After reading Of Mice And Men, I began to think about Steinbeck's representation of Crooks. Throughout the book Crooks is referred to using racial slurs and is the recipient of disrespectful name calling and discrimination. I understand that during this time this was something that was common, but given the fact that many other well written books came from this time I feel that not only the amount and the degree of what was said was unnecessary but the use of it at all. The dialogue that includes these words and phrases to some people may seem important to the characterization of characters in the story, the only characterization that i got from it was how terrible people can be. I began to feel detached from certain characters after reading what was said because when I thought about them as people I felt no sympathy towards them and felt they deserved everything that came to them. The discrimination of Crooks is just the beginning of the overall theme of “normal” …show more content…
white male patriarchy. Other characters who are not only characterized as lazy or stupid but discriminated against in the story are Candy who is technically disabled, Curley’s wife who throughout the story is never given a name and as while I agree with it is explained as an unfaithful, jailbait, destructive, mess. Most notable is the characterization and treatment Lennie gets because he is mentally disabled. Is Steinbeck a sexist, racist, inconsiderate person, or is he just representing the era he lived in? Throughout the book Stenbeck continues to have the characters discriminate and use racial slurs against crooks, here are some examples from the text.
The first one is an obvious example of what I'm referring to “Stable buck oh, st-able buck!... Where the hell is that damn n*****”. Right in that quote, you can see not only is crooks referred to with a racist slur. Another example of clear discrimination against crooks is this quote "…You go on get outta my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain’t wanted in my room." "Why ain’t you wanted?" Lennie asked. "’Cause I’m black…" right here we learn that crooks have been battered down so much by this hatred that he himself thinks he is not worth as much as others. The way that Steinbeck also uses indirect characterization through dialogue to say crooks is worthless and his words mean nothing Crooks "This is just a nigger talkin', an' a busted-back nigger. So it don't mean nothing, see? These are just a few of the many examples of Steinbeck
racism. As much as I can't stand racism I'm willing to consider both sides of the issue. Throughout the book, many racist comments are said, but that is just his book it doesn't necessarily mean he is racist. Many factors could have been involved in why he wrote it like this. Perhaps Steinbeck was just trying to represent the era he was in. During the time when Steinbeck was living the civil war had passed but racism was still very alive as it is today. While it is still not okay, it was common and normalized during the era so it didn't seem as wrong as it is seen today. The evidence that says Steinbeck is racist, can really be looked on as proof of a personal aspect of Steinbeck or it can just be seen as words in a book
Crooks, An African American in Of Mice and Men, who is not able to fit in because of his race, symbolizes racial profiling in society today. Steinbeck clearly makes his point in the novella by concluding that Crooks is not important to them because he is African American. This relates to society today through the Trayvon Martin Case. Trayvon was shot and killed because a Latino thought he was harmful because of his race. Trayvon and Crooks are both victims of racial profiling in society.
why Lennie and George Travel together and is not very understanding. Although you never find
John Steinbeck, the author of the novel Of Mice and Men uses many stylistic devices and description in chapter one to give the reader a deeper understanding of what may occur throughout the novel. Firstly, the name of the city the two protagonists, Lennie and George, are heading to is called “Soledad,” which means loneliness in Spanish; this is symbolism and foreshadowing because it can mean that as they get closer to the city, their relationship as friends may deteriorate and they may end up alone towards the end. Furthermore, this could also mean that there can be major problems in further chapters because of Lennie’s unpredictable behaviour due to his mental disabilities. In relation to Robert Burns’s poem, “To a Mouse,” the author may be
Steinbeck upon creating the novel in the 1930’s seen and was experiencing some of the things he wrote on. In the beginning he introduced to us a friendship between two opposite men. One man, George Wilson, is a little man compared to his companion. His friend, on the other hand, was a giant who was naïve as a new born baby. His name was Lennie Smalls. Lennie Smalls was a character that Steinbeck used to allow his audience to see that although he had a good heart and was seemingly helpless, that one day his strength would be the cause of his downfall. Questions on whether or not Steinbeck’s readers should believe in the image in which it is given or primarily based it on the novel being written in a bad environment from the first of the novel. Steinbeck knew upon writing that readers tend to cling and fall for the caring, loving, and misunderstood bad guy trying to prove his innocence against all evil brought to him. So Steinbeck created Lennie to try and portray this character to his audience. Steinbeck had to be sure that all elements presented in the novel were able flow good and complete the recipe (Krutch 29-30).
The harsh reality is one which hit everyone in America in the 1930. People found work hard to find and crime was on the uprise. This meant, unfortunately, that innocent people were the easy prey and, as we see in the Of Mice and Men, there were plenty of characters that were easy prey. Of Mice and Men characters have and do thing that make them vulnerable in way which do cause trouble. In this essay, that harsh reality and easy prey will be shown through to see which characters are the most vulnerable.
