Steinbeck uses crooks as a symbol of racial injustice, he shows this throughout the novella omam to show how race affected people during the period of the great depression. In the Novella, Steinbeck depicts Crooks as someone who is ostracised from the bunkhouse and lives by himself. Steinbeck describes crooks bunk as "a long box filled with straw, on which his blankets were flung." compared to the following description of the bunkhouse, "the bunkhouse is a long, rectangular building …. Against the walls were eight bunks, five of them made up with blankets and the other three showing their burlap ticking. Over each bunk there was nailed an apple box with the opening forward so that it made two shelves for the personal belongings of the occupant …show more content…
of the bunk. These shelves were loaded with little articles, soap and talcum powder, razors." Steinbeck points out the racial injustice that affected crooks he shows how the white ranch hands were offered much more necessities compared to crooks. Steinbeck used this to show how people of colour were considered low class people and didn't deserve much. crooks is excluded from companionship due to being ostracised from the bunkhouse. crooks fills his free time with reading books rather than socialising and spending time with the ranch hands. Steinbeck made crooks the loneliest person on the ranch to show how racism affects someone's ability to socialise and how they learn to keep to themselves. Steinbeck portrays this through the following quote "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, you all of you stink to me." Crooks feels left out as he cannot be in the bunkhouse nor play cards with the ranch hands and crooks shows the same feelings of prejudice towards the white ranch hands. Steinbeck portrayal of Curley 's wife displays her as mean and a seductive temptress, Steinbeck deliberately put Curley's wife the only female on the ranch in an all - male world. As men can be seduced by her as she is always looking for attention. She has the power of beauty and uses it to flirt with the ranch hands to make her husband covetous of her, because She is lonely, and she believes the only way to appeal to her husband is by making him jealous by flirting with the ranch hands. Steinbeck illustrates this through the following quote "She had full, rouged lips and widespaced eyes, heavily made up.
Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers. "I'm lookin' for Curley," she said." This quote is displaying that curleys wife is trying to seduce the ranch hands by wearing red which is the colour of seduction, romance as well as danger. Steinbeck uses the colour red as a form of visual imagery but as well as to show she wants to seduce the ranch hands, but she is also dangerous. As curley her husband has said no one shall talk to her without fearing a beating. Steinbeck shows that curleys wife can be related to the biblical tale of Adam and eve curleys wife can be referred to the apple in the story as she is a temptation to Lennie who is mentally handicapped and Curley's wife encouraged his inquisitiveness to touch her hair "" She took Lennie's hand and put it on her head. "Feel right aroun' there an' see how soft it is." This is the same way when eve convinced adam to pick the apple of the forbidden tree, eves actions caused mankind to be sent out of the perfect place. In the same way Curley's wife knew Lennie was the one who crushed her husbands hand so she was very attracted to his strength she tells him to touch her hair not knowing the consequences Lennie killed her but also ended up
destroying
Steinbeck gives a detailed description of her as she stands in the doorway of the bunkhouse and talks to Lennie and George. She is 'heavily made up', with red fingernails and wore a 'cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers'. This clearly shows that Curley's wife was wearing quite a lot of red. Wearing might just be the color that Curley's wife enjoys wear, however wearing red might indicate danger towards Lennie and George and especially Lennie because when referring back to the incident back in weed the girl that Lennie harm was a... ... middle of paper ... ...
In John Steinbeck’s book Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck portrays Curley’s wife as a flirtatious, mischievous, and over all isolated woman. Steinbeck doesn’t give this character a name, yet she is one of the most important characters in the story. Curley’s wife first comes off as flirtatious to the main characters, George and Lenny, when they first hear about her from the character Candy . Candy is talking about how she gives men “the eye”. He also displays his feelings about her by saying, “Well, I think Curley’s married… a tart”(28). This is setting George and Lenny up to expect she is a flirt.. Steinbeck describes Curley’s wife in her first introduction as a scantily dressed woman.. Steinbeck writes, “Both men [George and Lenny] glanced up, for the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off. A girl was standing there looking in. She had full, roughed lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled cluster, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers”(31). The color red is sometimes considered for portraying a sign of danger or sex. This passage supports Curley’s wife as being flirtatious and also how she’s dangerous and can cause trouble displaying herself while she is married. Also, when George and Lenny are talking to Curley’s wife she tries to flirtatiously talk to them too. After their first conversation she re-adjusts herself. Steinbeck displays her with “She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward”(31). Steinbeck is explaining to the reader in detail that Curley’s wife is trying to show herself to Lenny and George to get thei...
Steinbeck gives a lot of reasons for George to stay with Lennie, but his critics also have some merit in their criticism that the story isn't believable. Steinbeck's critics suggest that Steinbeck is "simply sentimental in this regard." There are some very compelling reasons George would like to stay with Lennie... but being "sentimental," towards Lennie has nothing to do with it.
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).
Crooks. loneliness is caused because he is black, at the time the story took place there was racism. Since Crooks is black, he wasn?t able to socialize with the white men. When Steinbeck describes all of Crooks? possessions, it shows that Crooks has been at the ranch a long time and that his possessions are all the he cares about.
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
Steinbeck displays, Curley’s wife as more of an object to the men at the ranch. He conveys this idea through the description of her appearance. When Steinbeck introduces the reader and George and Lennie to Curley’s wife he takes a long time to describe her. “She had full rouged lips and wide spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her finger nails were red “. This quotation suggests that Curley’s wife is an object to men in society and that she is as worth as much as she is wearing. Not only does Steinbeck describe her appearance he also describes her actions when on the ranch and talking to the men. He does this to show the awareness that the men have towards her. “She puts her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward”. A lot of the men on the ranch try to ignore and do not want to start a conversation with her but through Steinbeck’s description of her actions the reader can see that she craves attention from the men on the
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.
Curley is a “thin young man with brown face, brown eyes, and a head of tightly curled hair.” Since he is pugnacious, he always pick a fight especially with guys who are bigger than him because he wants to prove his masculinity. Another way to prove himself was by marrying a women, Curley’s Wife. His wife was never given a name to begin with. John Steinbeck indicates that Curley’s Wife is in Curley’s Possession. He tries to isolates her from everyone but she sneaks in and tries to grab attention. Curley is very cocky and because of his attitude, he picks a fight with Lennie, oblivious to the danger he put himself in. Once George allows Lennie to fight back, he crushed Curley’s hand breaking every
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...
From her first appearance in the story, Curley’s wife is described as a different kind of threat, one who is all artifice and manipulation from her red lips and fingernails to her red mules, “on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers” (Steinbeck 31). The imagery Steinbeck uses, paints her as a woman who is quite bold, but fragile with a passionate essence.
Conflict, by definition, is a back and forth struggle between two opposing forces. In the literary work, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, it is clear, the protagonist, George Milton, undergoes many conflicts that lead to the novel’s overall purpose. Steinbeck weaves together George’s conflicts with others, himself, and with society to illustrate what the true meaning of friendship is.
Change is inevitable. It is only natural. Nothing stays the same; the Earth doesn’t stay in the same position - it is constantly moving, people change their views as they grow up and with time, society is always changing. However, some things stay similar and we leave traces of the past. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck was written in 1937. It talks about two very different men, George and Lennie, who have hopes and dreams: to own a land and a shack. In order to achieve that, they had to go around searching for jobs. The job they landed on was at a ranch. When they got accepted, they realized that their dream was within their grasp and saw it becoming a reality. There,