Website Address:

http://www.novelguide.com/ofmiceandmen/index.html

Content of Site:

Novel Summary
Character Profiles
Metaphor Analysis
Theme Analysis
Top Ten Quotes
Biography

Rating:

Review:

The Novel Summary in is broken down into individual chapter summaries and the events of each chapter are described in depth. Similarly the Character Profiles are long and in depth. This site would be useful to any user who required a resource with detailed information about the plot and characters as opposed to very brief outlines, which some other sites offer. Also very interesting in this site is the Metaphor Analysis section, which explains for pupils the number of prevalent metaphors which arise throughout the course of the novel. It explains the significance of the symbols that are; Candy's Dog, The Cripples, Solitaire, The Dead Mouse and Dead Puppy. This is an important element of the site as the pupils' level of understanding of the symbolism and imagery within the novel are vital if they are to perform well at GCSE level. The same is true of the Theme Analysis section. Here the theme of the harsh reality of the American Dream is focused upon, and the relationship between this theme and the line of poetry from which the novel took its title, Robert Burns';

"The best laid plans o' mice an' men gang aft aglay"

Also of benefit to students revising for GCSE will be the list of Top Ten Quotes. Though this may not be quite so important since the introduction of open-book exams, it is always useful for pupils to have memorised some quotations from the novel, and those selected here relate to important events or themes in the novel and the context of each is explained. The final section is a Biography of John Steinbeck.