Many people did not treat the migrant workers as equals, although they were necessary for the success of the agricultural system in California. Lennie had to hide his disability so that he would get hired to work on the farm. If the boss saw that Lennie had a disability, he would
First, Crooks is an African American that is discriminated on the ranch and convinced that he will always be treated differently. Next, Lennie is a grown man that thinks and acts like a child as well as has a habit to want to stroke soft objects. Finally, Candy is an old man with one hand that feels as if he will not be needed on the ranch for much longer which leads to his gullibility. As one can see, Crooks, Lennie, and Candy are the outsiders of society in Of Mice and
Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, is a wonderful novel. The story takes place during the Great Depression and is centered around the lives of men that work on a ranch in California. When protagonists George and Lennie come to the ranch, they realized how lucky they are to have each other. People on the ranch tell George and Lennie that they often feel lonely. Among those who represent loneliness are Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Curley.
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?"
Loneliness is something no living thing wants, unfortunately for Crooks and Curley's wife they feel lonesome. Crooks is a black colored man, he is not allowed to go in the bunk house or around the house because he is a “negro”. He owns many objects that a bindlestiffs would obtain, he owns a copy of the california civil code for 1905, and books and magazines. In Chapter 4 John steinbeck exports Crooks in loneliness; Crooks clearly states he is lonely in chapter 4 by saying “ A guy goes nuts if he got nobody. Don't make a difference who the guy is, long's he's with you.
He also tackles on the newspaper such as Amsterdam that is located in the black community such as seeing that it only shows rape, murder, and other types of violence. The next title “Journey to Atlanta”, goes more into depth as James Baldwin explains how the Progressive Party is not welcome in the community of Harlem. However, Baldwin describes the reason why Blacks hate politicians due to “they have been best trained to expect nothing from them; more than other Americans, they are always aware of the enormous gap between election promises and their daily lives (73).” Moreover, Baldwin transitions to jazz band located in Harlem called The Melodeers who were invited by the Progressive Party to sing in the south, Atlanta. As arriving in Atlanta, they have found that the politicians were using the group of jazz singers as a method to win non-white
’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
The Jim Crow laws weren’t originally named the Jim Crow laws in the reconstruction era (1865-1877) when they were first passed. They were started to called that by the actor named Jim Crow who was a white man who blacked his face and he danced around and sang about not having a care in the world. The Reconstruction era was the period of time after the civil war after the north triumphed over the south. Things weren’t a smooth transition for the people of the south with many people staying as racists and the creation of hate groups and deadly gangs such as the Ku Klux Klan were rampant after the northern soldiers left the south when reconstruction was over. The treatment of the innocent black people was unfair and unjust.
One of the most obvious characters used in the novel to depict isolated at its greatest extent is Crooks, who is described as an outcast separated from the rest of the men because of his race. In the early 1900’s, racism was very common as white people thought they were superior to black people. Crooks’ loneliness is implied through his belongings, but also admits to being so lonely as he says, “S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't go into the bunk house and play rummy
Racism and Loneliness: Two Components for Bitterness Norman Cousins once said, “The eternal quest of the individual human being is to shatter his loneliness.” Crooks, one character from John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, battles with loneliness. He is forced to deal with racial segregation and live in a confined space isolated. Since Crooks is secluded he becomes an unpleasant human being and treats others poorly. Crooks’ method for coping with his loneliness, hurts him as a person instead of helping him.
Though Curley’s wife and Crooks experienced discrimination in different ways-- Curley’s wife experienced sexism in a patriarchal society, while Crooks experienced racism in a post Reconstruction era (both still prevalent in modern society)-- they were both unjustly discriminated against due to ineradicable aspects of themselves. Of Mice and Men displays many differents types of jaundiced discrimination to speak out against the malicious and inequitable actions that had been forced upon those undeserving of it. The style of Steinbeck’s writing draws pity from the reader. Of Mice and Men inevitably causes all who have read it to side with those faced with unjust prejudice. Although unfair discrimination was a part of everyday life during the early twentieth century, Steinbeck 's story is meant to speak out on these untenable prejudiced
“Hee Hee,” said Mr. Raymond, evidently taking delight in corrupting a child. ”Dill, you watch out, now,” I warned. Dill released the straws and grinned. “Scout, it’s nothing but Coca-Cola.
Is Isolation Ever for the Better? John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men contains a multitude of themes through which Steinbeck shows his disgust with society. This story was written during The Great Depression and the American society was struggling to survive. People thought that by isolating themselves, they could protect people they love. Steinbeck portrays this hardship through several characters throughout the book.
Blacked Out Most Americans are afraid of African Americans. Why, we ask? Most of us don’t know why we do, is it their physical appearance or is it the fact that they have a different skin tone? In Chapter 5: Black Men of The Culture of Fear by Barry Glassner, Glassner argues that the media exaggerates the excessive attention paid to African-Americans (Glassner 109). Throughout the chapter, Glassner exposes us to secrets and truths about how the media makes us fear African-Americans, they feed us irrelevant information that make it seem like blacks are still a lower class and therefore treating them like they are still slaves.
Unity among blacks has been at a halt since 1959. “Now you take dark Negros’s like you, and me […] We’re old uncle toms to our people, no matter how much education and morals we’ve got.” (Griffin, 34). As shown, there was racism present among the blacks, based on lightness and darkness of skin in 1959. This mimics the prejudice that the whites had against Negroes.