From the Weak to the Strong: The Social Hierarchy of Mice and Men
Since the beginning of society men have always followed a social hierarchy; a concept Charles Darwin studied intensely. Through this ideal, the strong prey on the weak and the weak are isolated, taken advantage of, and often humiliated. In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck recreates a social hierarchy between his supporting characters to prove that those who are weak and vulnerable are subject to ostracism and ridicule. At the bottom of the hierarchical chain, Lennie becomes the epitome of what Steinbeck believes is the weakest, most “unfit” member of society. Darwin’s classifies “fitness”, in a social manner, as the ability a person to adapt and integrate
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Women are mostly irrelevant throughout Of Mice and Men and when they are introduced they are regarded as either pleasure givers or pleasure seekers. The pleasure givers are women who reside in a brothel and are worth only “two an’ a half” (52). The other women are automatically categorized as pleasure seekers which can be seen though Curley’s wife who, in reality, simply craves some company since she “never get[s] to talk to nobody” (86). Steinbeck fails to even dignify her as a person by refusing to give her a proper name. Instead, she is referred to as Curley’s wife: a piece of Curley’s property. Those above her in the hierarchy ignore or silence her voice, especially in regards to what she aspires to be or to have, her dreams. She is completely ostracized by the other men on the ranch because of her prescribed reputation as pleasure giver since she is a woman, so when Curley’s wife is able to socialize with the only person with whom she can, someone who is lower than her socially, Lennie, she relays her “story quickly, before she could be interrupted” (88). The fact that Steinbeck places Curley’s wife above Crooks and Lennie in the social ladder emphasizes how futile those characters are; if a character viewed as a piece of property is placed above another character than that latter character must be significantly
The next time Steinbeck presents Curleys wife is in her conversation with Lennie, Candy and Crooks. In this extract we see how Curleys wife clearly enjoys having power over others and because she is the only girl on the ranch she is prone to discrimination by being made to feel like one of Curleys possessions. We first get
A social issue that Steinbeck desired to reveal in Of Mice and Men was the reality women were facing as they were regarded as property or objects and not as individual people in the 1930s. Women would often times not even have the chance to defend and explain themselves against this cynical perspective on them, “Well, I think Curley's married a tart... ‘Listen to me, you crazy bastard,’ he said fiercely ‘Don’t you even take a look at at that bitch’...You mean Curly's girl?” (Steinbeck 28, 32, 55). The first thing we hear George say about Curley’s wife is that she’s a tart and the second thing we hear about her that
The historical views of woman have set a common pattern that influences the expression of thought regarding gender. This is evident in the book “Of Mice and Men”, within the character of Curley’s Wife. She is the only woman on the ranch, it is described to us that she has a flirtatious attitude. They see her as someone who is a source of temptation and evil and give her no voice in the matter. It is shown that they see her as a source of desire and sin by trying their best to avoid her and evade conversations. George even goes to the extent of telling Lennie to stay away from her since she has the potential to create trouble. She has no voice in this and becomes extremely lonely. This is proven when she opens up her past to the new and mentally
You can judge a society by its treatment of the old, the weak, the helpless and the needy. Through the narrative conventions of foreshadowing and characterisation, John Steinbeck, in his novel Of Mice And Men, published in 1937, is able to effectively reveal the imperfections of America’s capitalist
Essay about Curley’s wife Curley’s wife is the only female character in the novel Of Mice of Men; Curley’s wife is never given a name and is only referred to in reference to her husband. Like the other people on the ranch, she is very lonely and has dreams of a better life which never come true. The author John Steinbeck introduces Curley’s wife in a symbolic ness way, this is shown when George is talking to Lennie about the dream and when Curley’s wife first meets both the men. “Both men glanced up, for the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off.
A gender theorist might criticize Steinbeck’s depiction of Curley’s wife in the novel, specifically in Chapter 4, because Curley’s wife stereotypes Crooks for being a darker color and treats him much worse than the white men. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck makes Curley’s wife seem as if she is a madwoman, ultimately revealing his opinion about women’s rights and their stereotype in the specific time period that he wrote the book. “I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.”(81) In this quote, Curley’s wife directs her statement towards Crooks, and threatens him with death, which is an extreme punishment. Although Curley’s wife wouldn’t seem to be sympathetic towards others, she is sympathetic towards Lennie even though
INTRODUCTION: In the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’, Steinbeck has used many different language features in order to create such a complex and sophisticated character whom I will be investigating - Curley’s wife. Curley’s wife is a pivotal character. She has been presented as a villain in the early stages of the book and her character seems to unravel as we read on. As a reader, we comprehend the factors which had influenced her actions and how living in a misogynistic society has affected the way she behaves - alternating the way we feel about this character and instead sympathy begins to develop, demolishing all the
In the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ the author, John Steinbeck, sets the book in California during the Great Depression in the 1930s where two men George Milton and Lennie Small go to work on a ranch after escaping from Weeds where Lennie ripped the dress on a girl because he likes ‘soft things’ . They came to the ranch to earn enough money so they can accomplish their dream of owning the own ranch and working off the ‘fatta of the land’. In the novel Steinbeck introduces a character called ‘Curley’s wife’ where she is the only female character in the book and has a reputation for causing trouble and flirting with the other ranchmen. Steinbeck doesn’t give her a name as if she wasn’t a human being but only an object that people could control
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.
John Steinbeck uses Curley 's wife to portray the woman 's role in the 1930s. Back then, women were treated as property and trophies to their husbands. Women 's insignificance is signified by the fact that Curley 's wife is never given a name. She is always referred to as Curley 's belonging. Additionally, Carlson 's statement about Curley 's wife needing to go back to her place where she belongs characterizes women 's roles by saying that women should be at home performing domestic chores. In essence, women were looked down upon and never seen as equal to the men.
John Steinbeck uses different methods to present Curley’s Wife and women in the 1930s. Throughout the novella Steinbeck represents women to be lower in society than men. In the novella women only have three different roles. A wife, an aunt and prostitutes. Steinbeck uses these roles to show the roles of women in society. Curley’s wife, Aunt Clara and Susy and Clara from the cathouse represent he microcosm of the women in American society.
The long, hard war of human equality in society, has been a war since the beginning of civilization. The Great Depression, a tragic time in America’s history, reflects American determination, but also social inequality. In the fiction novella, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses symbolism and characterization to address ableism and sexism in society. Steinbeck addresses these flaws in society in an attempt to ultimately bring awareness these riffs before society falls.
The novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck emphasizes the division in social classes and social structure based on power. The novel and its themes are based around the characters’ interactions and decisions. Their motivations come directly from other characters, and the social construct on the ranch that controls the characters within the novel. Each character has their own journey of giving into the powers that control their society and lives which leads to each of their own inescapable demises.
Generally, during the course of the novel, women are viewed negatively. They are seen as objects, not real people. For example, throughout the novel, Curley's wife is merely known as 'Curley's wife'. She is never called by her real name. The term 'Curley's wife' implies she is owned by Curley, and not a person with freedom. From this, the reader can tell that Curley's wife lives in an unfair World, in an era of inequality. This suggests Steinbeck
John Ernst Steinbeck Jr. was an American author wrote many novels including one of his most famous, Of Mice and Men. Of Mice and Men teaches many lessons about the nature of human existence. Each relationship grows throughout this short story and end with a dramatic experience. All of the characters, including Lennie, George, Crooks, and Curley’s wife, admit, at one time or another, to having a profound sense of isolation, seclusion and loneliness.