The reality of isolation throughout Of Mice and Men A black man with a crooked back walks back to the stables after a long day of work and heads into his room, he is segregated from everyone else who lives in the main barracks, his name is Crooks and he lives a lonely segregated life from the other workers. Another man, this one white has one hand and is named Candy, he slumps slowly off his bunk after losing his best friend, his dog that he raised since he was a pup, Candy knows he will not be able to see him again. These 2 men share one conflict in common, they live a life of loneliness and feel isolated from others. In John Steinbeck’s short novel Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck displays the hard and lonely life of working on a ranch during …show more content…
First, Crooks is telling Lennie why he is not welcome into Lennie’s room and why Lennie is not welcome into his. “Why ain’t you wanted?” Lennie asks “Cause I'm black” (Steinbeck, 68). Crooks is African American and is not wanted in the barracks with the other white men, so he does not want any white men in his room. He has accepted his segregation but makes it very clear that he is lonely in his room just reading books. Next, Curley’s wife has just called Crooks the N-word and called him nothing but a colored man. “Crooks stared hopelessly at her, and he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself” (Steinbeck, 80). Crooks was starting to feel accepted by Candy and Lennie because they were not judging him on the color of his skin, and Crooks began to feel somewhat equal. Crooks was put right back into his isolation when Curley’s wife called him the N-word making him feel discriminated against. Crooks is isolated from the rest of the characters in Of Mice and Men due to discrimination and …show more content…
First off, Candy loved his dog, he had it with him since he was a pup. He was his best friend, but he smelled awful and was far too old. Carlson knew this and was pressuring Candy to let him put the old dog down, but Candy would not give in. He then saw everyone staring at him and gave in (Steinbeck, 47). Candy became very lonely and sad without his old pup, he would not talk to anyone, he would just lay in his bunk looking at the ceiling. Candy's attachment to his dog was very strong and what was keeping him going now without anyone or anything to look forward to, he lost his smile. Furthermore, George and Candy both realize that the stake was never a reality and it was all just a large lie to hold over Lennie. “Then-it’s all off?” Candy asked sulkily”(Steinbeck, 95). Once again Candy lost his hope of something new and exciting. He and Geroge both realized that they would end up spending the rest of their days working on the ranch. Candy is one of the loneliest characters in Of Mice and Men because he starts to lose everything that brings him hope and