Loneliness 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

Friends are needed in a person’s life for emotional stability whom without would lead to a life of loneliness and solitude. In the novel, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the characters Crooks, Candy and Curly’s wife exhibit a form of loneliness. They are driven to George and Lennie’s friendship because they lack support and that emotional stability in their own lives."A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't matter no difference who the guy is, longs he with you. I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an he gets sick" (Steinbeck, 13). Throughout his novel, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck shows that victims of isolation crave to fulfill a companionship to fill in that void of loneliness.

Loneliness is one of many central themes in John Steinbeck’s classic novella, Of Mice and Men. Throughout the story many characters sought after the company and attention of others. Each character has a certain barrier that keeps them isolated from the outside world. Three characters who portray this loneliness throughout the novella are Crooks, Curly’s wife, and Candy. Each having a different wall between them and society.

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 Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck utilizes loneliness as an overarching theme, there is however one character that is noticeably longer than the others in Steinbeck's novella. This character is Crooks, a bitter and aloof man, he used to have a family with brothers and a 10 acre chicken ranch. Now he lives the life of a stable buck isolated by his race (he is the only African American on the ranch) among other things (Steinbeck,2002). This loneliness truly characterises him and causes no end to his bitterness. John Steinbeck Portrays Crooks as the loneliest character because, he is isolated by race, disability, location and a lack of companionship.

“Guys like us, that work on ranches are the loneliness guys in the world. They got no family...we got a future. We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us” (Steinbeck 14). During the Great Depression, much of society is alienated while survival of the fittest prevails. The power of loneliness affects the individual involved as long as the society it is present in continues to harvest the discriminatory ways. During the 1930’s, the Great Depression was at its peak; The stock markets crashed, and a chain reaction caused the unemployment rates to rise to an all time high. Thus, migrant worker became popular because they were always needed on a farm and it was a way for one to find employment. In of Mice and Men, Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s wife are all victims of the Great Depression. Candy and Crooks work on the farm, while Curley’s wife is the flirtatious nuisance whose dreams were crushed. The pervasive emotion throughout this novella is loneliness. Loneliness is felt by Candy, Crooks, and and Curley’s wife, whether it’s being represented symbolically as the characters are fighting social devastation, learning to make it alone, or through their actions.

“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 72). The Great Depression, which occurred in the 1930s, was rough on migrant workers, young and old, women, and black people alike. Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks undergo loneliness and discrimination during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men characters Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks, like so many people during the 1930s, experience harrowing times of being isolated from everybody else during those times. The things they face are being separated in a different room, being shunned by men who think they are above them, and people thinking that they are too old and useless. The theme of loneliness is expressed and felt in the novella Of Mice and Men through the isolation and discrimination of Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks.

had an old dog at the beginning on the novel .He had this dog for a

He says to Lennie that he reads books all the time, but he also says “Books

The book Of Mice And Men is set a few miles south of Soledad, which

“A guy needs somebody-to be near him. A guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody...I tell ya, I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick” (Steinbeck 72-73), Crooks, an african american migrant worker, explains. Loneliness is a powerful theme in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Being lonely, whatever race, gender, or belief, will make anyone go to the point of insanity where it will affect you and those around you. Taking place in the 1930’s, during the time of the Great Depression. Migrant workers commonly traveled alone at the time in search of work. But George and Lennie, the main characters of this novella, are migrant workers who travel together. Steinbeck shows how these two men stand out from the others because they look out of each other. Candy, an old migrant worker, and Crooks, an african american migrant worker also play an important role in Of Mice and Men. Both of these characters reveal how George and Lennie’s relationship is different from the rest which helps them able to have the American Dream that is so desired by everyone at the time. Consequently, the theme of loneliness is revealed in the novella through the isolation felt by Candy, Crooks, and Lennie.

Loneliness can affect the way one perceives both themselves and those around them. They will often try convincing themselves that they are fine in solitude, but in reality they know they need others. Depending on the person, loneliness will be shown and handled differently. While some handle it better, others cannot take the pressures of it. In both John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and Nicole Krauss’s The History of Love, the characters deal with loneliness in ways that are both successful and, more often, unsuccessful.

Braidey Neace Mrs.Newell English 9 21 February 2018 Of Mice And Men Essay Option 3 The book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck uses loneliness and isolation to give a big central idea and theme of the book. Characters in this book are experiencing loneliness and they are faced to live a difficult life.

Imagine walking into work, and no one seems to even notice you. You are not welcomed and the smallest bit of acknowledgment you get is a nasty glare from your co-worker. This is what it feels like to be lonely. The people at your work ignore you to the max and you have no idea what it is like to have a friendly conversation. Many characters in Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men such as Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Candy are plagued by loneliness and alienation and are searching for friendship and acceptance.

‘Of mice and men’ is a tale of loneliness and hardship felt by the people living in America during the 1930 's. Written by John Steinbeck and published in 1937, it tells the heartbreaking story of two ranch workers during the depression; George Milton and Lennie Small. At the time America was very poor, with a shortage of jobs so people had to travel in search of new jobs. As many people were constantly moving, lasting friendships or relationships were hard to come across. People became scared to have friendships, scared of each other making them lonely and isolated. Most of the characters lived by ‘every man for himself’; only having to care for themselves, not having to worry about others and therefore