Prejudice and Misfits in 'Of Mice and Men'

People today judge one another by their appearances, no matter how similar or different they they come across. However, prejudice occurs less and less in our current time period, but during the early 1900s people would discriminate basically anyone that was not like them. A few examples of these “misfits” are people with different ethnic backgrounds and mental disabilities. In the novel Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, we meet the first characters, George and Lennie, in the clearing by the river, heading to their new job. At the job, they meet many character who, like them, do not exactly fit in. While there, Lennie, who is mentally challenged, ends up getting into many types of trouble, killing mice, pups, and Curley’s wife. This

led to all of the characters chasing down Lennie to make him pay for his mistakes. George’s response to Lennie’s terrible mistakes is to take responsibility of his best friend and kill him in a more humane way than a person like Curley would. This led to the death of the American Dream for George and Lennie. Though the use of characterization, dialogue, and tone, Steinbeck implies that people are prejudice against certain people because they do not see them as equal.
One great literary device to use is characterization because it helps the reader build a connection to the character by getting to know their personality and their attitude towards life. In one specific example, while Lennie was looking for his pup, he noticed a light in the harness room. Being the person that he is, he went to check it out and startled Crooks. After calming down, Crooks conversed with Lennie and told him,”Guys don’t come into a colored man’s room very much…” (Steinbeck 73). This quote is an exceptional piece of supporting evidence using characterization because it shows how people are prejudice to others. From this quote, the reader infers that people discriminate Crooks, a black, from everyone else, but also tells us that even Crooks knows that he is treated differently, and as a result, he always thinks that when someone tries to talk to him, they are going to yell at him. He is paranoid. This can make a person feel like it is them against the world, and that is not a way to live a life. These details are applied by Steinbeck to capture the how the people who are looked upon differently act, and what they think as well. Another thing that we learn through characterization is that there are many people who look upon the people like Crooks, a black, like they are just a little more than an animal. While Curley’s wife is investigating exactly how Curley injured his hand, she walked into the harness room. Crooks, who is already overwhelmed with two people in his room, yells at Curley’s wife to get out and that she has no business to be there. Curley’s wife immediately snapped, walked right up to Crooks, and said,”Listen Nigger, you know what I can do if you open your trap?...Keep your place then, I could get you strung up so easy it ain’t even funny.” (Steinbeck 78). This quote proves my thesis because it shows how far people will go to get rid of something they do not like. It also shows just how many people are against blacks, because Curley’s wife has the power to tell a lie and do something bad to a person like Crooks. Along with the use of characterization in a story, dialogue also takes an important role with getting the central point across by telling us what the person is saying.
Another good literary device that is necessary in every story is dialogue. Dialogue helps show the reader the mood that the character is expressing. When Lennie wanders into the harness room, he wonders why Crooks is separated from the rest of the people. Crooks, who does not understand that Lennie has a mental illness, snaps on him and said,”Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black, They say I stink, well, I tell you, all of you stink to me.” (Steinbeck 67). Through the use of dialogue, this quote shows prejudice because the whites do not associate with Crooks, and they say he stinks, which is a definite assumption considering blacks are the same as whites. Another clear example of dialogue is when George scolds Lennie for being who he is by the riverbank in chapter 1. George said,”And that ain’t the worst. You get into trouble. You do bad things and I go to get you out” (Steinbeck 11). This quote tells us that George looks at Lennie differently by his choice of words. By repeatedly using the word “you”, Steinbeck makes it sound like George is saying that he is better than Lennie because he saves Lennie from all of the trouble he gets into. These are two clear examples of dialogue establish a perfect example of how characters in the story may be prejudice against other people like Crooks and Lennie.
Finally, just like dialogue, the tone that the author is trying to portray helps the reader establish the characters emotion at the time in the story.

One example is when Lennie wanders into the harness room, and startles Crooks. Lennie explains that he saw the light and went to check it out. Crooks, who thinks Lennie is just there to yell at him, says,”Well, I got a right to have a light. You can go on and get out of my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse and you ain’t wanted in my room.” (Steinbeck 67). This quote uses tone to show prejudice because the blacks are discriminated upon, they obviously do not like the whites, and treat them like they are treated. Another example of using tone to show prejudice is when George set off on Lennie at the clearing by the river because Lennie made an irrelevant comment. George said,”God, you’re a lot of trouble. I could get along so easily and maybe have a girl.” (Steinbeck 8). This quote clearly shows us that George thinks Lennie is a lesser being, because of the angry and disappointed tone he uses. George is enraged by the fact that he thinks Lennie is a burden to him, and that he can not have his own life. Both of these examples of tone clearly show that people can be looked upon differently in completely different ways and

reasons.
In conclusion, people of all different races and with different mental capabilities are all looked upon differently by many people. Every category of person is looked at differently because, the whites looked at the minority, which is the blacks and the mentally impaired as lesser beings. As a result of this, the blacks and the mental do not like anybody but their kind because of how people make them believe that they are different. This problem is not as potent as it was in the 1930s, but is definitely still alive today. A society where no one was discriminated against racially or even religiously could possibly lead to less violence, and ultimately a better well-being for everyone.