Of Mice and Men



Of Mice and Men

Chapter Three

VOCABULARY

“ ‘ You know how the hands are’ ” (pg. 39) workers

“ ‘He’s all stiff with rheumatism.’ ” (pg.44) a painful condition involving the joints and muscles.

“From his pocket Carlson took a little leather thong.” (pg. 48) a narrow strip of material; in this case, leather.

“ ‘Anybody like to play a little euchre? ’” (pg. 48) a card game

“ ‘ Got a little shack on it, an’ a chicken run. Got a kitchen, orchard, cherries, apples, peaches, ‘cots, nuts, got a few berries. They’s a place for alfalfa and plenty of water to flood it.’ ” (pg. 57) run: an enclosure for animals in which they can exercise, feed, etc; ‘cots: apricots; alfalfa: a plant widely grown for animal feed.

“ ‘…them does would throw a litter…’ ” (pg. 58) female rabbits

“They all sat still, all bemused by the beauty of the thing…’ ” preoccupied; deep in thought

“Lennie covered his face with huge paws and bleated with terror.” A bleat is a cry usually associated with a goat, sheep, or calf. In this case, Lennie cries out with terror in an animal-like way.

“ ‘Carlson, you get the candy wagon hitched up.’ ” (pg.64) a crew bus or truck used for transporting people.

ALLUSIONS

“ ‘ I socked him over the head with a fence picket to make him let go.’ ” (pg. 41) a pointed stake made of wood. Put a number of pickets together and you’ll get a picket fence.

“ ‘ Got a Luger.’ ” (pg. 47) a type of pistol

“Whit drew a scoring board to him and set the pegs to start.” (pg. 49) scoring board: a board with holes and pegs used to keep score in certain card games. set the pegs: to set up the pegs on a scoring board before the beginning of a card game.

“ ‘ I’ve knew people that if they got a rag-rug on the floor an’ a kewpie doll lamp on the phonograph they think they’re running a parlor house.’ ” (pg. 52) kewpie doll lamp: Kewpie dolls are a particular type of doll manufactured at the beginning of the 20th century. They were commonly found in parlor houses, which were houses of prostitution with comfortable, elaborately decorated parlors for the reception of clients. phonograph: a machine that played records (before CD players and ipods!)

“ ‘There’s guys around here walkin’ bow-legged ‘cause they like to look at a kewpie doll lamp.’ ” (pg. 52) Whit’s reference here is to the way a man might walk bow-legged because he had contracted a venereal disease from Clara’s house of prostitution.

“ ‘Got in the finals for the Golden Gloves.’ ” (pg. 54) an amateur boxing organization

“ ‘An’ when the salmon run up the river.’ ” (pg. 57) During the salmon mating season, thousands of fish will swim upstream, struggling against the current, spawn (lay their eggs), and then die. During a salmon run, the fish are easy to catch.

IDIOMS

“ ‘Well, that girl rabbits in an’ tells the law she been raped. The guys in Weed start a party out to lynch Lennie.’ ” (pg. 42) rabbits in: jumps in start a party out to lynch: To lynch is to murder someone, usually by hanging, without following a legal procedure. A lynch party is a mob of people who take the law in their own hands and are determined to illegally kill someone. According to George, some men in the town of Weed wanted to capture Lennie and kill him.

“ ‘I think he is a wind-ding.’ ” (pg. 46) a terrific person; someone to be admired

“ ‘Well, ain’t she a looloo.’ ” (pg. 51) a sexy woman

“ ‘Curley’s got yella-jackets in his drawers…’ ” (pg. 51) Whit’s description of Curley is a lot like saying Curley has ants in his pants; that is, he is restless and nervous.

“ ‘She’s a jail bait all set on the trigger.’ ” (pg. 51) on the verge of causing trouble

“ ‘If a guy don’t want a flop, why he can just set in the chairs…’ ” (pg. 52) sexual encounter with a prostitute

“ ‘Clara gets three bucks a crack…’ ” (pg. 53) one session of sexual intercourse with a prostitute.

“ ‘Don’t let no goo-goos in, neither.’ ” (pg. 53) silly young men; perhaps those that are a little love struck

“ ‘These here jail baits is just set on the trigger of the hoosegow.’ ” (pg. 56) jail

“ ‘The ol’ people that owns it is flat bust… ’” (pg. 59) completely broke

“ ‘Jus’ as soon as I can’t swamp out no bunk houses they’ll put me on the county.’ ” (pg. 60) on welfare

“ ‘You’re yella as a frog belly.’ ” (pg. 62) yellow; a coward

“ ‘I don’t care if you’re the best welter in the country.’ ” (pg. 62) a welterweight; a boxer who weighs 136 to 147 pounds.

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