2.3.1
Section 3 - Plot
Section 3 Plot
Section 3 Plot
In section 3 we learn how George and Lennie met. Candy asks if he can go with George and Lennie to their dream farm. Curley starts a fight with Lennie, but Lennie is far stronger.
Lennie and the puppy
Lennie and the puppy
- Slim says he will give Lennie one his puppies, and this fills Lennie with joy.
- Slim tells George that he thinks Lennie is an excellent worker, even though he’s “cuckoo”, and this prompts George to defend Lennie, saying, “he's dumb as hell, but he ain't crazy.”
- Later, Lennie tries to smuggle his new puppy back into the bunkhouse, but George notices and insists that he takes it back to the barn so that it can be with its mother.
George and Lennie's history
George and Lennie's history
- George confides in Slim and says why he looks after Lennie:
- George explains that he started taking care of Lennie when Lennie’s Aunt Clara died.
- George also says that he didn’t really like looking after Lennie at first, and that he used to take advantage of the fact that Lennie would do whatever George wanted, but he eventually learnt to be kind to him.
- George now values his friendship with Lennie because it stops him from becoming “mean” like the other ranch workers.
Why Lennie and George left Weed
Why Lennie and George left Weed
- George also reveals the real story about why he and Lennie had to leave their old jobs in Weed in such a hurry. He reassures Slim that Lennie was innocent and was not trying to rape the woman, as she had accused him of doing, but “jus' wanted to touch that red dress, like he wants to pet them pups all the time.”
Candy's dog
Candy's dog
- Carlson, another worker on the ranch, convinces Candy, the old man who is in charge of cleaning the farm, to let him kill Candy’s dog which “jus' suffers hisself all the time.”
- The dog is extremely old and Carlson has been complaining about the “stink.”
- Carlson takes the dog out to be killed and there is an awkward atmosphere in the bunkhouse while the men wait to hear the gun being fired.
Dreams
Dreams
- Still upset about the death of his dog, Candy hears George and Lennie talking about their dream to own a small farm “and live of the fatta the lan’”.
- Candy reveals that he has some money saved up and would be happy to give it to them if they let him join them.
The fight between Curley and Lennie
The fight between Curley and Lennie
- Curley starts a fight with Lennie, hitting him repeatedly in the face while Lennie looks “helplessly at George” until George tells him to fight back and “get him”.
- Lennie grabs Curley’s fist and Curley is soon “flopping like a fish on a line.” When Lennie eventually lets go, Curley’s hand is completely crushed.
- Slim takes control of the situation and makes Curley promise to say that he injured his hand in an accident with a machine: "I think you got your han' caught in a machine.”
1Context & Overview
1.1Context & Overview
2Plot
2.1Section 1 - Analysis
2.2Section 2 - Analysis
2.3Section 3 - Analysis
2.4Section 4 - Analysis
2.5Section 5 - Analysis
2.6Section 6 - Analysis
3Key Characters
3.1Main Characters
3.2Minor Characters
4Themes
5Authorial Method
Jump to other topics
1Context & Overview
1.1Context & Overview
2Plot
2.1Section 1 - Analysis
2.2Section 2 - Analysis
2.3Section 3 - Analysis
2.4Section 4 - Analysis
2.5Section 5 - Analysis
2.6Section 6 - Analysis
3Key Characters
3.1Main Characters
3.2Minor Characters
4Themes
5Authorial Method
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