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Loneliness In Of Mice And Men

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Recommended: In of mice and men how does steinbeck present the theme of loneliness and the characters affected

Loneliness affects many people in a deep psychological way that follows them through their lives. This is no different with many characters in George Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, which takes place in 1937, following two migrant workers, named George and Lennie, as they interact with people working on a ranch in Soledad, California. Loneliness is one of the most important themes in Of Mice and Men, as seen in the characters of Curley's’ wife, Candy, and Crooks. Curley, the son of the ranch owner, has a wife that tends to anger the ranch workers by always popping into the bunkhouse and flirting with them. It isn’t until chapter five that Curley’s wife’s loneliness is actually expressed through her words to Lennie. “I get lonely...You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad.” By saying this, she tells the readers a few things. The first is that she is, indeed, lonely and is looking for company. The second is about Curley’s controlling nature. It’s …show more content…

In chapter four, when Lennie is coming in to visit with some of Slim’s puppies, one of which Slim gave to Lennie, Crooks vents to Lennie about how lonely he is. “ S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy 'cause you was black. How'd you like that?” When Crooks says this to Lennie, it shows us several different things about his character. The first is that he is discriminated against because he’s black, and this creates a rift between him and the other ranch workers. The second is that he’s lonely because of this discrimination. Being discriminated against, and set aside in a barn to sleep instead of the rest, who sleep in a bunkhouse, causes him to have to spend nights and days alone for the most part. This causes him to get “sick,” as he puts it. This loneliness causes him to go a bit crazy, in other words. Still, his loneliness seems to affect him in much the same way as the other

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Curley's wife was looking for Curley when she finds Candy, Lennie and Crooks. She talks about Curley and how he is mean to everyone except

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He feels brought down and dehumanized. After Curley’s wife left, Candy tells Crooks that she shouldn’t have said those things. Crooks says, “it wasn’t nothing…you guys comin’ in an’ settin made me forget. What she says is true” (82). This shows that Crooks knows that even though he thought he could get a place with the other guys, he knows is would never happen, because he is black and he will always be treated

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Because Curley’s wife is closely connected to the boss, her engagements towards the men on the ranch will only push her further away from them. Also, when Curley’s wife appears, her loneliness pours out of her with resentment. She describes her isolation at the ranch by stating, “I get lonely...you can talk to people, but I can't talk to nobody but Curley” (87). This shows that shes just a lonely young and naive girl, who uses her sexuality to get noticed on the

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She goes on to explain that she does not appreciate the way the men on the ranch treat her with disrespect. The fact that she can stand up for herself, even though she’s all alone, reveals just how strong and confident of a person Curley’s wife truly is. If she had continued bottling up all of her emotions, she would have never had the chance to express her true emotions. This why why “‘I get lonely’” is the most important phrase used in chapters five and six of the novella Of Mice and

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Crooks is a victim of unfortunate circumstances. He’s a black man in a time when black people were still very discriminated against, and as a result, was forced to sleep in the barn by the other characters, which certainly doesn’t help his crooked back that he has to rub cream on. All he has to do in his free time is read books, and is incredibly lonely. He has also become very cynical, as in reference to Lennie saying he’s gonna work with George to get a piece of land, he says, "You’re nuts. " Crooks was scornful.

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Loneliness and Alienation in “Of Mice and Men” In John Steinbeck’s novel, “Of Mice and Men”, many characters were plagued with loneliness and alienation, and most characters were in need of acceptance. The harsh time period of the Great Depression affected three characters in, “Of Mice and Men” greatly. Three characters that are plagued by loneliness and alienation and are in need of acceptance the most include George Milton; the protagonist of the novel, Crooks; the negro stable buck with a crooked back, and Curley’s wife; a young woman who just wants somebody to talk to. In this essay, you will learn why George, Crooks, and Curley’s wife were the loneliest and why other characters were not plagued with loneliness and alienation as much as these three characters. George Milton is the protagonist of the novel.

