Underdogs of Of Mice and Men on the Stage

John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men, one of his labor-themed trilogy with In Dubious Battle and The Grapes of Wrath, is well-known for its revision to a playscript. This paper aims to analyze the details made in the revision to reveal the author’s intention and the difference between the two genres of a paper book and stage performance. The second chapter explains the revision process and its effect from paper to stage, and the third one observes the specific aspects of language and context. Through the analysis, the conversion means the useful characterization with richer tonality meaning all the characters’ balanced participation and realistic writing for the audience’s understanding and emotion. To be specific, the revision makes changes in the form, reasonable language for audience’s understanding, refined contents for the public’s emotion, more sincere labor theme with active resistance, sweet sentimentalism by agonizing to the last, and richer tonality of making Curley’s wife the heroine. Lastly, this research is expected to expand the intertextuality between the genres and Steinbeck’s artistry.