Throughout the novel, Steinbeck uses settings to show how hostile and harsh the environment is in the lives of the traveling workers. This is clear from the name of the town George and Lennie arrive in, Soledad, which is the Spanish word for lonely. Settings are also used as an essential element to continue the plot and give the reader a sense of the mood in the section before continuing reading and are sometimes used as foreshadowing effects. The title of the book, “Of Mice and Men,” was originally “something that happened.” This shows the futility which is a common theme throughout the book. The title was changed to "Of Mice and Men", from a line in a poem, "The best laid plans of mice and men often go astray", almost showing a contrast to the American dream , which is a very important theme throughout the novel, saying that if something is planned well, the unfortunate and unexpected can ruin it. An example being George and Lennie's dream of a ranch. There are 3 major settings in the novel, these are the different descriptions of the clearing in sections 1 and 4, the dormitory and...