Hands exist as an underlying symbol in Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men. Maybe the most powerful picture of hands accompanies connection to Curley. Curley's hands have double significance. One hand, the one without the glove, is intended to symbolize strength. Curley is exceptionally open about his battling capacity and it is even talked about among the ranch hands. Curley's other hand, the one with the glove, is one he protects with Vaseline--"Keepin' that hand soft for his wife." (Steinbeck, 27), I think he says this quote to exclaim that most of the people during that era were laborers so their hands are probably very hard and tough, this interprets that Curley is mindful so that when he “touches” his wife with it, it is not rough and uncomfortable for her. But at the same time, it could also mean something sexual as it can be seen as a dirty quote. The imagery of Curley's hands change after his battle with Lennie. Curley disparages Lennie's beast quality and Curley's hand is smashed. This symbolizes two exceptionally particular things. In the first place, the devastating of Curley's hand portrays the devastating of Curley's inner self. He has been beaten by a man he …show more content…
Lennie proves the better man in both senses. The defeat is thus a symbolic castration of sorts. This symbolism is reinforced when Curley's wife appears to find the big man's defeat of her husband alluring - "I like machines" (Steinbeck, 80). Getting his hand "caught in a machine" is a reasonable lie, in fact probably the only one, which allows Curley to preserve his ego. Obviously, Lennie has no clue that he is bringing about such issues in the domains of sex and violence - he can't comprehend these ideas himself. In any case, this exclusive fortifies the feeling that such a hazardous, strong, unreflective man can't keep on operating in the organization of
He shows his malevolence through his unnecessary need to provoke a fight with Lennie, even though the big man did not directly attack him in any way, but after first seeing Lennie, Curley is described: “His arms gradually bent at the elbows and his hands closed into fists. He stiffened and went into a slight crouch. His glance was at once calculating and
When George and Lennie first entered the new bunkhouse on the ranch, the two were greeted by Curley who put Lennie in his place by intimidating him. After Curley walked away from George and Lennie, George warned Curley when he wasn’t around that “...this Curley punk is gonna get hurt if he messes around with Lennie.”(pg.26) This isn’t the only hint of foreshadowing that led to Curley’s crushed hand. Curley, before the incident, wore a glove on his hand in order to keep it soft. Lennie had a habit of squishing soft things like mice.
Steinbeck uses Curley in this story because so they can show not to pick on people that u dont
And although he had strength that could help everyone on the farm. The one time he used his strength, it left Curley “flopping like a fish on a line.” (Steinbeck, 63) So although he could help others by using his strength, his intelligence left him like a person who couldn’t control himself. Even after Curley was incapacitated, Lennie still “held on to the closed fist.”
Steinbeck’s use of animal imagery emphasizes Lennie’s notable strength compared to others. The men mock Curley, and he tries to push his authority onto Lennie by fighting him, thinking he can re-establish his “boss” status with the men by showing the power he holds over others. He attacks Lennie for smiling as the men mock him, but Lennie was dreaming of his future, not mocking him, and at first Lennie just stands there. When Lennie finally fights back, he stops Curley just by crushing his hand in his fist, and “Curley [is] white and shrunken now, and his struggling [becomes] weak. He [stands] crying, his
(Steinbeck 91) What this quote shows is that you do not know what to do in moments of stress or worry. Curley’s wife began to panic after Lennie would not let go of her, which worried Lennie, fearing that George would get angry at him. When Curley tried to hit Lennie and in return crushed his hand, it shows a lack of control in stressful situations, “Curley’s fist was swinging when Lennie reached for it. The next minute Curley was flopping like a fish on a line, and his closed fist was lost in Lennie’s big hand.
We can assume Curley is the only child of his father. Developing, he only had him to entertain himself with. Accordingly, Curley is a undoubtedly an independent man, who acts as if he is a champion. Loneliness compels oneself to feel forgotten, and Curley does not want to feel forgotten. The way he is so violent is not a fault of his own, he never had anyone to tell him he is not required to be perfect.
The novella ‘of Mice and Men’ was written by John Steinbeck in the 1930s. It is set in a difficult period of time when America was sunk in deep depression. However, themes of loyalty shine brightly throughout the novella. He shows that even though Americas economy is in tatters, loyalty can still be as prominent. There were also distinct themes of disloyalty, mainly between characters.
The novel of mice and men by John Steinbeck is a timeless classic. whether it is friendships or whatever else there is something for everyone to relate to. In the book the main characters George and Lennie who are best friends and travel together make the theme the most evident. The theme that is the wanting of the american dream. This theme is the most relatable theme of the story by far.
There are two reasons Curley wants to kill Lennie. The first reason is because he is a big guy, and Curley hates big guys. The second reason is because Lennie killed his wife. It states in “Of Mice and Men” that “Curley gon’ta wanta get ‘im lynched. Curley’ll get ‘im killed.”
Curley used this as an excuse to kill Lennie. He really wanted to kill Lennie because he destroyed his hand though. Curley said he was going to blow Lennie's guts out and make him suffer and be in pain. George prevented this by shooting Lennie in the back of the head and ending him quickly. George killed lennie because if he didn’t, Curley would have made him suffer.
The point of physical violence has not been touched upon. In the midst of the rising action in the novel, Curley starts to beat Lennie because he was grinning at the thought of the ranch, but Curley thought that he was laughing at him. Lennie made a remark that he does not want to fight him. Consequently, Curley assaults Lennie, and he accepts it. It was only at George’s call for permission that Lennie crushed his hand.
1. Of Mice and Men contains many symbols. Discuss two of these symbols. Two prevalent symbols in “Of Mice And Men” by John Steinbeck are dogs and rabbits. Dogs are used in the novel to represent Lennie, and they way he’s treated.
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.
One of the most important forms of animal symbolism that is represented in Of Mice and Men is held with rabbits. This animal in particular plays a huge role throughout the text as a sign of hope for Lennie. Steinbeck states "An' live off the fatta the lan'," Lennie shouted. "An' have rabbits. Go on, George!