Essay on Lonelines in of Mice and Men

Loneliness is one of the primary themes in Of Mice and Men. Throughout the novel, John Steinbeck shows the enormous effect that loneliness has on the characters. Steinbeck most clearly illustrates this theme through Crooks, Candy, and Curley 's wife. Ranch hands are ideal types of people to portray as being lonely, because their constant travel leaves them without someone to talk to or share things with. Steinbeck also shows how important it is for every human being to have a companion. Companionship is necessary in order for someone to live an enjoyable life. Although loneliness affects each one of the characters in Of Mice and Men differently, they all experience negative feelings from their lack of

Crooks is the stable boy, he is neat, likes books and is pretty quiet. He is also black, because of this he is discriminated be the other men at the farm. This prejudice leads Crooks to be extreme isolated, left to tend the horses alone. When Lennie tries to make friends with Crooks he reacts defensively, as the text states, “Crooks scowled, but Lennie's disarming smile defeated him. "Come on in and set a while," Crooks said. "'Long as you won't get out and leave me alone, you might as well set down." His tone was a little more friendly.” This quote shows that since Crooks hasn’t had any friends for so long that he almost can't deal with someone trying to be nice and interact with him.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is book of many themes; one that is very prominent is loneliness. Loneliness is common in many people's lives and that is also true for the lives of the characters of the book. Almost all characters in the book are lonely in one way or the other.

Loneliness is the sadness resulting from being isolated or abandoned. Being lonely is almost always directly connected to relations between people, or the lack there of. Mother Teresa once said “Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.” In John Steinbecks classic novel, Of Mice And Men, the three characters, Crooks, Curley’s wife and Candy struggle with loneliness in different forms because of characteristics that they can’t control. All three characters deal with their loneliness by searching for companionship with others on the ranch and this works out differently for each of them.

This attachment is made towards Lennie by both Crooks and Curley’s wife. They take advantage of Lennie’s disability, and use him to assuage their solitude. Curley’s wife complains to Lennie of her isolation while in the barn, saying, “I get lonely,’(...) ‘You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad.” (Steinbeck, 87) She establishes outright that she is lonely, and uses that to persuade Lennie to speak to her. This was, however, unhealthy because she didn’t actually care about Lennie. When he stayed with her, she only talked about her past, and vented her issues, without a care for Lennie. In the same fashion, Crooks also chose to ignore any emotional needs that Lennie may have, preferring to speak only to alleviate his loneliness. When Lennie comes to Crooks’ room, Crooks is so desperate for another person to talk to-for a chance to be social-that it doesn’t matter to him that his words fall on deaf ears. He revels in the company, explaining, “So it don’t mean nothing, see? You couldn’t remember it anyways. I seen it over an’ over- a guy talkin’ to another guy and it don’t make no difference if he don’t hear or understand.”(Steinbeck, 71) This encounter between Crooks and Lennie affirms the fact that theirs isn’t a symbiotic relationship. Crooks is fueled by his need for human contact, and it makes absolutely no difference to him what Lennie feels or thinks. He is dependent on Lennie’s defective brain for assurance that he can just talk without having to worry, though a healthy relationship should include mutual understanding and care. Isolation is evidently not best relieved through a flimsy form of

Loneliness and exclusion from society hurts and affects everyone; the emotional strain a person endures from it creates the image they present to others, but deep down they are not the display image they manufacture. As an illustration, while opening up to Lennie in the barn Curley’s wife states, “I get lonely… You can talk to people, but I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad.

"'Cause I'm black.” (Stienbeck,2002). This is exemplifies how he is racially isolated. When Crooks was younger he had family but he was part of the only non-white family in the area and therefore had little companionship from an early age. While you could argue that because he has known nothing but loneliness he would therefore have no knowledge of another way of being it is hinted that Crooks used to be part of a relatively wealthy family with companions. He says, “"I remember when I was a little kid on my old man's chicken ranch. Had two brothers. They was always near me, always there.” (Stienbeck,2002). These examples both paint Crooks as a mournful person missing his old life and feeling constant loneliness regarding his current life. Crooks is also isolated by his community.

     Crooks is fascinated by the strength of the friendship of Lennie and George especially how close they are. Crooks said, "Well, s’pose, jus’ s’pose he don’t come back. What’ll you do then?" (Steinbeck, 79) Crooks asks these questions because he does not have any friends. He was curious about the friendship of Lennie and George. He wants the people to feel the way that he did when he was lonely, having nobody with them. He is striving to achieve sympathy and understanding from others. Crooks would work for

Isolation and loneliness can plague even those who socialize with others the most. Although all the main characters in this novel live in such close quarters, and socialize with each other on a daily basis, they are still isolated in their own ways. There are many factors that can lead to loneliness, such as race, intelligence and general appearance. The constant fear of being lonely, can also lead a person to be even more isolated. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, isolation and loneliness are evident through several key characters; Crooks, George, and Candy.

He describes how the working men at the ranch felt in the novel. To the working men in the ranch, the relationship between Lennie and George seemed very unusual to them clearly showing the aloneness at the ranch between the men. He also uses Candy to illustrate loneliness by showing how lonely Candy gets after his dog was shot. Another character was Curly’s wife. She was shown lonely simply by saying she was the only woman on the ranch resulting her to make countless efforts of trying to make freinds with the working men.

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.

     The friendship between Lennie and George went beyond what was unambiguous, they shared a common dream, and they never stopped trying to acheive their dream. They dream of a peice of land of their own. Independence. A couple of acres, a cow, some pigs, and rabbits that Lennie dreams of tending to. Their dream will later be shattered by fate.

As the story develops, Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife all confess their deep loneliness. The fact that they admit to complete strangers their fear of being cast off shows their desperation. In a world without friends to confide in, strangers will have to do. Each of these characters searches for a friend, someone to help them measure the world, as Crooks says. In the end, however, companionship of his kind seems unattainable. For George, the hope of such companionship dies with Lennie, and true to his original estimation, he will go through life alone.

Throughout the book, Steinbeck uses many characters to show loneliness. One of those characters is Crooks. Crooks suffers from extreme loneliness. Crooks lives in a bunkhouse where he is surrounded by many racist men that spend their time discriminating him just for being black. He lives by himself because the other workers won’t let him be with them. “ I ain’t wanted in the bunkhouse,” “ Why ain’t you wanted?” “” Cause I’m black. They play cards in there because I’m black.” (Steinbeck p.g 68) Also, Crooks admitted himself that he’s lonely. “A guy needs somebody -- to be near him.” “ A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody. Don’t make no difference who the guy is, long’s he’s with you. (Steinbeck p.g 72) In this quote, Crooks is telling Lennie that as long as you 're with someone doesn’t matter who it is,

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