How is Lennie's name incongruous in Chapter 1 of Of Mice and Men?

Lennie's name certainly does not match in one way:  He is a large man.  However, it can be argued that it fits his mental capabilities.  Certainly. the bulk and size of Lennie seem incongruous to his allowing himself to be ordered by such a little man as George.  Yet, George definitely dominates Lennie, ordering him to do things.

As George lies on the sand with his hands crossed under his head, he complains that Lennie is

a lot of trouble....I could get along so easy and so nice if I didn't have you on my tail

Earlier he scolds Lennie and calls him "a crazy bastard" and other derogatory epithets.  Yet, while Lennie is sent to fetch dead willow sticks, George hears splashings where Lennie has gone.  "'Poor bastard,'" he said softly...," a comment that indicates sympathy rather than ridicule. Shortly after this, George goes into a long tirade about all the trouble Lennie is, complaining that he always wants what he cannot have.  George says that he wishes he could put Lennie into a cage.  Then, when he looks at Lennie, George's anger leaves him and he feels ashamed for what he has said.

Also in contrast to what George has said about how much better off he would be by himself, George explains to Lennie, "Guys like us...are the loneliest guys in the world....With us it anin't like that.  we got a future.  We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us."

In chapter 2 of Of Mice and Men, what is Lennie's last name and what literary device does it imply?

The literary device implied by the last name of the character Lennie in John Steinbeck's classic novel Of Mice and Men is irony. As revealed in Chapter Two, when the two itinerant ranch-hands, George and Lennie, arrive at the latest stop in their enduring effort at finding a place to call their own, the "boss" questions them about their identities and backgrounds. It is in this exchange that the reader is informed of Lennie's surname:

The boss licked his pencil. “What’s your name?”

“George Milton.”

“And what’s yours?”

George said, “His name’s Lennie Small.”

Irony in a literary context generally involves a situation that is at variance with the direction in which the narrative had evolved. In other words, it is the use of dialogue or a situation that is the opposite of what one expected. Lennie's surname, Small, is ironic precisely because Lennie, we have already been informed, is of considerable physical stature. Earlier in the novel, in the opening chapter, Steinbeck's narrator describes the two protagonists in starkly contrasting terms, with George, the smaller and infinitely smarter of the two men, described as "small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features." In contrast, Lennie is described as follows:

". . .a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, and wide, sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws. His arms did not swing at his sides, but hung loosely."

The irony, then, lies in the juxtaposition of this giant of a man being named "Small." Everything about Lennie's physical dimensions suggests an individual of enormous size and strength. Instead of giving this huge man a surname suggestive of his size, Steinbeck named him "Small" precisely because, while physically large, Lennie is intellectually and emotionally diminished. He survives only because George cannot bring himself to finally break with his only real friend, despite his continued protestations about having to care for this 'albatross around his neck.' 

What is Lennie's last name in Of Mice and Men?

Lennie's last name is Small. Lennie's name is ironic because he is an extremely large and imposing individual. Despite being ironic, Lennie's last name is representative of his intellect. Lennie is intellectually limited and relies on his friend, George Milton, to take care of him and keep him out of trouble.

Lennie Small is also attracted to tiny, little things, such as mice and rabbits. Lennie's affinity for touching and feeling small, soft things gets him into trouble when he begins petting Curley's wife's hair. Lennie ends up pulling on her hair too hard, and Curley's wife panics. When she jerks her head to get away, Lennie accidentally breaks her neck and is forced to flee the ranch. Overall, Lennie Small's last name is ironic because of his massive size, yet represents the nature of his character.

In chapter two of Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men, both George and Lennie, who are traveling together as migrant farm workers, reveal their last names in the conversation with the boss of the ranch where they have come to "buck barley." George is George Milton and Lennie is Lennie Small. Lennie's last name is ironic because Steinbeck characterizes Lennie as a physically imposing man, "a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, and wide, sloping shoulders." In the discussion with the boss, George describes Lennie as "strong as a bull." Later in the same chapter the laborer Carlson makes a joke of Lennie's name when the men are introduced:

“Glad ta meet ya,” the big man said. “My name’s Carlson.”
“I’m George Milton. This here’s Lennie Small.”
“Glad ta meet ya,” Carlson said again. “He ain’t very small.” He chuckled softly at his joke. “Ain’t small at all,” he repeated. 

The small part of Lennie appears to be his level of intelligence. Because Lennie has trouble understanding his environment and his own strength, throughout the novel he does things that most adult men would not do, such as grabbing a girl's dress, killing small animals such as mice and puppies, and finally accidentally breaking a woman's neck.  

Why is Lennie's name in Of Mice and Men both ironic and symbolic?

Lennie's last name is given to the boss when they have just arrived at the ranch and he is signing them up on his payroll chart. The last name is Small, which is ironic since Lennie is so enormous and so strong that he is sometimes compared to a bear. His last name can be considered symbolic for at least two reasons. One is that he has a small intellect and is dependent on George to tell him what to do. The other reason it can be considered symbolic is more serious and more ominous. Lennie likes small things, including mice, puppies, and rabbits. But he doesn't know his own strength, and he usually ends up killing the little animals while he is petting them. The story ends tragically when he accidentally kills a pretty girl who is married to the jealous and sadistic Curley. George's last name is Milton, which may also be considered symbolic because it reminds the reader of the great English poet John Milton. George is not a poet, but he is good with words and does all the talking for both himself and for his buddy Lennie Small. Milton was blind, and George might be said to be blind to the possible dangers foreshadowed by Lennie's strength, mental weakness, emotional instability, and attraction to soft, fragile creatures.