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Should Of Mice and Men be taught in high school?

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Of Mice and Men should be taught in high school because it introduces students to John Steinbeck's writing and themes. The novella highlights the struggles of working men, the beauty of nature, and contains rich, poetic descriptions. It also presents valuable themes such as loyalty, protection, and the complexities of friendship, offering important lessons for young readers.

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John Steinbeck was one of the greatest American writers, and some of his works should be introduced to students for that reason alone, Of Mice and Men is characteristic of Steinbeck's writing. He was especially interested in the lives and problems of working men who were engaged in agricultural labor. His writing also shows his love for nature. Of Mice and Men is full of poetic descriptions of the cultivated and uncultivated land in his native California. Since Of Mice and Men is very short, only a novella, it makes easy reading for young students and could induce some of them to go on to read some of Steinbeck's longer works such as The Grapes of Wrath.

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I believe that Of Mice and Men should be taught to older students. As mentioned earlier, it is descriptive of a time that ironically, is somewhat similar to our time. The economy was...

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suffering and people struggled to stay afloat financially.

We also see two very different men sticking together. One (Lennie) is in need of a protector and advocate. The other (George) goes out of his way to see to his friend's well-being. What a nice message for students.

The ending is tragic, but people often face situations where they thankfully do not have to kill someone to save him, but where some kind of intervention is necessary, or a friendship dissolves because of a problem that cannot be reconciled between people. Even in this situation, George cares deeply for Lennie, hoping to save him from the mob.

There are a number of worthwhile themes in the story that young people can benefit from reading. I think the book should stay in the classroom.

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I've taught this novella to eighth-graders as well as seniors, and I much prefer teaching it to seniors. There is a lot of swearing, and it does grow uncomfortable when reading aloud in eighth grade; I have seniors read this on their own with little out-loud reading. I also think it's a great way to talk about archetypes, something more accessible to the older groups. (My favorite example of the "big dumb guy" vs. the smart little guy which we've identified is Foghorn Leghorn and the "Chicken Hawk.")  It's a good story with lots of good human nature as well as literary things to discuss--and it adds to their framework of classic literary figures from which and to which analogies and references are often made.

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I have taught a unit over this novel numerous times in sophomore English classes, always with success. When presented properly, students respond with sensitivity to Lennie's personality and mental challenges, and they absolutely respond to the friendship between George and Lennie. In my experience, they are much less focused on Curly and his wife than on George and Lennie's relationship and their dream. Also, Crooks in his isolation draws their sympathy, and the cruelty in shooting the dog always angers them. One of the most positive results of teaching this novel is that it takes students into the lives of the dispossessed and homeless and evokes compassion for and understanding of people in life situations with which they are unfamiliar.

From a literary standpoint, Steinbeck's novel and other works, such as The Grapes of Wrath, should be studied for two primary reasons. They are exceptional in literary achievement, and they bring light to segments of American society that are often overlooked. The historical value of The Grapes of Wrath is undeniable.

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I have taught the novel on and off for 16 years and on both sides of the planet. I agree that the complex emotional themes need to be sensitively dealth with, and I always choose my audience carefully (I have not taught the text when we have had a Lennie type character in our midst, for example). That said, I am always moved and astounded by the responses from young people to the text and I invite parents to read it too. As others have said, there are a lot more dark stories out there that our young people have access to, and few are as well written.

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Why not?  Classic literature helps put things in perspective for readers...regardless of their ages. Teens need to be able to put themselves in the shoes of other people to develop empathy and a will to do the right thing.  They must also experience these issues through other characters so they would think about what to do if a similar situation ever came about in their own lives.  Literature is about the human experience...we all belong to that...and we must, through shared experiences, learn how to better get along in this world together.

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For literature this book is so popular and used so much both in the United States and in other countries like the UK. It is a very fine example of literature with really good examples of the kind of things literature teachers want their students to know about- imagery, foreshadowing etc. I also think it is a great book to teach because it manages to be moving and effective without massive violence or sexual content.

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Like Brettd, I'm a history teacher.  I don't use the book because I don't think there's enough there to warrant using it in a history class.

But as far as literature, I think you'd have to be awfully hypersensitive to object to this book.  I suppose it would be kind of annoying having to talk about why Curley had his glove full of Vaseline, but beyond that, it's awfully tame compared to everything else people watch these days.

So... essentially nothing that you can really call sex.  Very little violence (1 fistfight, 2 killings without any graphic details).  I see nothing objectionable for a teen.

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I teach it in my US History class. Its not that other books can't be used, it's that, in my opinion, this is such a good one.  It's well written, the characters are fun and engaging, and it's a novella--a good, short novella to get kids interested in the time period and the subject, as well as reading.  It's hard to find good fiction at that length outside of short stories, and this one encompasses a lot of important themes and ideas.  The potential discussion points are endless.

The sexuality is very tame compared to most media out there, and freshman have seen much worse on the internet, and heard much worse in the hallways.  What passes for sexuality in Of Mice and Men is, to me, very understated and unoffensive.

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There are so many factors to take into account when answering this question.  First of all, it depends on the potential reaction of parents in the area.  If you live in a more reserved area, they might have a harder time with the adult themes that are presented in the novel.  Also, another factor is what grade it is being taught to--it is much more appropriate for seniors than for freshman, for example.  One last factor is one that brings the teacher into it--how will they teach the novel?  How will they handle the more disturbing elements contained within it? How will they approach the very intense moral elements?

Other things to think about are whether or not you feel that teenagers can handle some of the issues presented--the sexuality that is present in the novel (especially seen through Curley's wife), the killing of Lennie (which is very upsetting), the constant vying for position between the farm hands--these things can be disturbing, difficult to comprehend, and potentially distracting for kids that are at a younger age.

All of that being said, there are some really worthwhile themes, issues and areas of discussion presented:  friendship, loyalty, our stereotypes of mentally handicapped people, depression, loneliness, abuse, hard work, the concept of mercy, and what truly makes a life worth living.  All of these issues are presented in that story in such a way to facilitate very in-depth discussions about some important issues.

One should take all of those issues into account when deciding whether to teach it or not.  I hope that helps; good luck!

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