What does the title "Of Mice and Men" mean?

Question

in full detail please.

Answer 1

I thought you might like to see the whole poem, which is often misquoted, probably because it's in Scottish dialect. Here it is;
http://www.robertburns.org/works/75.shtml
It's 'The best laid plans o' mice an' men gang aft agley'(i.e often go wrong)
Eddie Izzard (the comedian) did a wonderful comic monologue based on this, wondering what the 'plans of mice' could be - it's hilarious.

Answer 2

The title is a reference to a poem by Scottish poet Robert Burns called 'To A Mouse'. His poetry is really difficult to understand but there are two crucial lines in the poem. "The best-laid schemes o' mice an 'men Gang aft agley" Roughly means that no matter how hard or well we plan for something, our plans can often fail to become reality or worse, they can end up going terribly wrong. Think of the plans made by George and Lennie. Think about what ultimately happens.

Answer 3

Read the excerpt from Sparknotes below. One of the overriding themes is that of the oppression of the weak by the strong. Men of course, the strong, Mice the small and weak. Even the kindest men kill Mice.

Answer 4

If you are referring to the title of the novel, you must read it to fully comprehend the fullness, but in essence a mouse painstakingly builds a burrow in a wheat field collecting the right materials to make a cozy home, the farmer comes and harvests the field and unknowingly destroys the home. This metaphor shows us that even though we as men can pain stakingly plan out our live, the forces of nature, God and other things beyond our control can change those plans in an instance. In the book this is what happens to George and Lennie.

Answer 5

The full saying is, "the best laid plans of mice and men often go array" It mean no one can plan for everything, no person, no animal, no one. So live and do the best that you can, but remember that things aren't always going to go your way.