Because Hardy was brought up in Dorset and the people in the villages there spoke their own dialect some of the words used in the story also help set a place to the time and setting. Hardy also uses detailed description and pathetic fallacy to make the weather, scene and story fit together. For instance when Rhoda and Gertrude are travelling to see Conjurer Trendle Rhoda is apprehensive and thinks something bad is going to happen. The weather echoes this where .
"Thick clouds made the atmosphere dark the wind howled dismally" .
One of the most obvious comparisons between the two stories is how many of the main characters are lonely and outsiders compared to the others. In "Of Mice and Men" Lenny and George are alone as although they have each other it seems to be more of a chore to be with each other than a friendship. Both George and Rhoda have only child like characters to confide in and have no one of their own intellectual level or age to talk to. Because Lenny and George are new to the area they don't know who to trust and have to keep some distance from the new people they are meeting so can't make friends this way. However the opposite is true with Rhoda as although she has been there for many years she is described as .
"A thin, fading woman of thirty milked somewhat apart from the rest." .
She is partly separated because she wants to keep to herself although I believe that social class separates certain characters in both books. Because Rhoda was married to Farmer Lodge she used to be part of the "upper class" now that she has to work again her pride has been hurt and she is to ashamed to try and reassociate herself with the other milk maids. Gertrude, the young wife of farmer lodge is also set aside because of her "marks of a lady" as is put in the book. As the wife of a reasonably wealthy man she is not to be seen mixing with the workers and although she manages it it is very difficult for her to get them to accept her.