Final answer:
George and Lennie dream of owning land and living independently, while Candy sees in their dream a chance for security. Crooks faces discrimination and disability that bar him from pursuing the same dream.
Step-by-step explanation:
In John Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men, characters such as George, Lennie, Candy, and Crooks each grapple with the pursuit of the American Dream. For George and Lennie, the dream is to own a piece of land and live self-sufficiently, representing freedom and security. George, practical and cautious, is weighed down by the responsibility of caring for Lennie, whose mental disability and lack of social understanding consistently thwart their plans and endanger their dream. Candy, an aging ranch hand, sees in their dream a final chance for relevance and security in his old age, attaching his hopes to theirs. Crooks, as an African American stable hand, faces the compounded struggles of racial discrimination and physical disability, which isolate him and prevent him from envisioning a future where he too can attain the dream of owning land and being his own boss. Both characters represent the barriers that can impede the pursuit of the American Dream due to circumstances of birth, social class, and other systemic inequalities.