Hard Work

One of the most prominent rationalist ideas is the concept that everyone has the ability to achieve greatness.  Rationalists believed that everyone could be successful, but the level of success you achieved could vary.  Only through hard work, could one be successful.  Naturally, everyone wanted to amount to a high level of wealth and value, so there was an emphasis on hard work in society.  At the time, being successful was considered living the American Dream.  This included having a substantial amount of money that you could live off of, having a house, and working your way up in the social classes as high as you could. Many people devoted their whole lives towards working towards this idea in hopes of one day being prosperous.  Rationalist also believed in social mobility, so through the hard work that people put in, not only did they gain money, but they also gained a new social status and could change their way of life.

The book Of Mice and Men is set on a large ranch that requires many ranch-hands.  The business of ranching is almost solely based off of labor, and that is the purest form of “work”.  Labor was the first form of “work,” and for a long time was the only way to earn a living.  This choice in setting sets the tone of the book, and shows the readers that promotions in life; in their jobs, or relationships will be earned through dedication and effort.  All of the men on the ranch are there to hopefully make some money so that they can go off and have a prosperous life once they have earned enough.  George and Lennie travel together, and are hoping to have a ranch and house of their own one day.  George is small, but smart, and Lennie is big and strong, but can’t function up to par socially.  The two are dedicated to supporting each other in life, and their personalities blend together to create a perfect team.  On the ranch, they work hard each day to earn money so that they can live their dream.  This dream is similar to the American Dream, a concept during the time of Rationalism.

Sin and Goodness

The Rationalist believed that everyone is born without sin or taint.  Because of this, rationalists had the idea that everyone started equal, and no one was born with any strikes against them.  This allowed people to believe that they had the ability to live just as anyone else did as a righteous man.  However, because Rationalists believed they were born free from sin, the sin that they did commit was a big issue and had a great impact on their character.  Because sin had a large negative effect on people, goodness was also magnified and helped boost people’s reflections on their peers.  Having good morals and values will take you far in life, and if a man was well respected among his peers, he was likely to achieve at a high level.  One of the most important aspects of life is the relationship that people build with each other, and it is evident that the better reputation you have, the more success will come your way.

Throughout the book, there is an emphasis placed on the relationships of the characters.  It is evident which characters are in charge- Curley and his wife.  Any time they are around the men, everyone gets very stiff and they have to make sure they don’t say anything to get themselves in trouble.  The men at the ranch are scared of Curley and his wife, because they know that at any moment, they could be thrown out of their jobs.  It is obvious that the relationship between the men and Curley and his wife is imperfect, and there is no respect to be found anywhere.  Because Curley and his wife don’t have the nicest hearts, no one likes them and the men make fun of them behind their backs.  Even though no one respects Curley and his wife, they have to make sure that they are nice to them so that they don’t get kicked out of the ranch.  They all make sure that they don’t do anything that will upset the bosses, and try to stay clear of trouble.  Generally, the person that keeps quiet and does their work will be the one who achieves the most and has the best relationship with their bosses and others.  The men try to help each other out, and the ones that are well-liked find a happiness that is hard to reach in their situations.  Slim builds good relationships with George and Lennie, as well as the other men, and in the end, turns out comforting George after he shoots Lennie.  Because of Slim’s positive personality, he helps George overcome the sin of this in his life.  This is something that a good man would do, and Slim is praised for it.

Utopian Society

During the period of Rationalism, the idea of a utopian society emerged.  This is a perfect society, but in reality, perfection cannot actually be achieved.  Even though realistically, perfecting a society is not possible, this concept served as a goal for the people of this time.  The Rationalists were developing the idea of America, and they struggled with defining what it meant to be “American.” Though their work in shaping America, they were able to create as close to a Utopian society as they could get.  With trial and error, they created an “ideal” society; one that fit their needs, but was always evolving and becoming better.

In Of Mice and Men, George and Lennie have a dream of one day owning their own ranch and house.  George says, “Someday-we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an’ a cow and some pigs and­­­––“ then Lennie interrupts and says, “An’ have rabbits.”  For Lennie, the rabbits represent their goal in life.  He loves to feel soft things, and anytime he thinks of tending the rabbits, he gets so excited.  Each day, George and Lennie get up with the desire to do their work so that they can obtain enough money to live on their own.  Now, they are living with other men who they don’t particularly get along with, but in the future, they will be together and have their own cattle, garden, rabbits, and house.  For them, this is a Utopian Society, and just as the Rationalists did, they work towards it every day.