Steinbeck's Humble Parable: "He who has ears, let him hear"

Abstract

This article examines the implications of reading John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men as a parable. Through a comparison of the novel's character types and plot events to similar features in the parables of Christ, this article argues that the root cause of Steinbeck's characters' aching loneliness is pride, which prevents them from making meaningful connections with other human beings. The antidote to their pitiable condition, humility, seems out of reach for most of the characters who are unable to overcome their own hubris and self-love in order to establish authentic relationships with others.