower. In both situations a partner has left, Lennie was killed and Phil was being promoted.
