Of Mice And Men Chapter 3 Summary | Junior Cycle English

Of Mice and Men Chapter 3 Summary: Where we are

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Evening in the bunkhouse, a few days later. This is the longest chapter and the most important one. The dream almost becomes real, an old dog is shot, and Lennie crushes a man’s hand. All three happen in the same room in one night.

What happens

Slim and George talk alone. Slim has given Lennie a puppy. He says openly that Lennie is a good worker but not bright. He also says it is unusual for two men to travel together.

George explains the friendship. They were both born in Auburn and he knew Lennie’s Aunt Clara, who raised him. When she died, Lennie simply came along with George. It began as an obligation, not a choice.

George then admits something worse. He used to play jokes on Lennie because Lennie was too slow to protect himself. He once told Lennie to jump into a river, and Lennie jumped, and nearly drowned. George stopped after that. Slim listens without judging him.

Carlson returns to the subject of Candy’s dog. He argues it is old, it stinks and it is no use to itself. Candy resists, saying he has had the dog since it was a pup and herded sheep with it. Slim gives his opinion, and once Slim agrees, the matter is settled.

Candy gives in. Carlson takes the dog outside with a Luger. The men in the bunkhouse try to talk about other things. There is a long silence, and then a shot from the distance. Every head turns to Candy. He rolls over and faces the wall without a word.

Later, George tells Lennie the story of the farm again. Candy overhears. He asks to join them, and offers the compensation money he was paid for his hand, plus his future wages. Suddenly the money adds up. For the first time the three of them believe it could actually happen.

Curley bursts in looking for his wife and finds Lennie smiling to himself about the farm. He assumes Lennie is laughing at him and attacks. Lennie takes several punches without lifting a hand, until George shouts at him to fight back. Lennie catches Curley’s fist and crushes it. Slim warns Curley to say his hand was caught in a machine, or the whole ranch will know what happened.

One key quote

“I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn’t ought to of let no stranger shoot my dog.”
Candy, lying in the dark after the shot.

This is the line the ending is built on. Candy is not saying the dog should have lived. He is saying that if it had to be done, it should have been done by the person who loved it.

George is in the room when Candy says it. In the final chapter he does exactly what Candy wishes he had done. You cannot write properly about the ending of this novel without this quote, because it is where George gets the idea.

Notice also how the shooting is staged. The men wait, the room goes quiet, and the shot comes from a distance. Steinbeck stages Lennie’s death the same way in Chapter 6, and expects you to remember.

What this chapter is doing

The dream stops being a bedtime story and becomes a plan. Candy’s savings are what change it. Steinbeck says the three of them fell silent and looked at one another, amazed. This thing they had never really believed in was coming true. The word amazed is doing the work. They had never expected it to be real.

Candy joins for a reason worth understanding. He is not greedy. He knows they will get rid of him when he is too old to sweep out bunkhouses. That is exactly what they did to his dog. The farm is not a luxury for him. It is somewhere he cannot be thrown off.

The fight closes the chapter with a reminder. Lennie does not fight until told to, and then he cannot stop until told to stop. He repeats that he did not want to hurt anyone. He says a version of that after every disaster in the novel.

Themes that show up

Mercy and killing. Slim frames shooting the dog as kindness. That argument is what George acts on at the end.
Usefulness. Carlson’s case against the dog is simply that it is no good to anybody. The ranch applies the same test to people.
The dream at its height. This is the one chapter where it looks possible. Everything after this is the dream coming apart.
Strength without intention. Lennie destroys Curley’s hand while trying to make him stop. George’s own account of him is that he never lifted a finger in anger.
Old age and fear. Candy says out loud that he wishes somebody would shoot him when he is no longer wanted.

Common questions that come up

A question on the most moving moment in your studied text should consider the dog. Do not just describe the shooting. Explain the silence in the bunkhouse, and Candy turning to face the wall because there is nowhere for his grief to go.

For a question on a turning point, this chapter has two. Candy’s money turns the dream into a plan. Lennie crushing Curley’s hand makes an enemy who will not forget.

A question on a character who is treated unfairly suits Candy. He loses his hand, then his dog, then his standing. Slim’s opinion is treated as law, and Candy has no right of reply.

If you are asked how the writer prepares you for the ending, this is the strongest chapter in the book. The mercy argument, the distant shot, and Candy’s regret are all handed to you here, three chapters early.

Common mistake

Students often write that Carlson is simply cruel. He is worse than that, and more interesting. Carlson is being reasonable by the standards of the ranch. The dog is old, in pain and useless. Nobody in the bunkhouse argues that those are the wrong questions to ask. The horror of the scene is that everybody agrees, including Slim. An answer that makes Carlson a villain misses that Steinbeck is criticising the whole system, not one man.

Quick recall

1. How did George and Lennie start travelling together?

They were both born in Auburn. George knew Lennie’s Aunt Clara, who raised Lennie from a baby. When she died, Lennie went to work with George and simply stayed.

2. What does George confess to Slim?

That he used to play cruel jokes on Lennie because Lennie was too slow to look after himself. He once told Lennie to jump into a river and Lennie nearly drowned. George stopped after that.

3. Why does Carlson want Candy’s dog shot?

Because it is old, it smells and it cannot enjoy its own life. His argument is that the dog is no good to Candy and no good to itself.

4. Why does Candy give in?

Because Slim agrees with Carlson, and Slim’s opinion is treated as law on the ranch. Candy has no standing to argue, so he stops trying.

5. How does Steinbeck present the dog’s death?

Offstage. The men sit in an uncomfortable silence, then a shot sounds in the distance and every head turns to Candy. He rolls over and faces the wall.

6. What does Candy regret afterwards?

That he let a stranger shoot his dog instead of doing it himself. George is in the room to hear it, and remembers it in the final chapter.

7. How does the dream suddenly become possible?

Candy overhears George describing the farm and offers the compensation money he received for losing his hand, plus his wages. With his money added, the three of them could afford it soon.

8. Why does Candy want to join them?

Security, not wealth. He knows he will be sacked when he can no longer work, and he wants somewhere nobody can throw him off. He has watched what happens to things that stop being useful.

9. Why does Curley attack Lennie?

He storms in looking for his wife, finds Lennie smiling about the farm, and assumes he is being laughed at. Curley picks on Lennie because Lennie is the biggest man in the room.

10. How does the fight end, and what does Slim do?

Lennie catches Curley’s fist and crushes it without letting go until George tells him to stop. Slim then warns Curley to say his hand got caught in a machine, so that Lennie is not sacked.

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