Effects Of Societal Alienation In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Loneliness is one of many central themes in John Steinbeck’s classic novella, Of Mice and Men. Throughout the story many characters sought after the company and attention of others. Each character has a certain barrier that keeps them isolated from the outside world. Three characters who portray this loneliness throughout the novella are Crooks, Curly’s wife, and Candy. Each having a different wall between them and society.

Some characters in this novel are alienated by mainstream society because they do not fit society’s ideal image of a person. And they are all not accepted as human beings. Throughout John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, the social injustice of how people were treated during the Great Depression is explored through the characters Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Lennie, to show that society actually needs to become stronger than it really is.

In a society of people all in the same situations how can someone feel so alone. When lives fall apart and people have nothing to hold on to people need each other most, yet are pushed so far from others. The novel Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, follows the storyline of two men who are displaced farm workers during the Great Depression; they travel around and stick by each other’s sides no matter the circumstance. After many jobs they end up on a farm,the farm they hope will be their last stop. The time spent on the farm is filled with blooming friendships and careless quarrels, yet with an abundance of characters and entertainment- many people on the farm feel alone and out of place. Characters such as Crooks and Curley’s wife often come to mind when the subject of loneliness is brought up. Throughout the book using characters such as Crooks and Curley's wife, John Steinbeck demonstrates that humans are immensely impacted by separation from society and it will change the way that people will act and show themselves to others.

Barbara Sher once said, “‘Isolation is a dream killer’” (qtd. in Wishcraft). In his novella, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck scrutinizes the effects that alienation can have on society. Many characters experience loneliness throughout the novel. He illustrates the results of individuals becoming isolated from their peers. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck portrays characters alienated from society in order to illustrate the harmful effects of loneliness caused by discrimination.

Despite being ignored and pushed to the side, outcasts are the characters who stand out the most. Of Mice and Men is a novel that contains major themes of hope, loss, and outcasts. It is the story of George and Lennie, two companions who work on a farm alongside friends and enemies. They are friendly with Candy, a fellow worker, and face adversity from Curley’s wife, who is the wife of their boss. Crooks is a groundskeeper who struggles to be sociable in a segregated time period.

“Want me to tell ya what’ll happen? They’ll take ya to the booby hatch. They’ll tie ya up with a collar, like a dog” (Steinbeck 72). Discrimination plays a large role to feeling lonely. In the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, characters endure attempts by society to make them “invisible.” These include racism, ageism, sexism, and isolation. More specifically, three of these characters experience loneliness from acts of discrimination. Factors contributing to their loneliness include ageism, disability discrimination, and racism. Each of these characters are migrant workers during the Great Depression who are discriminated against in different ways. Thus, through Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife, Steinbeck reveals the powerful

Her husband says that he doesn't want her talking to anyone, so because of that, she feels like she's lonely and needs someone to talk to. That's why she goes around and talk to the other ranchers. Crooks is a negro and he lives in a bunkhouse alone because no one want's to be with him. He want's to be accepted for who he is and just wants to have a friendship. He states, "Come on in and set a while, long as you won't get out and leave me alone, you might as well set down."

lead him to a life of worry and lack of security, as he is old and a

Loneliness and Alienation in the story Of Mice and Men In this essay, I’m going to be talking about the characters that went through loneliness and alienation throughout the story Of Mice and Men. What characters experienced loneliness and alienation in this story? Some of the characters the experienced loneliness and alienation throughout the story was Curley’s Wife, Crooks, and Candy. “Lets” see how these characters experience loneliness and alienation throughout the story in the next paragraphs.

She has no friends and no one takes the time to listen to her. As the only woman on the ranch she has nobody to turn to. Curley doesn’t appreciate her or take the time to talk to her. When she goes to Crook’s stable her emotions overtake her and she admits her loneliness, “Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever’ once in awhile? Think I like to stick in that house alla time?” (77) She is always stuck in the house either alone or with Curley. Curley just ignores her and doesn't give her the attention that she wants. So she finds it from other men. As the only woman she has only the workers for company. She is isolated and all alone. She only gets attention when she flirts with the men, nobody appreciates her for anything else. They all know she’s unfaithful and flirty, so when alone with her they take advantage of her. The men on the ranch only give her attention if it is to flirt with her,“”If I catch any one man, and he’s alone, I get along fine with him. But just let two of the guys get together an’ you won’t talk...Ever’ one of you’s scared the rest is goin’ to get something on you.”” (77) The guys on the ranch only pay attention to her when they are alone with her. So they can mess around with her without the other workers knowing. They especially don’t want Curley to find out. It’s hard for Curley’s wife to feel at home on the ranch when no one wants to be her friend.

At some point in one’s life there is not only contentment or grief, but a state of loneliness. Loneliness is a part of human life, although some suffer from isolation more than others. Being lonely can lead to depression or create a different persona in oneself. Struggling through isolation can eventually kill one’s soul, expecting no hope or ending up in dangerous situations. The novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck portrays the theme of loneliness especially through two characters. Crooks and Curley’s wife experience the state of isolation as they crave for a friend or someone they can talk with. Steinbeck urges readers to feel pathos when analyzing Crooks and Curley’s wife through the nature of their isolation, their actions and

In today's world, society controls us. Society controls how men and women are suppose to act, think, and how we should do and handle things. Books, such as The Crucible, Of Mice and Men, and The Scarlet Letter, also portray how people are suppose to act and think and how people will judge you if you don't follow everything you’re supposed to correctly. If you don’t follow all of their laws and rules correctly or look the way you’re suppose to, there will eventually be a punishment. All of the stories listed happened before the 1960’s, which is around the time where most of the elderly in our lives today.

Crooks appears in the novel as a sacred and mean, also lonely man. To think Crooks was born in California, feeling like an outsider, even if that is he’s hometown. Crooks know that his skin color is all that keeps him separate in this time. Crooks is an outsider mostly because of his skin color, but he also makes people believe that he is an outsider, perhaps because misery makes him hate company. Crooks is a stable-hand, that where he get his name from crook back. He knows that he is extremely lonely. Like Curley’s wife, Crooks can’t live his life because of what he is .He plays a messed-up game with Lennie, suggesting to him that George left him and will never return. Only when Lennie threatens him with physical violence crooks stops. Crooks exhibit lonely that only Curley’s wife exhibit; his character is the only character you’ll feel sad

“Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty,” said Mother Teresa. Humanity has struggled against being left alone and being lonely for a long time. As a result, humans formed a society where they could be together. On the other hand, there are still people who are left out of the society. In other words, there are still people out there who are marginalized, not accepted fairly to the society. John Steinbeck shows the marginalized people’s lives in his novel, Of Mice and Men. In his novel, characters such as Lennie, George, Candy, Curley’s wife, Crooks, and even the ranch workers, are marginalized from the society. Ranch workers like George, Candy, and Lennie have nowhere to go, and they do not have anybody to care for them. Especially for Lennie, he is mentally challenged, too. Crooks, being the colored man, suffers from discrimination. Curley’s wife is constantly surrounded with loneliness. In Of Mice and Men, marginalized people who are neglected from the society, create a society of their own; they share their dreams and help each other out although they are all different from each other.

‘..Guys like us that work on ranches are the loneliest guys in the world they got no family they don’t belong no place.’ This is what many felt during the ‘great depression’ in the 1930’s. John Steinbeck gives us the sense that many felt lonely ‘they got no family they don’t belong no place. The main theme of this novel is alienation; the three characters, Curley’s wife, candy, and crooks are all alienated, and felt it by another person at some point. They all have dreams... it’s the American dream... but not all dreams come true...