Stereotypes In Of Mice And Men By John Steinbeck

“Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without stopping to think that they’re people too.” -Dolphus Raymond (Lee 269) Stereotype means a widely held but fixed and oversimplified image or idea of a particular type of person or thing. There are stereotypes that are shown in the book “Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck. Stereotypes are shown in “Mice and Men,” in different ways such as how Steinbeck stereotypes, how relationships are impacted, and how the characters break holes in the stereotypes.

In the book “Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck, the characters are stereotyped in several different ways. Curly’s wife is stereotyped from the very start of the book till the end. When she first walks in Lennie keeps looking at her. After she leaves George tells Lennie, “Do not you even look at that b***h.” (Steinbeck 32.) Another stereotype shown in “Mice and Men,” is when at the beginning of the story Slim is portrayed as a god. “A tall man

stood in the doorway. He held a crushed Stetson hat under his arm while he combed his long, black, damp hair straight back. When he finished combing his hair he moved into the room, and he moved with a majesty only achieved by royalty and master craftsman. He was a jerkline skinner, the prince of the ranch, capable of driving ten, sixteen, even twenty mules with a single line.” (Steinbeck 33.) Steinbeck goes into a lot of detail about how Slim was above everyone else on the ranch. The third stereotype in “Mice and Men,” is when Crooks says that the white people say he stinks. Lennie asks Crooks why he isn’t wanted in the bunkhouse. Crooks responds, “Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can not because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, all of you stink to me.” (Steinbeck 68.) The ranch is racially segregated. The white workers are in a bunkhouse while Crooks, the black man, has to live in the stables by himself, just because he’s black.
Stereotypes can affect relationships in many different ways.

George stereotypes Curly’s wife right when he and Lennie meet her. George tells Lennie, “She is a tramp, and that Lennie should not talk or even look at Curly’s wife.” (Steinbeck 32.) George does not take the time to get to know Curly’s wife, therefore by him stereotyping her, he is choosing not to have any kind of relationship with her. Crooks’s relationship with the other people on the farm is impacted because he’s the only black guy on the ranch. The ranch is segregated by skin color. They do not let the black and white people live in the same houses. When Lennie asks Crooks why he doesn’t stay in the same, he says that the white people say he stinks. (Steinbeck 68.) Separating Crooks from the other guys is wrong (Gerund phrase.) Candy doesn’t hang out with the other guys. He stays by himself in the bunkhouse. He doesn’t go with them just because he is old. He goes into the barn with Lennie and Crooks because the other guys left him by himself. (Steinbeck

75.)
There are ways that the characters break holes in the stereotypes. One way is when Lennie is sitting in the barn talking to Curly’s wife. (Steinbeck 87.) Lennie is told by George constantly to stay away from her, yet he still talks to her. But when she lets him touch her hair, he does exactly what George warned him about. To let Lennie touch her hair, she made a big mistake (Infinitive Phrase.) He freaks out and kills Curly’s wife. Another way the story pokes holes in stereotypes is when Crooks lets Lennie stay in his room with him. When Lennie first comes in Crooks tries to get him to leave but eventually gives in, and lets Lennie stay. (Steinbeck 70.) Breaking the stereotype, he let Lennie stay with him (Participle Phrase.) The ranch is racially segregated and by letting him stay he is breaking that stereotype. The third way the story pokes holes in a stereotype is when Lennie and Candy offer to Crooks that he can work alongside them when they get the new land. Lennie is talking about the land, and Crooks tells him that he is nuts. Eventually Crooks believes him, and that is when Lennie offers to let him work alongside them. (Steinbeck 76.) There are several places in “Mice and Men” where holes are poked into stereotypes.
There are many different ways stereotypes are shown in “Mice and Men,” such as how Steinbeck stereotypes his character's, how their relationships are impacted, and how the characters break holes in their own stereotypes. Stereotypes affect us today and can cause problems in our society. They start conflicts and we would be better off without stereotypes in our lives.