Duddy’s dream is one of upward mobility, moving from his blue collar origins to a more affluent, white collar life. Unlike Lennie, who is toiling hard at his education, painstakingly working at establishing a new life for himself and his family, Duddy is devoted to the idea of getting rich quick. He is certain that with some good connections and the right scheme, he can be transported out of the lower working class and become solidly middle class. Duddy does manage to pull himself up by his bootstraps and fulfill the American dream of being a self-made man, though at the cost of the most valuable relationships in his life.

Duddy lacks ethical scruples. His only core belief seems to be to look out for himself and his future, to make sure that he never leaves a single business opportunity unexplored. All others are expendable to Duddy if he is making a deal. It does not matter how loyally they have served him. Even when he behaves in a somewhat noble way, such as when he talks to Hugh Calder on Lennie’s behalf after