Relationships Among Organisms
Relationships… not the average kind of relationships that come to mind. Relationships occur in nature, and they can come from several different encounters. In Of Mice and Men, a realistic fiction novella by John Steinbeck numerous relationships between the characters occur. These relationships relate to an article named “Living in Sym” which shares concepts of relationships in nature. Of Mice and Men and “Living in Sym” link to each other by Steinbeck showing mutualistic, parasitic, and amensalistic relationships.
“Living in Sym” is an article explaining different relationships that occur within nature. It discusses the elements of relationships such as the, benefits and disadvantages. The article also talks about the different members in relationships. “Symbiosis: Properly, it is a neutral term, meaning “the living together in close association of two dissimilar organisms” (“Living in Sym”). This is a general statement of different relationships. Relationships are mostly symbiotic.
In the novella there are mainly two antagonists. They are itinerant workers, whose names are George and Lennie. An itinerant worker is someone who travels around and works on different farms. The novella takes place in Salinas Valley, California. George has the brains of the two of them. Lennie is a strong man with a mental illness. Lennie and George had to leave their previous farm due to the fact that Lennie got in trouble by touching a woman's dress. At the new farm they meet some new people. These other farm workers have different relationships among each other. Curley, the boss’ son, has a wife who also lives on the farm. One of the workers is named Candy and has an old dog. The dog is later shot, but the relationships among these people and animals are extremely strong. The antagonist, society, is pushing against George and Lennie. They have to overcome obstacles, and the novella ends with George having to shoot Lennie. Relationships can come from almost any occurrence in nature. For one, a relationship exhibited in the novella and “Living in Sym” is mutualism. …show more content…
Candy and his dog have a mutualistic relationship. “Mutualism: A symbiotic relationship in which both (or all) organisms involved benefit. (“Living in Sym”). Basically, in this relationship, both partners gain something within the relationship. Candy and his dog both gained companionship in their relationship.Candy kept his old dog around, which gave the dog a place to stay and a person to be with. The old dog gives Candy a friend. Most of the itinerant workers have no friends or relationships. The dog provides that sense of friendship to Candy. Parasitic relationships are another relationship that Steinbeck shows in the novella. “Parasitism: A symbiotic relationship in which one partner (the parasite) benefits and the other (the host) is harmed, though typically not killed directly by the action of the parasite” (“Living in Sym”). Basically one partner uses the other for something like a place to live, or they could use someone by using them for support. The relationship between Lennie and George is a parasitic relationship because Lennie has messed up before. George continues to care and lie for George. George covers for Lennie so the Boss will not think he is incapable of a worker. Lennie has messed up before in the past. Lennie would have messed up anywhere he would have gone. If they were to end up at another farm the
Relationships… not the average kind of relationships that come to mind. Relationships occur in nature, and they can come from several different encounters. In Of Mice and Men, a realistic fiction novella by John Steinbeck numerous relationships between the characters occur. These relationships relate to an article named “Living in Sym” which shares concepts of relationships in nature. Of Mice and Men and “Living in Sym” link to each other by Steinbeck showing mutualistic, parasitic, and amensalistic relationships.
“Living in Sym” is an article explaining different relationships that occur within nature. It discusses the elements of relationships such as the, benefits and disadvantages. The article also talks about the different members in relationships. “Symbiosis: Properly, it is a neutral term, meaning “the living together in close association of two dissimilar organisms” (“Living in Sym”). This is a general statement of different relationships. Relationships are mostly symbiotic.
In the novella there are mainly two antagonists. They are itinerant workers, whose names are George and Lennie. An itinerant worker is someone who travels around and works on different farms. The novella takes place in Salinas Valley, California. George has the brains of the two of them. Lennie is a strong man with a mental illness. Lennie and George had to leave their previous farm due to the fact that Lennie got in trouble by touching a woman's dress. At the new farm they meet some new people. These other farm workers have different relationships among each other. Curley, the boss’ son, has a wife who also lives on the farm. One of the workers is named Candy and has an old dog. The dog is later shot, but the relationships among these people and animals are extremely strong. The antagonist, society, is pushing against George and Lennie. They have to overcome obstacles, and the novella ends with George having to shoot Lennie. Relationships can come from almost any occurrence in nature. For one, a relationship exhibited in the novella and “Living in Sym” is mutualism. …show more content…
Candy and his dog have a mutualistic relationship. “Mutualism: A symbiotic relationship in which both (or all) organisms involved benefit. (“Living in Sym”). Basically, in this relationship, both partners gain something within the relationship. Candy and his dog both gained companionship in their relationship.Candy kept his old dog around, which gave the dog a place to stay and a person to be with. The old dog gives Candy a friend. Most of the itinerant workers have no friends or relationships. The dog provides that sense of friendship to Candy. Parasitic relationships are another relationship that Steinbeck shows in the novella. “Parasitism: A symbiotic relationship in which one partner (the parasite) benefits and the other (the host) is harmed, though typically not killed directly by the action of the parasite” (“Living in Sym”). Basically one partner uses the other for something like a place to live, or they could use someone by using them for support. The relationship between Lennie and George is a parasitic relationship because Lennie has messed up before. George continues to care and lie for George. George covers for Lennie so the Boss will not think he is incapable of a worker. Lennie has messed up before in the past. Lennie would have messed up anywhere he would have gone. If they were to end up at another farm the