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From the moment the readers are introduced to Crooks, he is described to have a crooked back, is a black man in the 1930s, and repeatedly faces abuse from the Boss, all of which hinder his ability to make meaningful connections with the others on the ranch. Even when offered the opportunity to withdraw from the cycle, he rejects it for fear of what would happen if he were to surrender to his marginalized position. Lennie, oblivious to the racism and ableism Crooks has grown accustomed to, attempts to communicate with Crooks but is shot down with, “[w]ell, I got a right to have a light. You go on get outta my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain’t wanted in my room” (68).

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"Well, I never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy. I just like to know what your interest is" (Steinbeck, 40). People often keep companions to escape isolation and loneliness. In the novel, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck depicts loneliness through almost all of the characters. Steinbeck portrays loneliness and isolation, though many of the characters.

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He was colored so he couldn’t sleep with the rest of the guys. He was alone all the time, he got nervous when people went in his personal space. He was so used to being alone all of the time he didn’t know how to act when people were around him. “Crooks is defensive manner fades, however, once Lennie behaves kindly toward him, and he even considers helping Lennie and Candy with their plan to buy land” (GradeSaver 2008). Crooks liked having Lennie sit and talk to him.

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Many of the characters in Of Mice and Men portray the character trait of loneliness, which ultimately causes their downfall. Curley’s wife is someone who tries everything she can to find a companion to talk to, but she is unsuccessful. Crooks is alone in the fact that he is the only one of his ethnicity living on the farm. Although it may not be obvious, George and Lennie display the theme of solitude the most because they have no one that understands their situations. The theme of loneliness is universal; many have suffered from its

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Within the novel Crooks deals with loneliness, because he is segregated by his skin color. “S’pose you couldn’t go into the bunkhouse and play rummy ‘cause you was black... A guy goes nuts when he ain’t got nobody” (72). Crooks is black, and in

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Loneliness and isolation is an ongoing theme throughout the novel Of Mice and Men, experienced by several characters to different degrees. Some characters are more isolated and lonely than others, yet every character in the story goes through this theme during one point in the story. There are various reasons why each character is lonely or isolated. In general, all the ranch workers feel some sort of loneliness because they move alone from ranch to ranch and do not have real connections with others, Curley’s wife experiences this theme because she is the only woman on the ranch and nobody wants to interact with her because Curley is very protective and hostile of her. Thirdly, Candy struggles through being lonely and isolated after Carlson shot his dog and because Candy does not work with the others since he is a swamper.

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Katherine Evans Period 4 Loneliness and the Negative Effects on Life Everyone eventually feels a little bit lonely sometimes weather its being away from family for a long period of time or it's being in a new place where you don't know anyone. Loneliness is something most people are faced with at some point in their life. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, two men named George and Lennie move around a lot and work on ranches. In the novel they are working on a ranch near Soledad, California; Soledad means solitude connecting to loneliness. While they are there they meet people like Crooks, Curley, Curley’s wife, Carlson and Candy.

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796 Words | 4 Pages

One’s self has experienced loneliness from choice or forced into isolation. The novel ¨Of Mice and Men¨ written by John Steinbeck, took place during the Great Depression, near Soledad, California. The protagonist, George and the antagonist, Lennie are mid aged, white men who are working on a ranch with other mid aged, white men. Along with ones who aren’t as focused at the time, such as Crooks, the negro or black, Curley’s wife, the woman and, Candy, the old and weak man were treated differently from all the white, strong males in the novel due to the setting the novel. This making distance in relationships in Of Mice and Men, isolating these characters into loneliness.

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786 Words | 4 Pages

People Affected by Loneliness Loneliness can make anyone affected by it very depressing and sad to see. It is seen in Of Mice and Men in many characters that are prominent in the story. The main ones are Crooks (the black stable hand), Candy (the old worker with his old dog), and Curley’s wife (who is ignored so that they do not get into trouble). Each of these characters have had lasting events that led them here.

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