The Oppression During the Depression During the Great Depression, society oppresses women by characterizing them based on their family’s reputation and grouping them as different from men. Such society norms results in the loneliness that women experience, as supported by the character, Mayella Ewell, in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Particularly, in the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, society’s oppression impacts one notable character especially. Curley’s wife expresses the theme of how people perceive women as being flirtatious for being lonely. Curley’s wife may appear flirtatious to all of the men on the ranch, but in reality, she just wants a companion. The author emphasizes the mens’ attempt to avoid Curley’s