Crooks, the black stable buck, is isolated from the community of migrant workers because of his racial status. When Lennie goes into the barn to see his puppy, he and Crooks have a conversation. “'Why ain't you wanted?' Lennie asked. 'Cause I'm black. They play cards in there, but I can't play because I'm black'” (68). Lennie is too kind-hearted and intellectually slow to visualize the apparent racial boundary that sets Crooks aside from Lennie and the rest of the workers. Crooks is so isolated from the rest of the workers that he says he “can't” play cards, not that he isn't allowed to, which means that the racial boundary is like a wall Crooks cannot cross. Because he is black, Crooks believes that he cannot play cards with the white men. He can't get over the racial boundary, and believes he will be forever separated from the white men. In the beginning of chapter 4, Steinbeck describes Crooks' living space. “Crooks, the Negro stable buck, had his bunk in the harness room; a little shed that leaned off the...
When you’re in a position of high authority, it comes with a great sum of power. Having a great deal of control can corrupt and can lead to the abuse of it. Abuse of power is using their power for their own benefit even if it may harm others. In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the effects of the abuse shown by Curley and Curley’s wife to the other characters will ultimately lead to a tragic end.
and has no family and the only old man on the ranch. We are told him
An Ethical Dilemma. People were terrified and disfranchised, John Steinbeck created Of Mice and Men, which set place during the dirty thirties (time of the Great Depression), a time where strength could not overcome aloneness and alienation. The child-like character Lennie was one of the most misunderstood characters, even with his best friend and caretaker George. In the beginning, they were uncanningly together in a society of loners during the time, having only each other, so close many assumed they were brothers. Throughout the story George had vowed to take care of Lennie, however under the circumstances he faced he chose to shoot his best friend.
When asked about John Steinbeck’s career, people often refer to Steinbeck as a playwright, journalist, and a well-known novelist. The book Of Mice and Men is a popular novel by John Steinbeck and a required read for most high school students. Most of Steinbeck 's novels have a central theme focusing on the relationship between man and his environment. The American dream for George and Lennie, two of the main characters in Of Mice and Men, is to have a place of their own, to be respected, and to work hard for everything they earn and deserve. In Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, the land and a hope of a better life becomes the talisman of an American dream for Lennie and George that is left unfulfilled.
Throughout the novel Of Mice and Men, Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Lennie could not reach their potential because of the discrimination against them. In Depression era, people discriminated African-American people by using derogatory terms, physically assaulting them and limiting their socialization. They discriminated women by calling names and making offensive assumptions. The mentally disabled people were target of brutal actions, stereotypes, and betrayals. Steinbeck was warning to people not to discriminate others by showing various conflicts and tragic ending that caused by discrimination.
In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck there are many events in the plot of the story that occur that prove that when man is cruel to man, some peoples lives are negatively affected. One instance in where this is proven true is when the men on the ranch and Curley's wife are cruel and discriminative against Crooks causing him to be the one to mourn. An example of how the men are discriminative towards Crooks is that he is forced to live in a shack away from the bunkhouse and also Crooks says that "They play cards in there, but I can't play because I'm black. They say I stink" and "I ain't wanted in the bunkhouse." An example of when Curley's Wife is critical towards Crooks is when she looks into his room to see what Lennie and Crooks are doing and then she states, shaking her head, that they left the weak ones behind. Also, she threatens to have Crooks hung because a black man should never talk to a white woman the way he just had. As a result of all of these discriminatory acts against him, Crooks feels unwanted and lonely because of his color and placement on the farm. Also those examples are part of the theme of the novel, people need to accept and understand those different from themselves, which also helps to prove the interpretation of the quote. Another example in this novel that proves that when man is cruel to man, the lives of people are negatively affected is when Curley picks on and tries to hurt Lennie. Curley chooses to fight Lennie because he thinks he won't fight back but because George gets angry and tells Lennie to fight back, he does. George being angry is not the only negative effect that Curley's teasing had on man, but also now Lennie is angry and in danger of getting in trouble and Curley himself gets hurt.
“Discrimination is alive and soaring.” (Jonathan Kozol) Discrimination has always been an issue but in the story, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck shows how discrimination is an issue for a lot of people, even without colored skin. He shows how discrimination plagues society, there are multiple people who are victims of this. Those including Crooks, Lennie, and Curley’s Wife.
Many people’s assumptions are driven by appearance but in some cases the appearance can be
Although racism is slowly diminishing, there is still much work to be done to completely end racism. All throughout Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck explores how isolation through sexism and racism can cause a person to crave attention. He helps the reader to understand this by depicting both Curley’s Wife and Crooks, who were minorities on the farm, as extremely needy for attention