The characters in Of Mice and Men can be seen as narrative archetypes, or characters that represent broader symbolic "types" of people. When viewed through this lens, George would symbolize the "everyman." He represents a surrogate character for the reader to insert themselves into the story. As such, he is neither especially terrible or especially great as a person, but just average. As the "everyman," George also demonstrates the obstacles and hardships faced by the average working American, making his inability to access his American Dream more poignant and relevant. Through George, Steinbeck is saying that there is something wrong with a country where a decent man can work hard and struggle and try to be a good guy, but still end up poor and miserable.
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