Candy's Injury In 'Of Mice And Men'

Mason Leffler
Mr. Cavanaugh
English 1
4 October 2017
Of Mice and Men Analysis
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck follows the life of two men trying to achieve the American Dream. A recurring circumstance that affects many of the characters in this historical fiction novella is injury. One of these characters impacted by an injury is Candy. Candy’s injury demonstrates his decreasing chances of living the American Dream as time goes on through its location, cause, and permanence.
In the book, Candy’s right hand is amputated. Symbolically, hands mean the ability to do work. Especially in Candy’s case, who is most likely right-handed. Logically, if Candy is able to work, he will be able to save enough money to retire. However, his lack of a hand is a worry because if he cannot do work, he will not make enough money to be able to live the American Dream. Candy explained to George what his injury meant for working on the farm, saying, “‘I ain’t much good with on’y one hand’”(Steinbeck 58). This lets George, someone who does not fully understand Candy’s job, know that previously his tasks were different. Without a job, there is no way Candy can live the American Dream.

Along with the location of the injury, the cause of his injury represents his declining opportunities to escape the middle class.

Candy’s amputation was caused by a farm machine incident on the ranch he works now. For Candy, the only way to get a farm and live happily is through George and Lennie, and the most probable thing to get in their way is Curley. In chapter three, Lennie crushes Curley’s hand after Curley starts to punch and thrust his face. Slim, saving Lennie and George’s job and Curley’s dignity and ego, tells Curley, “I think you got your han’ caught in a machine” (Steinbeck 62). Now the going story of how Candy’s obstacle in his journey was injured in the same manner that could have prevented him from achieving it in the first

place.
Candy’s amputation also is an injury that cannot be healed. He himself thinks he is not a functional worker, “‘They’ll can me purty soon”(Steinbeck 58). Many people though his injury was severe and would have very negative results for the farm if debts were not paid. Because of this, the boss gave Candy two-hundred and fifty dollars in damages and, because Candy was now impotent in doing his job as a ranch-hand, a job cleaning the bunkhouses. This would have aided in the attempt of a farm in that Candy’s money was a resource near necessary for George and Lennie to follow their dream.
The amputation of Candy’s hand is a representation of Candy’s ability to accomplish the American Dream. Candy’s injury about four years before Lennie and George came was a large factor in his journey to the American Dream. His hand shows his lack of ability to do work. The fact that his hand was caught in a machine and the fact that this will never go away for him represent his only hope, the lack of work, was permanently gone. Any disability is a major setback in achieving any character in Of Mice and Men’s goals.