How Does Steinbeck Present Loneliness In Of Mice And Men

There are many ways Steinbeck presents the recurring themes of loneliness and isolation in this novella. Characters who are lonely tend to be isolated, meaning they lack relationships with other people. We see loneliness in many characters throughout this narrative, such as Candy, becoming miserable at the loss of his only friend. Curley’s wife, who has a flirtatious characteristic brought on due to her marriage to the boss's son. She sought to gain male attention because no-one would risk engaging with her. Loneliness is also heightened due to the fact that Of Mice And Men is based around the same time as the Great Depression.

Curley's wife: When we first meet Curley's wife we are made aware of how provocative her clothing and appearance

Crooks was isolated and separated from the other ranch members due to his skin colour. He hides his loneliness by reading books because he cannot go out with the other men to socialise at the end of the day. ‘Books ain't no good. A guy needs somebody – to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you.’ Crooks even admits his feelings of rejection and abandonment to Lennie after letting him in his room. Although Lennie does not understand, it was the first time Crooks voiced how he actually felt. He became vulnerable at that moment because he knew that Lennie wouldn't repeat what he had shared. Crooks had nothing else to fill his time so he was forced to learn to read so that he had something of importance to do. He told Lennie that he did not enjoy reading but it was all he had to pass the time. Crooks acted defensive when Lennie walked into his room because he was not used to having someone else in his private space and he wanted to hide the fact that he secretly liked Lennie’s company. ‘You got no right to come in my room. This here’s my room. Nobody got any right in here but me.’ He might have also told Lennie to leave as he was caught off guard when Lennie entered the room as no-one ever visited him. He could've also been annoyed because Lennie saw him putting on his back ointment, this was a very private thing. Lennie did not understand that Crooks was not allowed to stay in the main bunk, this was due to Crooks skin colour but Lennie didn’t see the colour of his skin because he was so childlike in his thinking. Crooks was impolite towards Lennie multiple times during their one off conversation, he wasn’t used to people showing an interest in him as a person therefore had his defences up. He was the only black man on the ranch and therefore he felt left out and tried to protect himself. He was not used to people showing kindness or engaging with him. He was also resentful towards