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Analysis of john steinbeck
Steinbeck and gender
Role/treatment of women in the 1930s john steinbeck
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There are many different ways he shows this. Steinbeck uses the conversations between Lennie and George to objectify Curley’s wife. Lennie and George are talking to each other about Curley’s wife, who had just been introduced to the story by her coming into the bunkhouse to as if either of the men had seen her husband. George says, “ Listen to me, you crazy bastard… Don’t you even take a look at that bitch… I seen ‘em poison before, but i never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her,” (32).
She resorts to talking with other men by flirting, but only makes Curley more protective and abusive towards the other men she is associating with. People do not see others’ internal selves, but only their external images. By focusing only on the outer appearance, the men on the farm see Curley’s wife as a “tart” (Steinbeck 29). Curley is very pejorative and the men in the ranch
I don’t care what she says and what she does. I seen ‘em poison before, but I never seen no jail bait worse than her. You leave her be”(Steinbeck 44). George is making bad inferences about Curley’s wife before he even gets to know her. The way Curley’s wife presents herself does not help her cause in being mistreated, by her husband or any of the other men on the
In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck we learn about the characteristics and personalities of most characters early within the book. Except for one character who is very mysterious. Curley's wife is the only woman on the ranch. Everyone on the ranch refers to her as Curley's wife throughout the whole book. Is a character who does not have a name that important to the story?
Curley’s wife is a complex character that is portrayed as a flirtatious, lost, and naïve woman in the novel, ‘Of Mice and Men’. Throughout the novella, Curley’s wife is engrossed in her own beauty, eventually leading to the inevitable death by letting Lennie touch her hair. Steinbeck doesn’t give Curley’s wife a name in the novel showing that she’s insignificant yet she holds the important role of being a danger to Lennie. She does have a particular role in the novella and is presented as the trophy wife of Curley.
George and Lennie just arrived to the farm where they find Candy and Candy starts to tell them how the farm works and about everyone on the farm, Curley’s wife is now being discussed and Candy states, “Well, I think Curley’s married… a tart” (28). Through this phrase, it is understood that everyone now on the farm believes Curley’s wife is a tart because she flaunts around all the boys and she isn’t portrayed as a very mature woman until the end of the novel where more is discovered about her. Curley’s wife is a very lonely person that just craves the attention she doesn’t get, so she acts like a tart since that gives her the attention she wants/ needs. Curley’s wife walks into the barn right after Lennie killed the puppy and Lennie avoided talking to Curley’s wife since he thinks, “Well, George says you’ll get us in a mess” (88). Through, this phrase, Steinbeck is portraying that everyone believes that Curley’s wife is going to influence Lennie to make bad decisions, which is what happened, but not everyone expected it.
She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward. “You’re the new fellas that just come, ain’t ya?”’ (Steinbeck 31). From her excessive kindness towards George and Lennie to her body language, Curley’s wife is clearly looking for attention from the men in the barn. Following her unsubtle entrance, she attempts to strike up a conversation regarding Curley’s whereabouts.
“…some horses snorted and stomped their feet.” Steinbeck shows a certain level of power asserted by Curley’s Wife that even animals are wary of her presence. Steinbeck also shows a nasty side to Curley’s Wife because she is being ignore by the men she felt vulnerable and lonely. “Listen nigger she said. You know what I can do to you if you open your trap.”
Steinbeck describes Curley’s wife as followed: “...wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up... she wore a cotton dress and red mules... She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the doorframe so that her body was thrown forward... Lennie’s eyes moved down over her body, and though she did not seem to be looking at Lennie she bridled a little” (31). Curley’s wife knows that her power, her only power, lies in her beauty and her position of actually being Curley’s wife.
Did you know, that the Inca lived in the Andes Mountains, or that the Aztecs capital city is Tenochtitlan? The Inca and The Aztec were both Empires, they both built their Empires over a time period of at least 200 years. The last 2 months we’ve been working on learning about the Maya, Aztec and the Inca, I’ll be talking about the Aztec and the Inca. This essay will be about the Aztecs, the Inca, and where and how the Aztec/Inca built their EMPIRES. The Aztecs and the Inca are the same because they both built an empire somewhere in Mexico.
All the men on the ranch thought that Curley's Wife had a perfect life but she says, “Coulda been in the movies, an’ had nice clothes” (Steinbeck 3). Even though she’s married to Curley and seems like she has the life but even she doesn't want to be there on that ranch with the life and family she has. Curley's wife is very neglected on the ranch she's treated like she doesn’t exist and doesn’t matter. Curley doesn’t talk to her and or spend time with her and this makes her desire a better, higher lifestyle with a bigger
Institutionalized Oppression and Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men is a novella written by John Steinbeck, and award-winning American novelist. Born in 1902, Steinbeck was raised in California’s Salinas valley which, in later years, greatly influenced his writing. Steinbeck’s seventh published book, Of Mice and Men, follows an unlikely pair of male migrant workers. One man, George, small and logical; the other man, Lennie, large yet lacking wit.
In the time period that this story takes place women were believed to be lower than men. Hence why her name is just Curleys wife she is his property at that time there for she doesnot need a name. ( Steinbeck 23) This shows that she is not valued as a human being among the others and its not just because Curley doesnt want her flirting with the other guys she is an outcast. Another example of discrimination based on the time period this takes place is Crooks for his
Of Mice and Men which takes place in the 1930’s, Steinbeck’s discussion on sexism is still an obstacle that faces society today. John Steinbeck wrote about sexism as a social issue in his 1937 novel Of Mice and Men, and, even though there have been some immense improvements in the role of women in society, the problem still stands today. Because John Steinbeck saw sexism as an important social issue in his time he wrote about it in his novel Of Mice and Men. How Curley's wife is treated by all the men in the ranch displays how women were treated back in the 1930’s. In the novel the readers are not given the name of Curley’s wife; she is being displayed as property.
In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck portrayed a political statement by looking at mental and physical disabilities through different characters such as Curley's Wife, Crooks, and Lennie. Curley's wife is used to represent how women were treated during the 1930’s and almost treated with a disability. Women were portrayed as the help and they were supposed to stay home and work while the strong brave men went out and got money to support the family. By Steinbeck not giving Curley's wife a name he is showing how she is connected to Curly with an Invisible rope.