Theme Of Loneliness In Of Mice And Men

Loneliness is evident for most people at some point in their life. In a way it’s inescapable, whether you chose to live that way or forced into it. In the novel Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, it follows the story of two unlikely friends, George and Lennie and their journey through the Great Depression. Lennie has a mental disability that prevents him to think like a regular adult, so he depends on his friend George to protect him, in fact they always stay together. They find a job on a ranch and that’s where most of the story takes place and where the story follows the common theme of the “American Dream” and loneliness. George and Lennie constantly talk about their dream about owning a farm and they almost came close to it, but a series of unfortunate events occurred and that’s where theme of loneliness come into play. Steinbeck portrays that loneliness is caused by both social barriers and personal choice by exemplifying dialogues and the actions of Curley 's wife, Crooks, and George.
Steinbeck uses Curley’s wife as an example to show that loneliness is not only caused by choice but also by social barriers. Curley’s wife is kept in isolation because she is a woman and Curley wants to keep her in the house fearing that she will cheat on him because she flirts with other men. She’s the only woman on the ranch, so she goes out and looks for attention because of her loneliness and doesn’t get any attention at home. While talking to Lennie in the barn she