Crooks Social Commentary

Our first personal meeting with Crooks in chapter 4 is particularly interesting and important to the novel. Here, we see Lennie, a white man coming into Crooks’ room, Crooks says to Lennie “You got no right to come in my room.” This shows that the social divide, even after the abolishment of slavery, was still present in America and this even meant that white people could not go into the room of a “nigger”. White people still did not accept black people, the term ‘separate but equal’ is quite relevant in this sense that Crooks is still allowed on the ranch, yet is segregated from others. This is clearly done by Steinbeck to highlight the problem of racism in the 1930s.

Crooks himself says, “This is just a nigger talkin’, an’ a busted-back nigger. So it don’t mean nothing, see? You couldn’t remember it anyways. I seen it over an’ over” (Steinbeck 71). His words show the prejudiced and unsympathetic opinions of society towards blacks. Nobody cares about what he says, simply due to his skin color, revealing an external conflict between Crooks and white society. In addition, Crooks further explains his treatment on the farm: "'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, all of you stink to me'" (Steinbeck 68). He is denied entertainment and the company with the fellow farm workers. "They say I stink" refers to their disapproval of Crooks, likely due to his race. However, Crooks shows his own negative feelings towards others on the farm when Lennie tries to talk to him, saying “‘Well, I got a right to have a light. You go on get outta my room. I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain’t wanted in my room’” (Steinbeck 68). Since the whites on the farm physically isolate Crooks, in return, he dislikes any of their attempts to enter his room. For Crooks, his internal and external conflicts stem from racism, and the suffering that results is described

First, Steinbeck utilizes Crooks to show that equality takes a long time to come by. While the guys are out on the town, Crooks and Lennie start talking about their dreams. In this conversation, Crooks says, “If I say something, why it’s just a nigger sayin’ it,” he also says, “A guy needs

One night when George goes out with the other men he leaves Lennie alone to play with his pup when he wanders into Crook’s room. Even though the majority of the time Crooks plays mind games with Lennie he ends up expressing his dream of equality. At this time period black people are still heavily discriminated against which effects how others treat him and how he accepts others. "'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 ___). Even though Crooks is just like all the other men on the farm he is still viewed in a negative way because of his skin colour. Afterwards, Crooks begins to describe his child hood discrimination does not exist and giving him a sense of

Even though Crooks, a black stable hand, has been around the Ranch longer than most people and he is still probably one of the most lonely. This lack of contact with other people has made him severely bitter especially when people enter his personal space. He creates his personal space with books because it helps him cope with the loneliness. So when Lennie tries to befriend him he freaks out by exclaiming, “You got no right to come in to my room. This here’s my room. Nobody got any right in her but me.”(68) In addition to Crooks being lonely he is also segregated from all the other workers. He lives in the barn with the animals instead of the bunkhouse with the others. It’s also very hard for Crooks to associate with the others, because during the time period blacks are seen as a lower class of people. When Crooks states, “Guys don’t come in to a colored man’s room very much.”(75) It shows how little contact he has with the others because of how segregated he is. This segregation mirrors the Jim Crow laws that were active during this period. Crooks’s treatment on the ranch represents the racial discrimination against blacks in

Crooks the stable hand at the ranch that George and Lennie come to work at. Crooks has an American Dream just like George and Lennie. Crooks is African American so during this time period some people at the ranch are discriminating against him because of his race. “I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny” (p.81). Even though Crooks supposed to be free from all discrimination people still haven’t changed. Crooks someday dreams of playing cards with the other fellows at the ranch but mostly he wants to be equal. “S’pose you couldn’t go into the bunkhouse and play rummy ‘cause you was black...A guy needs somebody-to be near him” (p.72). Crooks wants to be treated just like the other people on the ranch. He’s not allowed in the bunkhouse because of his race. Crooks has been forced to sleep alone, away from the other workers on the ranch who sleep and play cards together in the bunkhouse. “‘Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black” (p.68). The dream of all becoming equal is very common with many African Americans during this time period. Curley’s Wife also discriminating Crooks. “You know what I could do to you if you open up your trap” (p.80). Every time Crooks stands up for himself he just gets pushed over and never really acknowledged. Crooks also threatened by Curley's wife. She’s nearly at the bottom of the pile in the leadership of the ranch, but she still has power over Crooks. Crooks dreams that there will be a place and time where people won’t judge people by the color of their skin. Even though Crooks has a great American dream in mind he’s likely to not complete his dream. The Boss and Curley have shown that they do not trust Crooks at

This is shown in the following text evidence, “Why ain't you wanted? Lennie asked. Cause I'm black. They play cards in there, but I can't play because I'm black. They say I stink” (68). Crooks isn't given a fair chance to show his capabilities, society automatically segregates him from the game because of his skin color. Not only was he not given the chance to interact in simple games with white people, he was ridiculed when he conversed with them. This is evident in the following text, “There wasn't another colored family for miles around. And now there ain't a colored man on this ranch an' there's jus' one family in Soledad. He laughed. If I say something, why it's just the nigger sayin' it” (70). At the end of this quote is obvious that the ranch hands and the boss mock Crooks because of his race, he is undoubtedly outcasted. Crooks is aware that he is a misfit at the ranch, the reader gets a sense of this when Crook says, “You go on and get outta my room. I ain't wanted in the bunkhouse, and you ain't wanted in my room” (68). This quote suggests that Crooks was segregated at the ranch, he is not even comfortable with people in his room due to his separation from white people. The deciding factor that makes Crooks an obvious social outcast in this period, is his race, causing discrimination against him, his segregation from the ranchers, and others mocking him, leaving him as a social outcast

