Analysis for Chapter 1, Quote #1

"Whatever we ain't got, that's what you want. God a'mighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could go get a job an' work, an' no trouble. No mess at all, and when the end of the month come I could take my fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever I want." (George pg. 11-12)

At this point in the story, basically the only thing that the reader knows is that Lennie and George are traveling together to get a job on a ranch. Although it seems that George is very tolerant of Lennie's company, and is protective over him, this is one of the points in the story where we see George get a bit fed up with always having to watch out for him. This scenario also poses the question as to what kind of relationship George and Lennie have: friends, companions, human//animal, man//boy, etc. Does George truly want Lennie's company, or is he just so used to taking him everywhere that he's automatically inclined to let him stay?