In the novel Of Mice and Men, the author John Steinbeck present and describe Lennie as a not so smart person. We watch Lennie grow and change over time within the novel, so we think. It was published in 1937. Lennie has a best friend called George, who did everything together.

Lennie is George’s friend and constant companion, who is mentally retarded and highly dependent on George. He suffers from a child’s mentality within a giant’s body. He is innocent and forgetful like a child. He is also attracted to small, soft things because of his child-like, gentle nature. Unfortunately, he often harms the things he loves accidentally. As a huge man with heavy arms and powerful hands, he does not know or understand his own strength.

Lennie idolizes George, his kind caretaker, almost like a god. In Lennie’s eyes, George is totally kind, faithful, and good. He tries hard to remember everything George tells him to do and obeys him implicitly without asking any questions. Even though Lennie did not know how to swim, he jumped in a river one time when George jokingly told him to do so. Because Lennie is slow, forgetful, and powerful, he causes trouble for George wherever they go. They had to leave the last job because Lennie reached out and grabbed the dress of a little girl and would not let go. When she screamed, the townspeople came and blamed Lennie for attempted rape.

He never means to cause problems. He didn’t mean to kill his puppy and greatly regrets that it is dead. He tries to stay away from Curley and his wife, as George suggested. She, however, comes to Lennie in the barn and tells him he can stroke her hair. When he is too rough, she begins to scream and Lennie panics. When he covers her mouth and shakes her to be quiet, he accidentally breaks her neck.

Throughout the book Lennie is portrayed as a dreamer. He longs to go and live on a farm with George,