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In a world dominated by men, how will one woman fight the animosity of others just to find a friend? John Steinbeck's celebrated novel Of Mice and Men explores this theme of loneliness in the backdrop of the Great Depression, centering on the unrelenting friendship of two men, George Milton and Lennie Small. While the focus is on the duo's comradery, the reader sees glimpses of other characters who are equally as compelling. One of whom is Curley's Wife. Within this story, Steinbeck excellently crafts a tragic figure whose backstory reveal, search for companionship, and two-sided interactions with various characters - particularly Lennie - pave the way for a harrowing character arc that ends on a gruesome note. Throughout the novel, Curley’s wife interacts with the characters in a flirtatious manner that is intended to grab attention, thus making the others distrustful of her. It’s fascinating to note that the way others treat her determines how she treats them back; for example, Lennie is the only man to regard her positively, calling her “purdy” (Steinbeck 32), so she behaves empathically towards him, whereas Candy refers to her as a “bitch” (Steinbeck 84) and she’s rather vile towards him. This point is further supported …show more content…
when she comforts Lennie after the death of his dog on page 84. She is shown to act compassionately in an effort to console him, all traces of promiscuity gone. Curley’s Wife’s attitude is unbalanced and unpredictable, but her end goal is all the same: for someone to finally notice her in a respectful light as a friend. The perception of Curley’s Wife takes an interesting turn when, after a consistent portrayal of promiscuous flirtiness, her dream is revealed, and with it, the inner hardship she’s been forced to carry. On page 86, the reader learns that Curley’s Wife yearned to be an actress and made a broken promise with a man she met who told her he would put her in movies. We learn that she is not an immoral “tart” or slutty whore, but rather, an innocent, misunderstood character who’s trapped. Because of her missed opportunity, a sympathetic light is cast and Curley’s Wife’s mask of hostility and malice has slipped off to reveal a vulnerable, human character. As the reader, we’ve gained more knowledge and insight of the genuine layers of Curley’s Wife. In Of Mice and Men, loneliness looms over the shoulders of the characters; however, nobody embodies solitude more than Curley’s Wife. Towards the end when she talks to Lennie, she confesses, “I get awful lonely...You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to anybody but Curley. Else he gets mad” (Steinbeck 84). From this quote, one can conclude that she’s objectified and mistreated by her own overprotective husband. She needs an escape, and now, the reader understands the central reasoning behind her loneliness is her confinement. Moreover, during her conversation with Crooks, Candy, and Lennie, she states, “Ever'body out doin' som'pin'. Ever'body! An' what am I doin'? Standin' here talkin' to a bunch of bindle stiffs—a nigger an' a dum-dum and a lousy ol' sheep—an' likin' it because they ain't nobody else” (Steinbeck 76-77). This further cements her longing to break free from her seclusion and displays her apparent frustration at the neglect and shunning she receives from the other men on the ranch. She is shown to be grateful to have at least one conversational exchange even if it’s with people she may not particularly like. While she may not seek a flirtatious affair, she does seek companionship, and she is willing to do whatever it takes to reach it - even if it means putting herself out there in questionable matters. Throughout the novel, Curley’s Wife receives an unfair amount of judgement, from both the characters and audience alike.
As Stephen M.R. Covey once said, “We judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their behaviour.” Likewise, while one can directly view her as a slut for her flirtatious manner, others can infer that Curley’s Wife justifies her actions for her loneliness. In conclusion, Curley’s Wife is presented as a misunderstood person with a hidden dream, desire for recognition, and intriguing character interactions whose poignant story sets her up as a sympathetic figure. Indeed, it seems that in a world dominated by men, one woman had to solely endure the plight of gender oppression, with the cost eventually being death
itself.
Comment on how the character of Curley’s wife is portrayed in Sinise’s. 1992 television film version of "The Thriller" How is this characterization different? to that of the original novel by Steinbeck? Introduction The “Of mice and men” by Steinbeck was written in the 1930’s during the period. great depression Era which came about as a result of the Wall Street crash.
Curley’s Wife in ‘Of Mice and Men’ is used cleverly by Steinbeck to create sympathy amid the reader but also to represent the position of women in 1930s America. Through an intelligently designed pattern of events in the book, we feel varying amounts of sympathy for Curley’s Wife and thus unconsciously acquire information regarding the issues women had to face in the 1930s. In this essay I will evaluate the extent that Steinbeck presents Curley’s Wife as a sympathetic character and its relation to 1930s America.
Curley’s wife comes off as a provocative, flirtatious, lustful woman, but is really hiding her true identity as a depressed and lonely person. Throughout the book Curley’s wife does show her true identity, but still tries to stay positive and deal with the bad hand she was dealt. Curley’s wife is a prime example of even though your life took a wrong turn that you shouldn’t give up. Curley’s wife may of been depressed, but she still tried to communicate everyday with someone no matter what they said to her.
“Nobody’d listen to us” (81) exclaims Crooks when talking about being ignored. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck illustrates the characters Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Candy experiencing loneliness and isolation while living on the ranch. These characters attempt to socialize, succeeding and failing. Loneliness and isolation of the characters results in yelling, bullying, and even a broken neck.
