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Impairment In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

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In the book “Of mice and men”there are a few characters with impairments.They are not hard to notice some physical some mental.One of the characters Lennie (one of thew main characters)has a mental impairment.The reader can tell this because in the book it states”Well, he seen this girl in a red dress. A dumb bastard like he is, he wants to touch everything he likes. Just wants to feel it. So he reaches out to feel this red dress and’ the girl lets out a squawk, and that gets Lennie all mixed up, and he holds on ‘cause that’s the only thing he can think to do. Well, this girl squawks and squawks. I was just’ a little bit off, and I heard all the yelling’, so I come running, and’ by that time Lennie’s so scared all he can think to do is jus’ …show more content…

“They’ll can me purty soon. Jus’ as soon as I can’t swamp out no bunk houses they’ll put me on the county.”But he is also declining in his mental stability because he is growing old. He is not as strong either.His stability by being able to work is declining because of his age and his hand.Candy said, “I ain’t much good with on’y one hand. I lost my hand right here on this ranch.” Candy believes that him and his dog are the same and that when candy is no longer able to work he is going to be kicked out just like the dog was killed because of his inability to work and old age.His impairment is affecting his mental health because he feels that way about him and his dog being alike. Personally, my least favorite character of mine is Curley .Curley has a physical impairment he has a shattered hand from Lennie.Between Lennie and Curley's fight Lennie did not fight back until late George told him to but once he fought back Lennie caught Curley's hand and wouldn't let it go not knowingly crushed every bone in Curley's hand.This will have an impact on Curley's life because now what he has always wanted the most(power) has been taken away from him since all of his power came from his fighting and “winning”he can't act like he’s bigger than everyone else as much now with her.He is no longer able to “show off”for his wife which is what i believe he’s been trying to

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People today with mental disabilities are often criticized for not being “up to par” with everyone else in the world. This is true especially in the 1920’s, in which the novel Of Mice and Men takes place. Take Lennie Small for example, a large and hefty man, who has a mental disability. He, as a character, is blamed for the heinous act of murdering the antagonist’s wife, whose name is never revealed. It is true that Lennie does fracture her neck, but he does so without knowing.

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He jus’ wanted to touch that red dress, like he wants to pet them pups all the time’” (Steinbeck 42). This quote is the first example in which Lennie’s mental disability gets in the way of his dreams. George tells Slim what had happened in Weed between Lennie and the woman in the red dress and how the whole situation started. “‘Sure, he 's [Lennie] jes like a kid.

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On of the main characters, Lennie, is retarded and often gets him and George into trouble. In the story, the author gives many clues that allude to the fact that Lennie has a mental illness. Throughout the story, he says and does things that shows the reader of this. The ways Lennie is shown as retarded is through his childish manner, his memory loss, his incapability to control his strength, and his cowardness.

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Lennie never raped the girl, however he never got a chance to share his side of the story, because of his disability, and the circumstances of the situation were then assumed. Lennie wanted to pet the girls dress because it was soft. “ “Jus’ wanted to feel that girls dress-jus’ wanted to pet it like a mouse.” ” (10) This example is one of many that lead us to believe that Lennie was

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The book Of Mice and Men is full of puzzling examples of the human condition, from Lennie and his mental disability to Curley only caring about his social appearance. With characters like these two, the book exploits the human condition that concerns circumstances life has given you. John Steinbeck brings to life what being a laborer in the American depression meant to the men and one woman who had enough personality to stand out. Steinbeck shows the human condition of men while they survive in the American depression.

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