Crooks is the Loneliest Character in Of Mice and Men “Loneliness is an emotional state in which a person experiences a powerful feeling of emptiness and isolation”, stated Dr. Berger. John Steinbeck portrays the theme of loneliness throughout his novel Of Mice and Men. Out of all the exceptionally lonely characters in Of Mice and Men, Crooks appears to stand out as the most loneliest. Crooks is the loneliest in Of Mice and Men because he is wrongly neglected due to the color of his skin, and he rejects people from approaching him, which makes it almost impossible to cure his loneliness. Crooks is the loneliest because he was repudiated by mostly everyone in the ranch due to the color of his skin. Lennie had just appeared in front of Crooks’s …show more content…
But this argument is inaccurate because throughout the novel, George and Lennie seems to have some close relationship with Candy. George, Candy, and Lennie is coming up with an optimistic plan to get their own little ranch inside their bunkhouse. George excitedly says, “I’m gon’ta write to them old people that owns the place that we’ll take it. An’ Candy’ll send a hunderd dollars to bind her… Don’t tell nobody about it. Jus’ us three an’ nobody else” (61). This quote shows that Candy is pretty close with Lennie and George since he is a part of their ultimate dream, and goal. On the other hand, Crooks is not even near from having a relationship like Candy’s because he doesn’t even have anyone to talk to, maybe except Slim. Candy’s dog may have been his only companion, but there is proof that he had some relationship that makes him not completely lonely.
It is crystal clear that the loneliest character in Of Mice and Men is Crooks. He was rejected to play cards, and to enter the bunkhouse, just because he is colored. He also has an unwelcoming personality that repels people from getting close to him. John Steinbeck clearly expresses loneliness primarily through Crooks than the other characters who are also considered lonely. “People think being alone makes you lonely, but I don’t think that’s true. Being surrounded by the wrong people is the loneliest thing in the world”- Kim Culbertson, The Liberation of Max
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.
This suffering of loneliness has a great effect on his life, as shown later in Steinbeck’s writing. After his conversation about George, Lennie’s guardian and companion, Crooks tells Lennie, “‘S’pose you didn’t have nobody…I tell ya a guy gets too lonely and he gets sick’” (73). This demonstrates the suffering behind Crooks’ loneliness because he’s experienced the “sickness” of being segregated. The result of his treatment by the men leads to a poor, unhealthy lifestyle; physically and mentally. Crooks endures the pains of desolation, which builds up the effects of being separated.
Crooks was very lonely because he was isolated from everybody else due to the color of his skin. He was the only colored man around which left him without anyone to talk to because of how prevalent racism was, Steinbeck described him by saying, “... Crooks was a proud, aloof man. He kept his distance and demanded that other people keep theirs.” (Steinbeck, 67).
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.
More specifically, the workers resent Crooks because of his color, and as a result, he is segregated from the men and their activities. However, Crooks can not just quit his job or move from place to place, as he, similar to Candy, is not likely to get another job. An example in the novel reads, “‘Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black.’” It can be argued that Crooks faces the most isolation out of all the characters in Of Mice and Men, as other people’s struggles do not compare to the issues he deals with everyday.
Crooks is mostly lonely because he's black and blacks back in the time of the book were disrespected. “He reads a lot. Got books in his room.” (Second page of chapter 2). This passage suggests that Crooks is a lonely man and based off of that shows when he is lonely he reads his books and isolates himself.
They all show to have been or become lonely in the story at one point in time. Firstly Crooks shows to be a lonely character in the book Of Mice and Men. This is when he is talking to lennie, "S 'pose you didn 't have nobody. S 'pose you couldn 't go into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black. How 'd you like that?"
Of Mice and Men Essay In the John Steinbeck novel of Mice and Men, everyone is lonely and will try or do anything to stop being lonely. Curlys wife is the loneliest character she is willing to talk to anyone even Lennie. Crooks is also a lonely character he is willing to take any chance if he can make a friend, even if he knows he can't do help out. And Candy is lonely character the reason being that he had a best friend who later dies, Candy is feeling less of use he is willing to do anything to feel useful.
Candy’s dog relies on Candy the same way Lennie relies on George to keep him out of trouble.
In the book of Mice and Men, the theme Companionship is essential to life to like shown by Lennie and Crooks conversation, the shooting Candy’s dog, and Curley’s wife talking to the other men. The conversation between Lennie and Crooks is an example of how companionship is life. Crooks is a black man who is separated from the rest of the workers and has no one to talk to. Lennie was in the barn playing with his pup and the other men had gone into town. He saw Crooks and light and walked up to the doorway.
Three characters in particular stand out as isolated. Crooks, the only black man; Curley’s wife, who is the only woman on the farm and never named; and Candy, an old man who cannot work efficiently. These three people are symbols of the American lifestyle during this time period. Out of all the characters, Crooks is the most isolated in this novella. He is segregated because of the color of his skin.
Candy lost his right hand in a ranch accident, which is why the owners “give me a job swampin’” as he says (Steinbeck 59). He believes he will that he will be “can[ned] purty soon,” so he wants to go with George and Lennie (Steinbeck 60). When Carlson wants to shoot Candy’s dog, Candy does not want him to. He says “No, I couldn’... I had ‘im too long” and “I had him from a pup” (Steinbeck 45).
Loneliness and Alienation in “Of Mice and Men” In John Steinbeck’s novel, “Of Mice and Men”, many characters were plagued with loneliness and alienation, and most characters were in need of acceptance. The harsh time period of the Great Depression affected three characters in, “Of Mice and Men” greatly. Three characters that are plagued by loneliness and alienation and are in need of acceptance the most include George Milton; the protagonist of the novel, Crooks; the negro stable buck with a crooked back, and Curley’s wife; a young woman who just wants somebody to talk to. In this essay, you will learn why George, Crooks, and Curley’s wife were the loneliest and why other characters were not plagued with loneliness and alienation as much as these three characters. George Milton is the protagonist of the novel.
A key aspect of any novel or story is the way the characters interact and feel towards everything. In John Steinbeck’s, “Of Mice and Men”, the characters tend to give off the effect of loneliness and the feeling of isolation throughout the novel. The main characters that give off the effect of loneliness and the feeling of isolation are Curley’s wife, Crooks, and George. They’ve been truly alone, if not in mind then in body.
Lonely Characters in Of Mice And Men Imagine a world where people didn’t really care what one said to another, and neither cared enough to ask each other questions. A place where everyone existed in silence, but were together at the same time. As portrayed in the novel, Of Mice And Men by John Steinbeck, in which Steinbeck’s idea of loneliness is isolation in silences. The author teaches the reader that friendship is mostly about conversation, and magnifies the effects of isolation through the eyes of Crooks, Curley’s wife and Candy.