There are many indications that this is true, but three reasons stand out specifically. First, her character is described in one point of view only; the point of view of the men is the only told perspective in the book. Second, Curley’s Wife was forced to settle for less. She even goes to say this directly in the story. Lastly, she has a deep sense of isolation from being the lone woman on the ranch. In this John Steinbeck piece, the theme of a villain having a sense of victimization can be proved through the character of Curley’s
Is being a woman something someone should be blamed for? Growing up as a woman in the 1900s was very unfair for all females. They had less rights and were treated as if they were prized possessions. A book that provides insight into this topic is Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. In the book, the only female character is married to the boss’ son, Curly. Curly and his wife 's relationship has no true love involved and according to Curley 's wife, the marriage is very forceful. In fact, we do not even know the name of Curley 's wife! In Of Mice and Men, it is illusive that Curley 's wife is treated poorly and has an unfair life. All Curley 's wife wanted to do was talk with the other ranchers instead she is considered a tart for talking to other
Everyone on the ranch fears repercussions from Curley when interacting with her. Everyone goes out of their way to ensure that they don’t interact with Curley’s wife. All the men figure it is in their best interest to avoid Curley’s wife as much as possible. It also does not help that Curley’s wife is extremely flirtatious. Anytime Curley’s wife appears, the men at the ranch immediately believe that she has one thought in mind. This causes her to receive very little respect from the other men at the ranch and gain many derogatory names. Curley’s wife is also very forthcoming with private information, by reason that she has nobody to talk to. Therefore, anytime someone on the ranch will listen to her or give her the time of day, she will tell them everything she needs to get off her chest. She feels no regret in telling complete strangers about her personal life as well as her dreams and aspirations. She was so alienated and lonely on the ranch that no one even noticed when Lennie had broken her neck until they were standing over her dead
Of Mice and Men provides us with plenty examples of dehumanization that guide us to conclusions, or insights or feelings of dehumanization. Some examples of this is the dehumanization of Lennie, Crooks and Curley’s wife. Of Mice and Men perfects the traits of dehumanization of Lennie by relating him to a number of animals like the horse. Steinbeck dehumanizes Lennie by comparing him to a horse when George says, “His huge companionship dropped his baskets and flung himself down and drank from the surface of the green pool; drank with long gulps, snorting into the water like a horse” (Steinbeck, 2). Furthermore, Steinbeck helps us, by dehumanizing Crooks, living in a barn, to animals, to visualize how poorly Crooks is treated. To prove this, Crook says, “ ‘Cause I’m black.
“I don’t like Curley. He ain’t a nice fella… Coulda been in the movies.”(Steinbeck 89). The book Of Mice and Men, which is written by John Steinbeck, has its main focus on an all-male ranch with a lone female. Steinbeck’s portrayal of Curley’s wife is different from all the other characters which makes her unique. Curley’s wife has power, but can also be the subject of it. The impression of Curley’s wife definitely has an impact on the impression of women as well.
While Crooks, a victim of racial prejudice, expresses his isolation openly, he also socializes with other workers on the job and while playing horseshoes with them. Curley’s wife, on the other hand, cannot talk to anyone without suffering the consequences of a jealous husband: “ I get so lonely,’ she said. “you can talk to people , but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad. How’d you like not to talk to anybody?” (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
John Steinbeck explains how Curley, the boss’s son, is not involved in his wife’s life, because he spends all his time talking about the ways he is going to seek revenge, as a result Curley’s wife gets lonely and is tempted to flirt with the men on the ranch. When Curley's wife tried speaking to Crooks, but he also rejected her fiercely and she said to Crook “ Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever once in awhile, think I like to stick around in the house all time and listen to what Curley is going to do to the other men”(Steinbeck 77). Since Curley’s wife is not getting attention from her husband, she is forced to seek attention from other men in the bunkhouse. Curley’s wife is very loyal to Curley, but because Curley is not involved in her life she complains to other men like Lennie saying “I never get to talk to anybody. I get awful lonely”(Steinbeck 85). Because Curley’s wife needed someone to talk to, she was lonely because Curley doesn’t devote his time to her. Since her husband is always with his friends and he is more happy with his friends rather than his wife, she is isolated because she has nobody staying with