Life is full of choices: where to go to school, where to live, who to marry, and what jobs to apply for, and most of the time each of us control what happens with these choices. What if those choices brought someone to the point of being trapped and feeling helpless? In the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck the wife of Curley is in just that spot. She made the choice to marry a tyrant of a man and is now forced to live with the consequences of her decisions. Curley’s Wife is misunderstood due to the workers’ assumptions, Curley’s relationship with her, and her unclear background.
How does the reader’s perception of Curley’s Wife change through the book? In Of Mice and Men the reader’s opinion of Curley’s Wife changes throughout the book, in the beginning of the book the reader looks at her as trouble. Near the end the reader starts to feel sympathetic towards her. Although all the characters look at her as a “tramp”, despise, and avoid her, the reader sees her differently. The reader sees how miserable she is, and how many other things she has to put up with everyday. She might not be the nicest person out there, but she is still a person with feelings. The reader’s feelings drastically change from the beginning of the book to the end. She is perceived negatively repeatedly throughout the book, by all the characters at many different times. She is known as the “tramp” at the ranch, the reader would obviously think negatively of Curley’s Wife when all the characters are talking trash about her. In chapter 2 George said to Lennie “I seen ‘em poison before, but I never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her. You leave her be.” After reading this how could the reader see Curley’s Wife in any other way. As the reader I also despised Curley’s Wife, I didn’t want her to get close to Lennie or George because I knew she would try and get them in trouble or something bad would happen with her being there. This quote specifies how almost every man felt on this ranch, and this was very early on in the book, George had not even had a decent conversation with her and he was already talking about her in this way. This was not only in the beginning of the book; at the scene of her death Candy was shouting “you got damn tramp” at her dead body. This shows even when she is dead, how little everyone cared about her. The r...
In Of Mice & Men, the character Curley’s Wife is depicted as flirtatious, promiscuous, and insensitive. However, her husband Curley sees her as only a possession. Most of the workers at the ranch see her as a tart, whereas Slim, the peaceful and god-like figure out of all the men, see her as lonely. This answer will tell us to which extent, is Curley’s wife a victim, whether towards her flirtatious behaviour, or to everyone’s representation of her.
Curley's wife is seen as a cheap possession, a toy that belongs to Curley. A possession that he gets to control. His lack of love, respect and attention results to her death in the end. By all the men she’s seen as a tramp, they think that she’s out cause trouble. But the truth is she’s desperately lonely. She just wants someone to talk to. She’s missed out on a wonderful life that could have been hers, and that hurts her.
Subsequently, Steinbeck's first mention of Curley's wife displays her as a vindictive and seductive temptress. Steinbeck, using biblical references, relates her to Eve in the in the Garden of Eden – she brings evil into men’s lives b...
In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck depicts the theme of loneliness throughout the novel. Loneliness affects Curley’s wife’s actions and choices throughout the novel. Curley’s wife is treated as less powerful because of her gender, her dreams got crushed and her actions and choices lead back to her unhappy marriage. John Steinbeck uses Curley’s wife to illustrate a unique type of loneliness. Curley’s wife’s adversities are caused because of her gender, which leads her to act in a flirtatious manner.
Curley’s wife is a complex, main character in John Steinbeck’s novella, “Of Mice and Men”. She is introduced as an insignificant secondary character, but evidently posses the importance of causing the end of the novella. Despite the weight of her role, her value is hindered because of the culture towards women in the 1930s. Steinbeck uses imagery, foreshadowing, and metaphors to show loneliness analyzed through a Feminist Lens.
In the Steinbeck novel ‘Of Mice and Men’, he introduces us to the character of Curley’s wife. She could be interpreted as a mis-fitting character in the novel, as no one relaters to her. This essay will go on to examine the character of Curley’s wife and how characters perceive her and how this influences the readers interpretation of her.
“Why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody.” (Steinbeck, 86). In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Curley’s wife is an outcast compared to the men. Being female, she cannot do what the men can. This novel was based in the 1920’s, a time where women weren’t allowed to do certain, almost all, things. She was not allowed to talk to anyone because she was seen as a threat. Her treatment was caused by how men viewed her. This all affected her responsibility, the views of her as a woman, and her loneliness.
He uses characterization to show that Curley was the real antagonist, and not his wife. Curley’s wife told Lennie all about what it’s like living with Curley, and how “he ain’t a nice fella” (89). When the other guys thought she was trying to flirt with everyone except her husband, she was really just trying to run away from him. This idea was further proven when she asked the men, “Think I didn’t know where they all went? Even Curley. I know where they all went,” after pretending to look for her husband (77). She wandered around pretending to look for her husband, when in reality, she wasn’t trying to do anything except escape from
In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men that was written in 1937; the character of Curley’s wife is portrayed in an unusual way as it makes the reader question her innocence. Her hasty marriage to Curley proves to be a failed attempt to escape from her spiral of loneliness. Curley doesn’t satisfy her so she finds solace in other men even the three at the bottom of the social hierarchy. Because of the circumstances of her own isolation she can’t escape from the sexual image that other men on the ranch have of her. She therefore uses this as a means of getting noticed by other men.