Essay On Crooks In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, there are many diverse characters. Every single character portrays a different aspect of the human nature. The naïve, the protector, the calm, the manipulative, the rage filled, the shunned, and the hopeful. Each character is dynamic in their own way. This is a small glimpse into what traits Steinbeck thinks the human race has, embodied into each of his characters’ personalities.

Crooks, who is the black man in the story, is treated differently because of his skin color. Crooks lives in a barn alone, separated from all the whites. Lennie asks Crooks about it and Crooks answered him; “I ain’t wanted in the bunk house, and you ain’t wanted in my room.” “Why ain’t you wanted?” Lennie asked. ’Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me (Steinbeck, 68).” Crooks is harsh to other people because of how

In John Steinbeck’s rather infamous novel, there was a heavy handed message that classism creates problems and a false consciousness caused by the American Dream, that one can eventually achieve success with sheer determination and hard work, does more harm than good. This is due to the fact that it leads to competition between citizens in the same class (mostly proletariat) who all want to climb to the top of the metaphorical food chain. Some attempt to achieve their goal through shady means, like commodification- or some may try to go at it alone, believing in the ideology of rugged individualism, thinking that they can reach their goal without any help. This impacts society by enforcing the idea that we’ll stay in the class system that we were born into unless we’re willing to sacrifice our morals and the things we care about.

We all may have had the feeling of loneliness and isolation, wanting companionship feeling abandonment. In John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men, there are men living on a ranch having their own reasons for loneliness or being isolated. The three characters Crooks, George, and Lennie crusade dealing with own ways of loneliness and isolation. Crooks has no one that likes him because he’s black, Lennie struggles mentally and George struggles with always having to care for him. They all can’t decide whether it is that they want to be alone or not. Steinbeck displays through the dialogue and characterizations that these characters experience isolation because of both social barriers and personal choice.

Curley’s wife has great power over Crooks. When Curley’s wife walked into the crook’s room she was looking for conversation but when Lennie, Crooks, and candy started talking about their dream farm and Curley’s wife just all of the sudden she laughed and thought that the dream farm will never exist. Then Crooks tells Curley’s wife to leave but she then she gets mad and says “well, you keep your place then, nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t funny” (81). This showed that even though she doesn’t have any power she still has power over African Americans. She can even threaten to have Crooks killed because he talked to her. After she said that “crooks seemed to grow smaller, and he pressed himself against the wall. ‘yes, ma’am’” (80). This shows that the words Curley’s wife has a terrible effect on Crooks. 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

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.

Like many of the other characters, Crooks is forced into isolation. Crooks experiences force alienation from his fellow workers on the ranch, causing him to become obscure and astringent. Crooks is a stable buck, the only African American living on the ranch. He is treated poorly and is perceived as inferior.”’Well, you keep your place then, nigger. I could get you

Crooks is very lonely and solitude for being alone every day. As a result, he wants to have friends who he can communicate with. No one has come into his room except for Slim and the boss, so when Lennie and Candy come, it is difficult for Crooks to “conceal his pleasure with anger” (75). Although he wants to express anger about people coming into his room, inside he is happy about it and enjoys it. This instability and loneliness that he has leads him to say how he could work for George, Lennie, and Candy on their farm. He is desperate, like everyone else, to be stable. Crooks is another character who is weaker than others and is discriminated because of

People never realize that biologically, there is just one human race. Back in the 1930s, that wasn’t what people thought. All races other than white were not considered to be not human. In John Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men”, Crooks was a significant man and more important of what society thought of African Americans. Crooks’ life was extremely harsh due to racism back in the 1930s.

Loneliness haunts Crooks deep down. But Crooks accepts things the way they are. Crooks doesn't talk to the other men and they don't talk to him. This causes the greatness of loneliness in Crooks. The other workers on the ranch take place in some fun activities but Crooks is near invited to come play. Crooks has no one but envy that derives from the relationship around him. Crooks is the loneliest person in the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck because he is black and crippled in a very racist

Civil rights caused separation and isolation towards black people when Of Mice and Men took place. As Crooks mention himself “Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I 'm black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, all of you stink to me” (68). As blacks were no longer enslaved, they were still an outcast in America at the time during the Great Depression. Treated unequally they couldn’t get the same jobs as what most white men could get but, if they do they were separated. As Crooks was working at the ranch just like the other men, he was living separately from the other men making him isolated. As he was used

In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the author uses the motif of barriers to show that causes that lead into the failure of these character hopes and dreams. The ability to own your own land is the main dream held by four of the characters in the book. The idea of owning your own land is a simile for a life of happiness. There are two other unattainable dreams which are held by Curley's wife, and Crooks. Curley's wife once had an offer to become an actress in Hollywood, however the person never bequeathed the job to her. She later would go on to marrying a man named Curly who she currently regrets marring. Crooks, who is an African American man who is also crippled, just want to be able to have control over his life. However Crooks has unchangeable barriers in his path for control. All five of these characters have a hope for a new life which evidently turns to nothing due to obstacles. This book takes place on a farm in California.

Crooks talks about himself in a very negative way and is seen when he said, "This is just a nigger talkin', an' a busted-back nigger. So it don't mean nothing, see?"(71) This exemplifies that Crooks has been looked down on his whole life and he is just repeating what he always hears. This demonstrates that crooks is so used to being judged that he starts telling people that they should judge him rather than befriending him. The next quote displays that the men on the ranch does not want to be around crooks when he says, “You go on get outta my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunk house, and you ain’t wanted in my room." This demonstrates that the men do not want Crooks in the house. This proves that Crooks is being judged because the men do not like him due to his skin color. All of the men on the ranch judge crooks based on his skin color even though he is knowledgable and

One of the reasons the audience feels sympathy for Crooks is due to the color of his skin. When he first gets introduced by Candy, he is called a bad name. “Ya see the stable buck’s a nigger.” (20) Crooks is ostracised because of his race. Crooks is angry and pathetically lonely. “I tell ya a guy gets too lonely and he gets sick.” (73) Crooks lives by himself and is the only black man on the ranch. Crooks is known by his name because his back is crooked. “Got a crooked back where a horse kicked him.” (20) Crooks has extreme pain due to his crooked back. Therefore, he's treated very poorly by his boss.

Can you imagine being left out because you are different from everyone else around you? These people are called outcasts. An outcast is someone who is rejected by someone, or a group of people. Certain characters in Of Mice and Men, by author John Steinbeck, feel this way. Two characters, Crooks and Curley’s Wife, who is also the daughter in- law of the boss, are like outcasts in this situation. Both these characters live on the ranch, like everyone else, but because of their personalities, are treated differently. This makes them feel isolated, which makes them act differently towards other characters in the book. Both of them share some qualities which make them similar, but have different needs from everyone else. Crooks and Curley’s Wife