Of Mice and Men and The Pearl: Characterization What is depth, and what does it mean? Depth is the extent, the intensity, depth is a distinct level of detail. When someone talks about depth of characterization, they are talking about the level of intensity that someone is using in order to describe a character. John Ernst Steinbeck, in The Pearl, Of Mice and Men, and The Grapes of Wrath describes many of his main characters in great depth. Steinbeck and Characterization What is depth, and what does it mean? Depth is the extent, the intensity, depth is a distinct level of detail. When someone talks about depth of characterization, they are talk