Misunderstood In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Curley’s wife is a major target in the dehumanization of women during the course of the text. She was repeatedly attacked against and viewed as less than a human. This quote from the text, “Seen the new kid yet?”(51), gives a correlation of dependent children seeking others for help, to how women were given no power

The famous author, Harry Nilsson writes, “Dreams are nothing more than wishes and a wish is just a dream you wish to come true.” In John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, he develops a story of people living through the Great Depression. During the Great Depression, a very heartbreaking event happened, which was the Dust Bowl.The Dust Bowl destroyed families and homes. John Steinbeck develops the theme of losing hope and unrealized dreams. In the speech by Martin Luther King Jr. I Have a Dream, he develops how to be a leader since he was the leader of the Civil Right Movement. Martin Luther King Jr. was a black person who bravely stood up to people. Therefore, Steinbeck and Martin Luther King Jr. convey a message of hope and unrealized dreams.

Someone once said, “A villain is just a victim whose story hasn’t been told.” The character known as Curley’s Wife in Of Mice and Men is portrayed in John Steinbeck’s writing as an antagonist. Multiple time throughout the book she is insulted by the men, who call her things such as a tramp, or a tart. As the story continues, there are many hidden indications that she could be seen as a much simpler, innocent presence, rather than an evil. When looked at more in depth, Curley’s Wife can be seen as a victimized character.

A symbol is anything that represents a larger idea, especially a material object representing something compact. A symbol can also represent a theme or moral to the story. It gives the reader something deeper to think about, and find other possible connections to different characters or objects overall. The novella Of Mice and Men captures many deep connections and displays various themes for the reader to obtain. Steinbeck uses numerous symbols that grow into greater themes throughout the novella such as Curley’s wife, the bunkhouse, and Candy’s dog.

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.

Due to the Great Depression, women’s rights took a back seat to employment and poverty. It was believed that women shouldn’t work but stay at home, clean, cook, and raise their children. The prejudice against women in the society was great back in the 1930s for they were degraded and underestimated. All the rights they had gained in the 1920s were neglected and the women were once again maltreated. In Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, the victim of sexism is Curley’s wife who is so insignifact that even a name was not provided for her. Sexism is shown in the book when Curley’s wife is regarded as a bitch merely owing to the fact that she is flirtatious and wears appealing clothes.

To begin with, Curley’s wife is pressured by society to fit into the cookie cutter image of what a married woman should act like in the 1920s and 1930s; during the time the book was written

Curley’s wife is not completely innocent, but she is not a villain. When she gets opportunity’s to show her true colors she is mean to the men on the ranch, which makes her at the least part villain. When Lennie is with Crooks and Cansy , she speaks to Crooks very rudely and says, “listen Nigger. You know what I can do to you if you open your trap”(Steinbeck 104)? Curley’s wife believes that she can take control and overpower Crooks. She thinks this because she is a white female and Curley’s wife, and Crooks is black. She is expressing her power, and taking advantage of Crooks. She does this because she recognizes he cannot do anything about it. Curley’s wife then takes the conversation farther, “ Well you keep your place then nigger. I could

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

“In utter loneliness a writer tries to explain the inexplicable.” -John Steinbeck. Loneliness can be affected by many things and can affect many things. Curley’s wife is a character whose actions are debatably driven by the feeling of loneliness. Some think her actions are driven solely by her personality and moral values. Others see nothing wrong with her actions and excuse them by placing the origin of it on loneliness. These actions, no matter what the commencement, have a great impact on the people of the ranch. They affect relationships, sensibility, and moral character. In Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men the actions of Curley’s wife can be debated through what she does, her reasons of her actions, and the impact her actions have on

Innocent till proven guilty or Guilty till proven innocent? Curley’s wife, I feel is an innocent victim because she just wanted to talk to someone, only female on the ranch, Curley and his wife don’t get along that well.

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.

As society has become an integral part of the world’s culture, the opinions and misconceptions of others have dominated the way people live. Throughout history, certain groups and ideas have been suppressed by the ones in charge. These actions have sprouted an almost universal indifference to those deemed less than ideal, and therefore created a divide in the way society sees race, age groups and even gender. Coupled with the Great Depression, these beliefs are the driving force for the majority of problems individuals experience in the text. In the novel Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck uses the device of conflict to portray the external struggles of characters living in the era of the Great Depression.

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.