Of Mice And Men Motif Of Loneliness

John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men contains many motifs that create the theme, one of the most important being the motif of loneliness. The main characters experience varying forms of loneliness, however, the secondary characters are plagued with desolation, making them just as important to this theme as the central characters. This motif applies to the old swamper Candy, who lost his hand working on the ranch and is nearing the end of his working ability, distancing him from the other workers. Another character that displays is Curley’s wife; since she’s a woman she’s not allowed to make her own decisions and since she does not like Curley, she strives to make friends with the other men whom she has been forbidden to talk to. Also, the motif of loneliness applies to the black stable buck, Crooks, whose race prevents

him from fitting in with the other workers. In this novel, racism, sexism, and classism shape the majority of the plot. Each character has their own personal struggle, varying from the responsibility of a mentally retarded companion to simply having a different skin color from the rest of the people. Although the characters’ internal struggles are different, they all experience loneliness in one form or another.
A secondary character struggling to deal with loneliness is Candy, who is old and without one of his hands, and fears that his usefulness around the ranch is dwindling.

After Carlson shoots his old dog, Candy confesses to George his fear of being sacked and having no family to go to. For example, Candy says, “I won’t have no place to go” (Steinbeck 60). This quote proves Candy’s loneliness by showing how he has no family or friends to return to after he’s fired, and since his dog was shot, he has no one that he truly cares for. Another way Candy shows his loneliness is when he offers to leave George and Lennie everything in his will because he does not have any family left to give his possessions and money to. For instance, in the bunkhouse, when Candy overhears George and Lennie’s plan to buy a plot of land, he says, “I ain’t got no relatives nor nothing” (Steinbeck 59). This shows that Candy is isolated because he has nobody related to him to care for him or to provide shelter for him once he’s fired. The combination of being old, disabled, and having no one outside of the ranch creates a character that carries the weight of the world in

isolation.
Loneliness constantly gnaws at Candy, but as the only woman in the novel, Curley’s wife is being eaten alive by her alienation. Banned from talking to any of the other men on the ranch, she desperately tries to make friends behind her husband’s back, while the other men strongly dislike and ignore her. For example, when she goes into Crooks’ room while everyone except Lennie, Candy, and Crooks are in town, Curley’s wife says, “Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever’ once in a while?” (Steinbeck 77). This quote shows Curley’s wife’s desolation because it displays how she’s not supposed to talk to the men, and as there are no other women on the ranch, she has only herself and Curley for company. Curley’s wife is also lonely because she despises her husband. For instance, while she’s talking to Lennie in the barn, she confides to him that, “[She doesn’t] like Curley… he ain’t a nice fella” (Steinbeck 89). This shows Curley’s wife’s alienation because she can not stand the one man she’s allowed to talk to, and only married him to get away from her mother. Curley’s wife is treated as a lesser person because she’s a woman, displaying the connection between the themes of sexism and loneliness.
Although he does not have to deal with sexist views, Crooks must still live with the racist eyes of the public, which is just as bad. Since he is black, he is not seen to be fit enough to share the bunkhouse with the other white men, resulting in him sleeping in the barn by himself. While talking to Lennie in his room, Crooks says, "A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody" (Steinbeck 72). This quote shows Crooks' loneliness because he does not have anyone to confide in, he can not even sleep in the same room as the other men just because his skin color is different. Also, Crooks' alienation is shown by the fact that he does not think that anyone takes his opinion seriously. For example, when Crooks is talking to Lennie in his room in the barn, Crooks says, “If I say something… it’s just a [black man] sayin’ it” (Steinbeck 70). This quote proves that Crooks is lonely because he feels that no one takes him seriously, and that he has no equal to talk to. Crooks is an excellent example of how the motifs of racism and loneliness are interwoven, and even though different skin color did not matter a lot to other people, it was the cause of his isolation and struggles on the ranch.
Although Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks are secondary characters, they all display the motif of loneliness just as well as the main characters. Crooks believes he is not good enough for the other men, and therefore feels segregated just because he is black. Curley’s wife is constantly being reminded by both her husband and the other men on the ranch that she is not allowed to talk to anyone but Curley, and no one in her life gives the slightest inclination that they have any interest in being her friend. Candy is old and disabled, and has no family after his dog is shot, which distances him from the others. These secondary characters show how themes do not only apply to central characters, and that their struggles are often overlooked.