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Of Mice and Men How does the author of the text “Of Mice and Men,” express character and themes through language. In the novel “Of Mice and Men” the author John Steinbeck uses detailed description, direct speech, symbolism, character analysis and description of nature to express the personalities and the appearance of his characters and the themes of personal dignity, violence, friendship, loneliness and racism. This is a novel of defeated hope and the harsh reality of the American Dream. The novel opens with the description of a riverbed in rural California, a beautiful, wooded area at the base of "golden foothill slopes." A path runs to the river, used by boys going swimming and riffraff coming down from the highway. Two men walk along the path. The first, George, is small, wiry, and sharp-featured, while his companion, Lennie, is large and awkward. . The clearing into which Lennie and George wander evokes Eden in its serenity and beauty. Steinbeck wisely opens the novel with this idyllic scene, for it creates a background for the idealized friendship between the men and introduces the exaggerated dream of farm life