Loneliness In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Curley’s Wife was a subject of Prejudice because she was a woman. During the 1930’s a woman’s place was to be at home raising a family, also women were seen as second class citizens and property of their husbands. Before we meet Curley’s Wife, the reader already has an opinion of her because of what the character Candy calls her- “jail bait”; George calls her a “tramp”. It’s implied that she is a tart and a promiscuous woman; she craves the attention her husband doesn’t give her.

After Lennie has inadvertently murdered Curley’s wife, Curley’s lynch mob go out in search of Lennie. George’s decision is almost inevitable to spare Lennie’s life, rather than let Curley and his gang destroy the bit of life Lennie has.

Whenever her head pops in the door it is not a good time for anyone but herself. After rapidly telling her to go away Lennie got pulled into her manipulative hands and they started talking. “ Ever’body likes that. I like to feel silk an’ velvet. Do you like to feel velvet?” That quote shows that Curley’s wife was luring Lennie in to talking to her and also touch her hair. After that Lennie went in to touch her hair, after Curley’s wife constantly yelling at Lennie she was annoyed how he wouldn't let go then came the horrid nightmare for Lennie. Lennie latched on and would not let go, then the shaking began, Lennie was so angry at her for yelling and he shook her so hard by the neck consequenting in Curley’s wife’s neck to be broken and kill her he had done what everyone had wanted to do for

The moment Curley’s wife waltzed into the barn the scene was set, the person that Lennie had been warned not to converse with had entered the room. Lennie used all his willpower not to speak to her, but alas she overpowers him, and a conversation ensued after she noticed the dead puppy, and then told Lennie her life story. she told him that she didn’t like curley and that she could’ve been an actress, but it never seemed to work out, and now she’s stuck on a ranch with an unappreciative husband and a bunch of men that won’t talk to her. A short while into the conversation Lennie explains to Curley’s wife about his love for soft things, to which she says that everybody likes soft things and that he must like linen. She then tells him that she enjoys playing with her hair on account of how soft it is and tells him that he can feel it if he would like to. This would prove to be the biggest mistake of her short life. Lennie grabbed her hair and said something to the effect of “thats nice” after a few seconds Curley’s wife became worried that Lennie was going to “muss” up her hair, and told him to let go, but he didn't. Curley’s wife then proceeded to scream, which scared Lennie and only caused him to hold on tighter and cover her mouth in an attempt to quiet her, when she began to struggle Lennie shook her, which made her fall silent. Lennie set her down in the hay, and realized that he’d done something bad, very bad, he had killed Curley’s wife

By looking more closely at the story, one can see that Curley’s wife is also a metaphor which symbolizes the way which other people looked upon women in the society of the 1930’s. Curley’s wife represents a whole marginalized group in the American society at that time. In the novel, characters are never fully developed, but instead appear as outlines or symbols of real people. Candy, Crooks, and Curley's wife represent the discriminated groups of age, race, and sex. Curley’s wife has been given an overall picture in the eyes of George and Lennie before they even meet her, by Candy. The picture Candy paints about her hints at how she tends to give all the men on the ranch ‘the eye’. Nobody really knows Curley’s wife because nobody ever talks to her and listens to what she really has to say. Curley’s wife wants attention. She wants people to notice her. She is the only woman on the ranch out of all the men. She wears fancy clothes and nice make up to make her look beautiful and

After Lennie showed her the dead puppy, Lennie explained how it was an accident, and that he just liked to touch soft things. Curley’s wife, a flirtatious women, misunderstood him and invited Lennie to pet her soft hair. After that, Lennie touched her hair, and when asked to stop, he became scared and held on tighter. This resulted in Curley’s wife to scream loudly. Not knowing what to do, Lennie covered her mouth with his hand and killed her.

Curley’s wife shows her use of attraction as manipulation to gain control over men. It is due to her lack of dominance over her own life that this desire

“A guy needs somebody- to be near him...A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. Don’t make no difference who the guy is, long’s he’s with you”(Steinbeck 72). The Great Depression, which occurred in the 1930s, was rough on migrant workers, young and old, women, and black people alike. Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks undergo loneliness and discrimination during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men characters Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks, like so many people during the 1930s, experience harrowing times of being isolated from everybody else during those times. The things they face are being separated in a different room, being shunned by men who think they are above them, and people thinking that they are too old and useless. The theme of loneliness is expressed and felt in the novella Of Mice and Men through the isolation and discrimination of Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks.

As Candy, the housekeeper mentions to George, ?Well, I think Curley?s married?a tart.? (p. 14) What the men do not know is that Curley?s wife is just incredibly lonely, once having dreamt to be a star, and marrying Curley after the failure of that dream. She is all alone in the secluded world of the ranch. Having a husband who pays no attention to her, she tries to find someone to talk to among the men in the ranch, dressing provocatively for that reason only. Unfortunately, the combination of misunderstanding and their knowledge of only one type of women ? the kind they encounter at ?cat-houses? ? drives the men away from Curley?s wife.

“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

When Lennie asks to go into Crook’s room, Crooks says, "You got no right to come in my room. This here's my room. Nobody got any right in here but me.” (page 68) He had spent his whole life alone and told himself

Curley’s wife is what we in modern day might call a “tease”, but there is more to her than

Though Crooks is a Black man he is a hell of a good worker, so he says himself. When he talks to Lennie and Candy he feels pleasure mixed with anger. When Curley 's wife comes in and threatens him, he feels small and scared and feels like he lost power and privileges over his room and realizes he is black and shouldn 't have back talked her. He knows what she could do to him for what he did, so she says her self. “She closed on him. “You know what I could do?”.....“Well, you keep your place then....I could get you strung up so easy it ain 't funny. '”(80, 81). Because she was a white female and the boss ' son 's Wife she had superiority over him and so he felt alone at that moment. He didn 't realize the cruelness of white folk when he was younger but as he grew older he did, mainly because of where he slept and the way he was treated. “ 'Why ain 't you wanted?”...“Cause I 'm black. They play cards in there, but I can 't play because I 'm black... '”(68). This

Curley’s wife is treated with very little respect because of the small amount of power she has, which depicts Steinbeck’s lesson that people with less power are treated differently and then go on to treat others unequally, as well. Curley’s wife has a flirty reputation and often goes to talk to the men on the ranch even though she knows she shouldn't be. Shortly after Lennie and George are first introduced to Curley’s wife, George remarks, “Gosh, she was purty.” George is shocked and fiercely tells Lennie, “Don't you even take a look at that bitch. I don't care what she says and what she does. I seen ‘em poison before, but I never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her. You leave her be”(Steinbeck 32). Lennie’s initial reaction of Curley’s wife is not uncommon for the lack of intelligence he has. George’s fierce attitude toward Curley’s wife when he calls her

His love of soft things instantly overwhelms the rest of his thoughts. His mental disability causes him to forget everything George taught him: about not going near her, about how she is trouble. Even though he didn’t want any trouble, her hair reminds him of the rabbits. As soon as Curley’s wife starts to get uncomfortable and asks him to stop, Lennie can’t. Curley’s wife is suddenly in horror, so she yells out for help. Upon hearing this, Lennie instantaneously cups his massive hands around her mouth and nose, knowing what consequences will follow if he gets caught in trouble again. Lennie’s childish actions causes Curley’s wife to start suffocate until he eventually breaks her neck. It takes a few moments for Lennie to react to what he has done an then he remembers whar George told him to do if he got in to trouble, “Lennie if you jus’ happen to get in trouble like you always done before, want you to come right here an’ hide in the brush” . This is the only thought he can think of at this point, so he sets out for the river.