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How Is Curley's Wife Marginalized In Of Mice And Men

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The Marginalized: Curley's Wife

Have you ever felt the extreme sexist challenges of being a woman? The irrational fear of differing from your peers and being judged on the basis of what sex you were born as, as "the bard of femininity," is on your shoulders, you are being objectified solely for the fact that you are female.
In John Steinbeck’s 1937 novella Of Mice and Men, the author uses the themes of loneliness, isolation, and sexism to explore the theme of the marginalization of women in this time and how it leads to extreme dissociation, self-harm, and pain.
Steinbeck's character Curley's Wife in Of Mice and Men exclusively represent women's marginalization because she is depicted as a tramp, and most people back then wouldn't …show more content…

We can see direct objectification of Curley's wife in Chapter 2 when Curley talks about her in a manner that is grotesque and filthy. He is foreshadowing that he is going to do dirty things to her since he sees her just as his pleasure toy and an object. “Well, that glove’s fulla Vaseline.” “Vaseline? What the hell for?” “Well, I will tell ya what – Curley says he’s keepin’ that hand soft for his wife.” (Steinbeck, …show more content…

She is seen as nothing more than an object that can be screwed around with, and that's why Curley insisted on killing Lennie once he accidentally killed her: Lennie, without harmful intention, took away his naive pleasure toy which gave him a confidence boost and a sense of masculinity. He believed he was the top dog because he was insensitive to women and was a typical member of the male species during this time by taking advantage of a woman. Curley truly saw no harmful intent in what he was doing and didn't care enough to see one.
All in all, Curley was a horrid soul who cared about nothing but himself. He was a vain, conceited man who thought his male identity made him an alpha whose ground had to be worshiped. Curley's wife is similar to Candy, another character who suffered from isolation and loneliness. They were both at the bottom of their social hierarchy and worried about being marginalized. One falls under the category of ageism, and one falls under sexism. They were both affected by this rough time and were startlingly

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1360 Words | 6 Pages

Curley says he’s keepin’ that hand soft for his wife” (27). With Steinbeck having Candy say this demonstrates the sexualization of Curley’s wife. Him telling George and Lennie about the how Curley is keeping his hand soft for his wife has a sexual connotation. The fact that Curley is rarely seen with his wife but he wears a glove “for her” demonstrates that all he views her as a sexual object. The fact that he never seems to care what she's doing until she's around the other men on the ranch, but he has a glove full of vaseline on his hand at all times proves all he sees in her is sexual opportunities.

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John Steinbeck’s presents Curley’s wife in a way that comes off as she is being abused. In Of Men and Mice Steinbeck clearly portrays Curley’s wife as a victim and not a villain, as others would see her. She is abused by Curley, mistreated by the other men on the ranch, and she is treated like she does not exist with no respect or value. Curley’s wife is a victim because Curley her husband, abuses and mistreats her.

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543 Words | 3 Pages

The novela characterized Curley’s wife as a rude and lonely woman with a lack of feelings. Whereas in the film she is portrayed as lonely, sympathetic, and pleasant. In the book there is a scene in the barn where Curley's Wife is having a conversation with three of the characters and tells Candy, the black worker on the ranch, that she’ll have him strung on a tree. That scene shows us how rude and sort of spoiled she is. She is using her power as the boss's son’s wife to threaten a worker.

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Curley's wife is a lonely woman who is mistaken as a "'lousy tart'" (82). She dresses and acts in an attention-seeking manner. For example, she constantly asks the other men on the ranch if they have seen Curley as an excuse to talk to them.

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953 Words | 4 Pages

It is seen various times throughout the book how differently the rest of the characters act towards Curley’s wife. In the book the character is portrayed as an insignificant side character who is always trying to seek the attention of the rest. However, it can be said Curley’s wife is simply misunderstood. The character has a non caring husband who doesn’t seem to be interested in her whereabouts nor her wellbeing. In the book it is often seen that Curley’s wife is always looking for her husband, Curley.

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894 Words | 4 Pages

Steinbeck highlights the men’s disrespect and callousness as they refer to Curley’s wife without regard to her death. Not once does she get respect, not once does she feel love. Instead, she dies in hatred and is painted the perpetrator rather than the victim; her beauty kills her in the eyes of the

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1183 Words | 5 Pages

Through Curley’s desire to kill Lennie, the reader is given a clear indication of his unpleasant and ruthless character, through his cruel nature and his lack of empathy for Lennie. Despite Curley primarily being portrayed as an unpleasant character, however there is short-lasting moments in which the reader can be made feel pity for Curley. We can see this after the fight scene when Steinbeck uses animal imagery to describe Curley as ‘flopping like a fish on a line’. This simile suggests Curley’s weakness in the moment.

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The actions taken by Curley’s wife allow her to enjoy the attention that she receives from them and use it to her advantage. This behavior illustrates her willingness to manipulate those around her to achieve her goals and desires. Secondly, Curley's wife is portrayed as a misleading person on the ranch. She is introduced to the reader as an "attractive" woman, but Candy adds that she's "got the eye," (Steinback, 29). This implies that she is flirtatious and could lead men into trouble.

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First thing’s first, not once throughout the entire book does anyone refer to Curley’s wife by her name, and it’s unclear if they even know it in the first place. She’s unsatisfied with her marriage and gets lonely, so she gets flirty with the other guys, however, as a result, they tend to avoid her because they suspect she’s gonna try to start trouble, which in turn, feeds into the cycle of loneliness. Whenever other characters talk about her, it’s usually in demeaning terms and insults, since she had unfairly accumulated a rock-bottom reputation. During a very vulnerable period, she strikes up a conversation with Lennie and starts venting about where she could’ve been, "I tell you I ain't used to livin' like this. I coulda made somethin' of myself."

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Through Curley’s wife’s character, we are able to see how life was like for a women during

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Curley’s wife can be categorised into the low social group. She always flirts with other characters in the novel. She hopes for a better life. She may be married to the son of the owner of the farm, but she still wants to move up in the society. She has once thought of being a movie star.

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703 Words | 3 Pages

She does not have the ability to leave and clearly houses contempt at her husband for locking her in. Since Curley’s wife does not have a lot of control over her own life, she attempts to make up for this by asserting dominance over others. She projects her anger at Lennie, Crooks, and Candy, those who are below her in status, as a way to release her bubbling rage. Throughout the novella, Curley’s wife is constantly making rude comments and this can be attributed to her holding onto a false sense of power, wanting to believe that she has

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607 Words | 3 Pages

Curley’s wife, the only main female presented in the novella, is depicted as a harlot. The only other time females are mentioned is when they are mentioned as being ladies in whore houses. This depiction sets the tone for all females presented in the novella. Instead of being seen as a worker, women were mainly seen as man’s companion, and as a symbol for love, lust, and desire. In the novella Curley’s wife’s appearance is described as, “Her face heavily made up.

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973 Words | 4 Pages

World of Sexism Due to the Great Depression, women’s rights took a back seat to employment and poverty. It was believed that women shouldn’t work but stay at home, clean, cook, and raise their children. The prejudice against women in the society was great back in the 1930s for they were degraded and underestimated. All the rights they had gained in the 1920s were neglected and the women were once again maltreated. In Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, the victim of sexism is Curley’s wife who is so insignifact that even a name was not provided for her.

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(87) More specifically, the other men on the ranch refuse to talk to her because Curley’s position of power on the ranch portrays him as having the ability to have any man on the ranch lose their job. Furthermore, when Curley’s wife was conversing with Lennie in the barn and confided in him, she said: “Well, I ain’t

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