Can you imagine not having mental health care? Lennie can. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, Lennie and Crooks are both outsiders because of severe social injustice in the Great Depression. In the early 1900s during the Depression, people like Lennie and Crooks were treated very differently compared to other people. Crooks is one of many examples of this injustice. Because he is treated differently due to the color of his skin. In the book, he is shunned and outcasted from the rest of the farm workers, leaving Crooks in isolation. In the book, Crooks says: “I ain't wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain't wanted in my room.” (Steinback #68) The isolation from his peers made him wary of social interactions. Lennie was also an example of injustice.
He is told that he “stinks” because he is black, and they do not let him be around the others because of that. Crooks has absolutely no social power on the ranch because he is constantly treated differently and discriminated against. Crooks also says, “You got no right to come in my room... Nobody got any right in here but me.” (Steinbeck 66).
Crooks is isolated because he’s a black man that has a crooked back and that doesn’t have that much rights so he will spend most of his time in the bunkhouse reading books. Steinbeck used crooks in this story because so they can show that African Americans are lonely.
Of Mice and Men is a novel known across the globe, its delicate tone and emphasis on humanity and the struggles of the world locks the readers in. What dazzles readers most about this folk classic is how it is expressed in a way that all can understand, but few comprehend the deep and dark turn of events that lie between the lines of the book at first glance. The book isn’t referenced so often for its events in the past, but more for how it is related to the present as well as the future. The main issue discussed in this masterpiece is inequality, this subject applies to not only those of the past, but to everyone in every circumstance across the world today. Although it’s the 21st century, this issue is still present in everyday life.
His American Dream was dead. Some may say that this wasn’t dehumanizing, some may say that if Curley and the others got ahold of Lennie, his fate would have been worse. If Curley had gotten ahold of him, he would have destroyed him, and his death would have been a lot more painfully and a lot more gruesome. Some may say this would be true because of Lennie’s disabilities, but murder IS the ultimate form of dehumanizing because either
Together, they work to make the American Dream a reality. In his novel, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses Lennie and his disability, Curley’s wife and her sex, and Crooks and the color of his skin to prove there is institutionalized oppression in American society. To begin, Lennie and his disability prove there is institutionalized oppression in American society. Lennie is depicted as a large man, capable of doing manual labor, but not capable of thinking for himself. Thus, George, his closest companion,
Robert Jenkins Mrs. Daquelente English 2 8 May 2023 Formal Outline: Cause-and-Effect Essay Thesis: Lennie, Curlys wife, and Crooks are characters from John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men whose struggles with mental disability, overly protective mother, and racism lead to broken dreams that negatively impacted their lives. Body Topic A: To begin, Lennie’s experience with his mental disability ruined his dream and drastically changed his future of owning a farm with George and taking care of bunnies. Direct Quote #1-Lennie explained that “I’d pet 'em, and pretty soon they bit my fingers and I pinched their heads a little and then they was dead”(Steinbeck).
Sydney Votino Mrs. Daquelente English 2 12 May 2023 Formal Outline: Cause-and-Effect Essay Thesis: Lennie, Curley’s Wife, and Crooks are characters from John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men who struggles with mental issues, being used, and racism leading to broken dreams that negatively impacted their lives. Body Topic A: To begin, Lennie’s experience with mental issues ruined his dream and drastically changed his hopes for the future. Direct Quote
In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, we see Lennie and George during the 1930’s traveling together. Lennie is always causing trouble which results in George having to fix his messes. It also gives us a glimpse of discrimination against basic human rights. Discrimination drastically affects the lives of groups and individuals in society.
Lennie cannot change his mental disability nor can Crooks change his race, but due to these inalterable characteristics, Lennie hurts others unintentionally, and Crooks is hurt by others. “Naturalism does not deal primarily with individuals in themselves, but rather with social groups, settings, or movements…”( ), which relates to the story, because Lennie’s actions not only affect him and his future, but the other characters in the book. In Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, the concept of naturalism is portrayed through the experiences of Lennie, Curley’s wife, and Crooks. Lennie’s mental disability and physical strength often lead to trouble, because he can never fully comprehend his actions. When Lennie is the barn, he ends up
In Of Mice And Men, Lennie is treated different because people don’t understand anything about the problem that he is suffering with. “The boss said
Because crooks was black he was isolated and not allowed to near the other men. Lennie asks, “ Why ain’t you wanted… Cause I’m black” (Steinbeck 68). Crooks at first did not want Lennie entering his room but realizes Lennie is different and is not racist. Usually Crooks would tell people that they have not right coming into his room. He uses his isolation as a way to hide from everyone and get privacy.
There are many examples of social injustice throughout Of Mice and Men, but Steinbeck included Lennie
Of Mice and Men: Lennie’s Mental Illness The novel, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, is a story about two men and their companionship. The story takes place in California during the Great Depression. The two men have a dream to one day own a farm of their own. This dream never comes true and they are forced to work for someone else on a ranch for the rest of their lives.
In the novel “Of Mice and Men” John Steinbeck portrays the theme of social injustice throughout the story in the lives of several characters that include Lennie, Curley’s Wife, and the stable buck, Crooks. All of these characters are mistreated in some way, shape or form. The hardships that these characters faced help guide us to see the social injustice that is prevalent in the story. Lennie is a victim of social injustice due to the fact that he is mentally disabled. He is not treated fairly when he was accused of rape.
When stepping inside a hospital to receive help, one should expect care, treatment, and respect. However, shown in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and “Howl,” American society equates mental illness with inhumanity. In both texts, the characters are forced to live without basic human freedoms and a voice to change it. Society pressures the mentally ill into becoming submissive counterparts of the community by stripping away their physical freedoms, forcing inhumane treatment, and depriving them the freedom of expression. By pressuring confinement and treating the patients inhumanely, society strips away their freedom to express themselves.