A comparison of the heroic figures within Of Mice & Men (John Steinbeck, :: English Literature

A comparison of the heroic figures within Of Mice & Men (John Steinbeck, published 1938) and The Sexton's Hero (Elizabeth Gaskell, 1950s) A comparison of the heroic figures within Of Mice & men and The Sexton's Hero Although both Of Mice & Men (John Steinbeck, published 1938) and The Sexton's Hero (Elizabeth Gaskell, 1950s) contain story lines, & references that emphasise heroism, they are both set in very different locations & time periods, so their only apparent link is heroism. Of Mice & Men is set in California within the 1930's during the time of the depression. During this time many people lived in poverty, struggling to find employment, and had to resort to travelling from ranch to ranch in search of it. Unemployment had risen to 25% in the United States. At this time the 'American dream' that so many had sought after out had become nothing more than a lost dream. The Sexton's Hero is set around 1850. The story has a Christian influence. Of Mice and Men begins in the Californian countryside and then moves into the setting of the Ranch and finally at the end of the story the characters are taken back into the countryside. The Sexton's Hero also features a mix of countryside and village settings. The story begins in the Churchyard and moves into a village in Lancashire, North England. Of Mice and Men is written in the third person and is told chronologically whereas The Sexton's Hero is written in a more recollective, third person form (person at the church yard and then the Sexton remembering). In both Of Mice and Men and The Sexton's hero, there is a singular 'hero' that the story focuses on. Although both characters are both seen as heroes they are very different people, with very little in common. The stereotypical hero that many of us are used to today through watching television and films would be a character like Superman or Spiderman, a person who is typically strong, fearless, brave, and has some sort of special power. They also end up catching the villain and saving the girl. We can see from the example of Gilbert and George that this stereotype of a hero does not always apply to all heroes and that Gilbert and George are not stereotypical heroes, although both do share certain aspects of the stereotypical hero. The theme of heroism is introduced very differently in each story. In Of Mice and Men it is introduced implicitly to the reader. Readers look at the characters and their relationships with others and decide for themselves what a hero is. In The Sexton's Hero the theme of