The Lonely Characters in "Of Mice and Men" Of Mice and Men is set during the 1930s about the time of the American depression. It focuses upon two men who are raising money to buy and live on a small farm of their dreams. They work on the ranches to earn the money to do this. These men are George Milton and Lennie Small. George looks after Lennie as he is very forgetful and slow. Lennie usually ends up getting the both of them 'canned' this means thrown off the ranch as he tends to do stupid things...
the ranch.

George faces a similar predicament, George knows that he must be the one too kill Lennie, because if anyone else does it they will do it inhumanly. This is why he shoots Lennie while talking to him as to distract him, where as Curley would "shoot for his guts."

Although all of the characters are lonely I feel that these characters are the loneliest. Georges saying sums up all of the ranch workers loneliness by saying " Guys like us, that work on the ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world."