Discrimination In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

One of the major themes in Of Mice and Men is how the characters respond to discrimination. Discrimination is the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of people or things, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex (website). Mostly all of the ranch hands are discriminated for the reason that they are poor, homeless, labourers. As stated in chapter 3, “After a long time they get mean. They get wantin’ to fight all the time.” Clearly this discrimination has a negative effect on their behaviors. Out of all the characters Crooks and Curly’s wife were discriminated against the most. Crooks for his age, is isolated in the barn to live alone with only a

Discrimination if often based on many qualities and abilities. Some of the most clearly shown examples in John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men are gender, age and racial discrimination. The victims of these types of discrimination are Curley’s wife, who is unhappy and bitter about her life, Candy, the old, disabled swamper and Crooks, the black stable buck. Throughout the novel, these three characters face many hardships because they are harshly judged and often misunderstood.

In ‘Of Mice and Men’ most of the characters are subjected to discrimination and prejudice. The prejudice can be seen most in the characters Lennie Small, Crooks and Curley’s Wife.

1. Steinbeck has his characters use racially derogatory terms. Why do you think he uses this language? Given the context of the story, are these terms necessary? Is there any evidence to suggest that Steinbeck shares his characters’ bigoted views of minorities?

The 1930’s was a time period in which discrimination played a vital role in the lives of minorities. In the 1930’s, men were in search for jobs on the ranches and women were generally working inside the house. Although the 1930’s seems pretty far back, discrimination still occurs in society today and can either be intentional or nonintentional. There are several different forms of discrimination: racial, disabled, age, and sexual. Any type of discrimination is harmful to the individual and often times leaves them feeling alienated and lonely. All of these types of discrimination are seen in the characters of John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men. Past history of discrimination has influenced him to display it in his novel. Each person’s type

Imagine living in The Great Depression on a ranch where you work for a boss who pays you $50 a month and provides you with your daily meals. Sounds like a good deal right? That is where things become a little controversial especially in the novel Of Mice and Men. Multiple characters within the novel are treated differently due to their gender, race, and mental ability. Discrimination is a terrible thing and Of Mice and Men provides examples why this is.

Discrimination plays a big role in Of Mice and Men, since it takes place during the Great Depression. Racial segregation, gender rights, and handicap vulnerability are all problems in Of Mice and Men that reflect the society at the time. Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Candy are discriminated against on the ranch just like they would be in society.

The final type of discrimination shown in the novel is discrimination against the physically and mentally disabled, in this case, Candy, Lennie, and once again Crooks. Because of disabilities, they are the weakness on which the stronger majority of the other men prey upon. Candy, the one handed housekeeper, is only allowed to live at the ranch as a compensation, because the loss of his hand occurred there. He gives the men power over him by being overly careful in what he does and says, because if he gets thrown out from the ranch, no one would take him. And just for that reason, he is drawn into George and Lennie?s dream of owning a farm. He wants the security of knowing that he has somewhere to stay for the rest of his life, and that he will not be discarded

In the novel, Of Mice & Men by John Steinbeck, he develops a theme that shows racism is a learned trait. He uses Crooks, the black stableman, and presents readers of a flashback of his father telling him, “The white children are you friends now, but as you grow up things will change and they will hate you because you're different”. To most this statement shows racism on a surface level, but as readers start to analyze text they see this theme represented by Lennie. He is stuck in a childlike state, yet he does not discriminate against Crooks, contrasting to how the adults treat him. This helps develop the theme that racism is a learned trait.

In the novella, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, two characters, Crooks and Curley’s wife, help me understand the message ‘Discrimination isolates people’. The book takes place in Soledad, California, mid 1930’s, during the Great Depression, at a time when discrimination of skin colour and gender plagued America.

In the novella, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the diverse set of characters individually handle oppression on a daily basis. For these characters, racist, sexist and degrading remarks are normal for the time period (early 1900’s). The story is about two men, Lennie and George, trying to find work in a troubling economic time while also trying to overcome Lennie’s mental handicap. They also meet other people that have to overcome their own “setbacks”. The author shows oppression of the characters through their effect on others, actions, and their dialogue.

Discrimination is a problem that plagues those whose qualities are vulnerable. There are many examples of discrimination in the novel, Of Mice and Men. The characters face discrimination in many different ways including racial, age, gender, and disability. Crooks, the black stable buck, is the victim of racial discrimination. Candy, the old swamper, is a victim of the age discrimination. The victim of gender discrimination is Curley's wife because she is a woman. Life of the victims is hard because of the things they have to go through. Lastly, Lennie is mentally handicap so he discriminated against because of that.

In John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men characters in the novel are segregated by sex, race, age, physical and mental disabilities. John Steinbeck portrays the intolerance and bigotry of 1930’s America through the separation of his characters based on their handicaps. Lennie, Candy, Candy’s dog, Curley’s wife and Crooks all face social pressure from the other characters on the ranch based on their intelligence, physical disability, age, sex and color. Stereotyping based on ethnic or physical characteristics is typical to the 1930’s depression where civil rights for minority groups had not yet been addressed. Almost all of the characters who, in

“Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts.” This quote, once said by E. B. White, excellently states what the novel, Of Mice and Men, is trying to clearly state. Of Mice and Men is a profound novel that has many things to teach society. This novel, written by John Steinbeck, reflects many flaws in the world today. It mirrors many of the characteristics that every human possesses. Prejudice is still a common way of thinking in today’s society, and to the people who feel victimized, it can be hard to overcome. Curley’s wife, Lennie, and Crooks all deal with prejudice against themselves different ways.

Almost all the characters symbolize a certain type of discrimination but the strongest characters that portray discrimination in society is Candy and Candy’s dog, Crooks, and Curley’s wife. Candy is an old man that worked on the ranch until he had his arm cut off and was incapable of doing any heavy work and his dog was too an old, smelly dog who couldn’t do any work because of his age. Candy and his dog are a symbol of how the old, disabled, or infirmed are not valued in society nor are they wanted. Just like Candy’s dog can be replaced by a new, young pup, Candy can be replaced by a younger, stronger, and more capable worker. Crooks is a negro stable buck and represents discrimination of race. Crooks has his own corner of the stable where he sleeps and puts all his things in because the other men don’t want him in the bunkhouse because he is black. “‘Why ain’t you wanted?’ Lennie asked. ‘’Cause I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, all of you stink to me.’(68)” White people have power over him so if he makes any mistake he can be easily cut off and canned. This is shown when Curley’s wife shuts him down in a conversation, “Listen nigger. You know what I can do if you open your trap?” There is also Curley’s wife who represents discrimination of gender. Curley’s wife is a sweet, young girl who lives on the ranch with Curley where there are no other women but her so she tries to talk to the men. But since she is married she isn’t allowed to talk to anybody but Curley or she’ll be accused of being a flirt or a “tart”. Not only does