Argues that Of Mice and Men is not only a tale of morality, but also a representation of the political themes found in In Dubious Battle and The Grapes of Wrath. Establishes that Steinbeck does not simply divorce himself from the labor themes of the other two books; rather he uses this novel as a representative account of the social events taking place in California during the 1930s. Examines aspects of the split hero as found in the novel's two main characters, George and Lennie, who resemble a dark rider coming into a ranch with nothing more than a dream of a better life.