George

• George is always telling Lennie what to do and how to behave. He helps Lennie stay out of trouble, and sorts things out if they have any problems like they did in Weed.
• Lennie relies on George for even the most basic things like getting a job and finding food.
• One time George told Lennie to jump in a river and had to save him from drowning.
• George doesn't always treat Lennie well - "crazy bastard"
• Killing Lennie shows how loyal George is. He knows it'll be kinder to kill Lennie when he's imagining their dream farm than to let Curley shoot him in "his guts".
• George often says he'd be better off alone and sometimes it seems like he'd rather work than own a farm with Lennie - "if I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an' work, an' no trouble".
• George isn't just with Lennie because he feels responsible for him. Lennie gives him companionship and lets him believe that the dream of owning a farm could come true.
• Steinbeck persuades the reader to feel sympathy for George. He calls Lennie a "Poor bastard" even when he's about to tell him off - it's clear that George tells Lennie off for his own good.
• George is the hero in Of Mice and Men, but he's just an ordinary man in an ordinary situation. This makes it easier for the reader to relate with him and understand why he does things.
• When Candy tries to get involved in the dream, George is immediately defensive - "You got nothing to do with us".
• George starts off defensive when talking to Slim. When Slim comments that it's unusual that George and Lennie travel together, George snaps at him.
• George tells Slim that lonely men "get mean" and want to "fight all the time". George's aggression hints to the reader that he's quite close to being like this - his friendship with Lennie seems to be the only thing stopping him.
• George doesn't like Curley's wife - "I seen 'em poison before". He warns Lennie to stay away from her as he senses that she'll cause trouble for them.
• George quickly trusts Slim and tells him about what happened in Weed. He says, "You wouldn' tell?... No, 'course you wouldn' ".
• George is good at reading situations. He agrees with Lennie that the ranch isn't a good place to be - "I don't like it". He realises after meeting Curley and his wife that things could go bad. But they've "gotta stay" to save some money.
• George isn't in control of his own life. He has to find work wherever he can and work for people he doesn't respect, like Curley. He also can't control Lennie's unpredictable behaviour.
• George often recites the dream to keep Lennie happy, but he sometimes gets sucked in and believes it himself - when he's talking about it with Lennie and Candy in Chapter 3 he repeats "I bet we could swing her" , and gets "entranced" with his picture of the farm.
• George is loyal to Lennie
• George is a realistic character
• George is good at reading people
• George has "restless" eyes - he's always looking out for danger