Isolation And Isolation In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Just as Havisham and Curley’s wife’s isolation is because of their gender, Crooks in “Of Mice and Men” is presented as the epitome of the frustration and loneliness caused by isolation. However, Crooks’s isolation is not due to his gender, but his colour and race. In “Of Mice and Men”, Steinbeck presents Crooks as an isolated character due to his race. He names Crooks as Crooks because he has a crooked back and he is called “Nigger” implying that he is unimportant. Steinbeck portrays Crooks’s loneliness through “this is just a nigger talking a bust-back nigger. So it don’t mean nothing” and “nobody’d listen to you”, these can be inferred as Crooks has a low status in the ranch, no one has ever listened to him. This can also be referred to the

Barbara Sher once said, “‘Isolation is a dream killer’” (qtd. in Wishcraft). In his novella, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck scrutinizes the effects that alienation can have on society. Many characters experience loneliness throughout the novel. He illustrates the results of individuals becoming isolated from their peers. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck portrays characters alienated from society in order to illustrate the harmful effects of loneliness caused by discrimination.

In a society of people all in the same situations how can someone feel so alone. When lives fall apart and people have nothing to hold on to people need each other most, yet are pushed so far from others. The novel Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, follows the storyline of two men who are displaced farm workers during the Great Depression; they travel around and stick by each other’s sides no matter the circumstance. After many jobs they end up on a farm,the farm they hope will be their last stop. The time spent on the farm is filled with blooming friendships and careless quarrels, yet with an abundance of characters and entertainment- many people on the farm feel alone and out of place. Characters such as Crooks and Curley’s wife often come to mind when the subject of loneliness is brought up. Throughout the book using characters such as Crooks and Curley's wife, John Steinbeck demonstrates that humans are immensely impacted by separation from society and it will change the way that people will act and show themselves to others.

In the story Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, he illustrates that when someone is thought of as being different, they tend to be left in the dust and not taken care of properly. Throughout the book he sets the tone as being negative towards those who might not be fit into the social norms. The characters Crooks and Curley's wife are depicted as being isolated and lonely, almost like they are outcasts because of who they are as people, which suggests that isolation from the world can cause people to yearn for a sense of belonging and lose their self-worth.

In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, he illustrates the journey George and Lennie have throughout a significant part of their lifetime. Throughout the novel, many characters, including George and Lennie, are facing lonesome and they struggle to deal with it the right way. Most of the men are all alone because they have no family left or they isolate themselves from their peers. Loneliness touches each character at some point in the novel and it really emphasizes the impact it can have on an individual. Steinbeck uses the characters Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Candy to develop the theme that containing loneliness will make someone’s desperation deepen.

Isolation occurs when one does not have a support system where they can talk and express their thoughts and emotions. Isolation in the novel Of Mice and Men highlights the effects of  human nature by portraying it as something social and dependant on others rather than individuals first. This is shown by the characters when they get affected by isolation and become destructive, delusional, and desensitized from other people.

David Chase a writer for the show Sopranos once said, “I said it's a cold universe and I don't mean that metaphorically. If you go out into space, it's cold. It's really cold and we don't know what's up there. We happen to be in this little pocket where there's a sun. What have we got except love and each other to guard against all that isolation and loneliness?”. Like society today, in Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men there are many outsiders. Ranging from women to people of color. People with differences are looked down upon. Every character is an outsider in their own way. Steinbeck uses the outsider to prove isolation occurs when people have differences.

“Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty,” said Mother Teresa. Humanity has struggled against being left alone and being lonely for a long time. As a result, humans formed a society where they could be together. On the other hand, there are still people who are left out of the society. In other words, there are still people out there who are marginalized, not accepted fairly to the society. John Steinbeck shows the marginalized people’s lives in his novel, Of Mice and Men. In his novel, characters such as Lennie, George, Candy, Curley’s wife, Crooks, and even the ranch workers, are marginalized from the society. Ranch workers like George, Candy, and Lennie have nowhere to go, and they do not have anybody to care for them. Especially for Lennie, he is mentally challenged, too. Crooks, being the colored man, suffers from discrimination. Curley’s wife is constantly surrounded with loneliness. In Of Mice and Men, marginalized people who are neglected from the society, create a society of their own; they share their dreams and help each other out although they are all different from each other.

In the novel “Of Mice and Men”, John Steinbeck demonstrates the incapability and isolation for ranch workers to endure and survive with loneliness and how they handle it.

“Want me to tell ya what’ll happen? They’ll take ya to the booby hatch. They’ll tie ya up with a collar, like a dog” (Steinbeck 72). Discrimination plays a large role to feeling lonely. In the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, characters endure attempts by society to make them “invisible.” These include racism, ageism, sexism, and isolation. More specifically, three of these characters experience loneliness from acts of discrimination. Factors contributing to their loneliness include ageism, disability discrimination, and racism. Each of these characters are migrant workers during the Great Depression who are discriminated against in different ways. Thus, through Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife, Steinbeck reveals the powerful

Isolation is defined by Webster as the state of being in a place or situation that is separate from others. In the book, iIsolation is arguably the number one reason why these mMigrant workers act the way they do. George and Lennie are the exception to the rule because they have each other. Throughout the book, the effects of iIsolation can be noticed per the behavior of the other migrant workers. The way they act and how they perceive George and Lennie’s relationship is a direct example of the effect of isolation on human behavior.

Isolation can manifest itself in a person’s life both physically and emotionally, and it’s a bitter experience either way. Some people face prejudice because of their race while some face prejudice because of their gender or physical capabilities. In the microcosm of Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck includes various characters who stand different from the rest, like Candy, Lennie, Crooks, and Curley’s wife. Although they’re quite different from each other, they have all been rejected by others in some shape or form. With these characters, Steinbeck suggests that when people endure prejudice, they tend to isolate themselves as a result in order to protect themselves, but this leads to loneliness and more hurt.

During the Great Depression, it was not uncommon to become morosely secluded while working. Men would go far away from their families in search of any jobs they could get, with only themselves to confide in; colleagues only filling in the void of friends and family partially. Naturally, John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, written during this period, would reflect this fact as a major aspect of the story. Loneliness would become the sinew of Of Mice and Men, manifested in some of the story’s main characters: Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife. These allusions to loneliness are found throughout the book, mimicking the rampant disease of isolation at the time.

Loneliness and Isolation Loneliness is an emotion, but more so a disease that can kill the heart and soul. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is a very captivating book . Where you could find many lessons in his writing. John Steinbeck wrote this book focusing on the 1930’s working class. In Of Mice and Men there is many symbolisms, there is an important theme and message, and there are things John connected to the book from his own experiences.

At some point in one’s life there is not only contentment or grief, but a state of loneliness. Loneliness is a part of human life, although some suffer from isolation more than others. Being lonely can lead to depression or create a different persona in oneself. Struggling through isolation can eventually kill one’s soul, expecting no hope or ending up in dangerous situations. The novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck portrays the theme of loneliness especially through two characters. Crooks and Curley’s wife experience the state of isolation as they crave for a friend or someone they can talk with. Steinbeck urges readers to feel pathos when analyzing Crooks and Curley’s wife through the nature of their isolation, their actions and