The character of Crooks is used to symbolize the social standing of the black community occurring during the time at which the novel is set. Crooks is a lonely African American on the farm that feels out of place. As George and Lennie explain their dream to Crooks he brushes them off and says that no one around here can implement their dreams. This realism gives the reader an impression that Crooks has absolutely no hope. However, Crooks may be pessimistic, but yet even he has a dream, which is the hope of one day experiencing the joys of his childhood again. Crooks' character is portrayed as very lonely in the novel, this is evident when Crooks explains, "A guy needs someone." (Mice 77). Crooks is telling the reader the need of human interaction. This realism that Steinbeck uses shows the reader the harsh realities of the black community during the time of the depression in the 1930's

The character Crooks has shown loneliness throughout the whole story and that drives him to a point where he doesn’t want to be existent to all the other men. In the middle of the book Lennie and Crooks start a conversation and Crooks explains how he’s feeling. Steinbeck writes, “‘They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, all of you stink to me’”(68). Crooks doesn’t get much sympathy from the men because he is black. He is so desperate to play cards with the guys, but all of them leave him out and makes him feel even more lonely. Crooks experiences the most desolation because the men tell him that he “stinks” and can’t play cards because he’s “black. In addition to the last example, the novel also explains in the story how separated Crooks is from everybody else and shows us how alone he actually is. Crooks is the most lonely character in the novel and it shows by his actions and personality. Steinbeck shows, “This room was swept and fairly neat, for Crooks was a proud, aloof man. He kept his distance and demanded that other people keep theirs” (67). He felt desperate enough to tell the men to keep their distance so he

John Steinbeck develops crooks through his loneliness because of his unableness to fit in the farm. Crooks has trouble fitting in because of his race, on the farm he feels left out because not everyone is expecting with him. Crooks has a difficulty with everyone on the farm because he is different from everyone and he can’t do the same activities with them. Crooks has no one on the farm that accepts him and it is hard for crooks not to alone. One time Lennie looked for a dog and went into Crooks room “You got no right to come in my room”. Crooks isn't used to anyone being in his room and when people do he gets annoyed, but this one time when Lennie walked in Crooks allowed him to stay because he wanted to have company and felt comforted with Lennie with him. Crooks can't be with any of the other farmers , and has always been lonely. Many of them don't spend time with him which caused him to be depressed, “Maybe you guys better go. I ain't sure I want you in here no more. A colored man got to have some rights even if he don't like 'em"Pg 90. All the men on the farm don't give the same rights to crook sas the other

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is a novel of many themes and one of them is about discrimination direction against someone of a different race. This theme is quite important because it directly refers to the only black character in the book, Crooks. Steinbeck uses only one of the chapters in the book to explain the unfair treatment of Blacks but it’s enough to see the point.

Steinbeck presents Crooks as a victim of racism and throughout the book, he is called by the name ‘nigger’. Being black, Crooks is hated on the ranch.“Ya see, the stable buck’s a nigger”. The use of this word dehumanises Crooks and shows how black people at the time, had no rights at all. He also says, “If I say

In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Crooks, the African-American stable buck, is very different from the other ranch hands for many reasons. When Lennie goes into Crook’s shed, the reader learns that Crooks has a “‘busted-back’” (71) man, who is “more permanent than the other men” (67), due to him being a cripple. Other than Candy, the other men on the ranch seem to be young and healthy, which is a stark contrast from Crooks. In addition, Crooks is also the only black man on the ranch, and he is discriminated against because of it. When Lennie asks him why he can't play cards with the others, Crooks replies, “‘They play cards in there, but I can't play because I'm black. They say I stink’” (68). It is clear that Crooks wants to be included,

In the novel "Of Mice and Men" John Steinbeck, the author, uses the character of Crooks to represent racism and symbolize the marginalization of the black community occurring at the time in which the novel is set. Crooks is significant as he provides an insight into the reality of the American Dream and the feelings of all the ranchers: their loneliness and need for company and human interaction. Crooks got his name from his "crooked back," this suggests he represents something different and he is not your average ranch hand. The reader has to decide whether Crooks deserves sympathy, or if he is just a bitter, cruel and gruff stable-buck.

In Steinbeck’s novel, when individuals feel like someone doesn’t belong with them, their instinct is to treat that person cruelly. Crooks is a black stable buck that is discriminated against throughout the book because of his race. The other men believe that Crooks doesn’t belong because of his skin color, so they make him sleep with the horses. As a result of the torment they put him through, Crooks becomes a very bitter person. When he is talking to Lennie in the stable Crooks tells him, “They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink.” (68) Their intentions are cruel. They treat Crooks like he is an animal. They feel uncomfortable around him, so they just ignore him completely. Crooks gets fed up with all of the negative treatment and his heart hardens. He feels like he is doesn’t fit in with the others on the farm. People have told Crooks that he is different throughout his life. He starts to believe