Of Mice And Men Crooks Character Analysis

Max Alexander Mrs. McGuire English 9 2 may 2017 Crooks Imagine being a black man on an all white farm back in the 1930’s where the Jim Crow Laws were in place. In the book “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck, Crooks is also treated with disrespect by his boss. Whenever the boss gets mad, the boss takes it out on Crooks.

Another example of Crooks getting discriminated because he is black is when he and Curley’s wife are arguing. She completely shuts him down by saying how she could get anyone to lynch him at any time. Crooks can say nothing but “Yes, ma’am”. Even Curley’s wife, who is considered weak, can pick on even weaker people, like Crooks.

The reader is led to believe this through the author's quotes when Lennie asks, "Why ain't you wanted?”, and Crooks responds, "Because I'm black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me.” (P. 68). The reader understands that Crooks is not accepted by the other workers on the ranch because of his race.

Richard Wright in his novel, “Native Son” introduces Bigger Thomas and details his life as a black man living in what he calls a white world. Here he voices how the black people were oppressed and the white people were the oppressors. In this novel Bigger experienced this oppression and racism first hand and it was all that he knew growing up in Chicago in the 1930’s. Wright expresses that he is full of shame as to living conditions of his family, he is full of fear of the white world he is living in, and full of fear for the future. I feel that Wright successfully allows the reader to see the life and struggles of an African American in Chicago in the 1930’s.

As he was used

In Maycomb, the Ewells are a family that everyone looks down on they never clean themselves they are uneducated and they live beside the town's garbage collection. They are considered trash by everybody in Maycomb. Needless to say, when Tom is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the town's people believed the Ewells. In addition, during the trial, it is clear that Mayella's proofs are weak. However the jury convicts Tom, the suspect with solid proof, guilty just because he is black.

Three characters that show loneliness is crooks, Curley 's wife, and candy. The first way the idea of loneliness is portrayed in the story is Crooks. Crooks is the black guy that can’t go in their bunkhouses. He stays in his room by himself because they don’t like him because he is black. When Lennie went to his room he said “you got no right to come in my room.

Luke feels left out and should have a choice to be a citizen and go outside no matter what the law says. The tone in the “Among The Hidden” is sad and lonely. It is sad and lonly because Luke is forced to stay inside a black room with no windows or light. The darkness of his room explains the sad and scary tone. “He hadn’t left the house in a week now, and could almost hear the outdoors calling him.

In the novel Of Mice and Men, Candy is discriminated for his physical capabilities because his right hand is only a stump. According to Candy himself, “‘I ain’t much good with on’y one hand. I lost my hand right here on this ranch. That’s why they give me a job swampin’” (59).

Salves in America were treated very poorly, Crooks is an example of this because he is forced to sleep in the barn while the other workers sleep in cabins. His social status limits him from interactions with other people and he expresses his feelings in chapter 4, "A guy needs somebody-to be near him.' He whined, 'A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. "

They ain 't got nothing to look ahead to” (Steinbeck 113).In the book some of the characters that have it the worst is crooks, Lennie, and curleys wife. Crooks is black so he isn’t allowed to socialize with the other men, Curleys wife feels very alone because her husband doesn’t care about her and she is the only girl on the farm. In the book, Curleys wife is portrayed as a very flirty person, she is married to the bosses son, her husband is a small man that picks fights with all the guys that are physically bigger than him.

Crooks admits to Lennie that because the other ranch hands exclude him from their bunkhouse and card games, he finds himself lonely. The white ranch hands fraternize with each other and keep each other company, while excluding Crooks, which forces him to lead a lonesome lifestyle. (3) Crooks reveals to Lennie that every man must maintain friendships and if they do not, then “a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick” (73). Crooks parades his depressing life on the ranch to Lennie in hopes that Lennie will sympathize with him.

Another way that loneliness shows in a character is through Candy. His dog was his best friend and after he died he could only cope with the loneliness by following Lennie and George 's dream. Another way it is shown in the book is through Curley 's wife. She tried to deal with it by flirting with other workers on the ranch because her husband does not give her attention. Another theme is dreams.

At the end of the book, Lennie does get in trouble, and because of Lennie’s disability being a burden to George, he shoots Lennie. Another character who is discriminated is Crooks. Crooks is the stable buck in Of Mice and Men, but he is black so he is discriminated because of his race. He is also isolated to the barn. Since he is African American, he is not allowed to sleep in the bunkroom with the rest of the workers.

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.