Certainly, Curley’s wife was in search of a companion throughout the novel. Therefore for she was extremely lonely and isolated. For instance, Curley’s wife says ‘ You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad. How’d you like not to talk to anybody?’(87). This is Curley’s wife’s way of searching for a companion. She hoped that if she
Curley’s wife is one of the most alienated characters in the novel Of Mice and Men, if not the most alienated and isolated character as it is displayed through her being nameless, being very flirtatious, and the perception of her by the men on the ranch. Indeed, the author constantly is showing that how regardless if you are amongst people or have company, but however there is no sensation of love what so ever, it is just as equal to living a life through despair and desolation. Whenever Curley’s wife appears in the book she is either looking for her husband or other company to converse with, however it has a reverse notation and it pours out of her in resentment and disillusion as she states, “Why can’t I talk to you?I never get to talk to
Curley’s wife in this novel represents loneliness. Moreover she often had no one to talk to. She was habitually rejected by the ranch hands. Curley’s wife was always looking for someone to bend an ear to; she was not trying to seduce them. Curley’s wife is looking for someone who will listen and talk to her. Steinbeck states in the novel that Curley’s wife says “I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.” (86)
In the book, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the character Lennis is a big, tall man who is described as a "big baby" because he has a mental condition that makes him act childish. The character referred to as Curley 's wife, is a petite and pretty lady. She is known to be a troublemaker and does not act the way a "normal" wife would. Although the two characters are very different, they share the feeling of being left out and alone.
Also, by the reason of Curley wanting to pick a fight if he catches anyone talking to his spouse. Later on in the story, Lennie is in the barn with his dead puppy and Curley’s wife walks in. She tries speaking to Lennie, but he says he’s not supposed to. She says,”’Why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.’” (86) This whole statement proves how she’s feeling. She can’t talk to anyone and being trapped in your own head all the time and talking to only one person can get
It is said that it takes two months to get attached to a someone. In Of Mice and Men, characters spend well over two months with each other. Attachment is a prevalent theme throughout the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Steinbeck encompasses elements of day to day struggles in the 1930’s through relationships and minor characters through the attachment they have. The theme of attachment is seen through the relationship between Lenny and George, the relationship between Candy and his dog, and lastly the actions of Curley’s wife.
George and Lennie just arrived to the farm where they find Candy and Candy starts to tell them how the farm works and about everyone on the farm, Curley’s wife is now being discussed and Candy states, “Well, I think Curley’s married… a tart” (28). Through this phrase, it is understood that everyone now on the farm believes Curley’s wife is a tart because she flaunts around all the boys and she isn’t portrayed as a very mature woman until the end of the novel where more is discovered about her. Curley’s wife is a very lonely person that just craves the attention she doesn’t get, so she acts like a tart since that gives her the attention she wants/ needs. Curley’s wife walks into the barn right after Lennie killed the puppy and Lennie avoided talking to Curley’s wife since he thinks, “Well, George says you’ll get us in a mess” (88). Through, this phrase, Steinbeck is portraying that everyone believes that Curley’s wife is going to influence Lennie to make bad decisions, which is what happened, but not everyone expected it. This phrase goes to show that Curley’s wife is misunderstood since George believes that if Lennie is alone with Curley’s wife something bad will happen and something will happen to Lennie. Even though, Curley’s wife is just lonely and is looking for attention that she doesn’t receive.. Curley’s wife is talking to Lennie now and they are talking about her life and she keeps questioning why he won’t talk to her, “Wha’s the matter with me… ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody?” (87). Through these two sentences it is clear that everyone has misunderstood her because of how she acts. She doesn’t see that people are calling her a tart just because she acts a certain way and they see her more as a prop, than a person. Curley’s wife is misunderstood because no one knows anything
Humans are connected with one another through simple gravity-like forces that are ubiquitous and powerful, but in Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, the characters isolate themselves. While the english poet John Donne once said that “No man is an island”, his contemporary John Milton believed that “Solitude sometimes is best society”. So, which is true? In both books the characters act as if they are“islands”, but this does not create the “best society”.The characters’ detached isolation toward one another causes them to end up feeling empty and disconnected. In both Of Mice and Men and The Outsiders characters build mental barriers to protect themselves