Bobby discussed Steinbeck's negative view of women as depicted in the novel, and we contrasted that view with the author's admiration for the type of male bonding working men share as illustrated by the bond between Lennie and George. We noted the contrast between George and Lennie's relationship and Curley's relationship with his wife which is devoid of trust or affection. We then examined the detailed description of George and Lennie's dream of owning a farm and annotated in the novel the Edenic imagery representing the American Dream. The allure of the dream is contagious as the old crippled ranch hand,Candy, offers to contribute his savings to help purchase the farm. We discussed how then, for just those ephemeral moments, their American Dream seems achievable . However, focusing on the novel's numerous instances of foreboding foreshadowing ,we noted how the dream will likely never materialize. Last, we incorporated our class discussion into Bobby's study guide homework answers. For HW read next 10 pages.