Of Mice And Men Loneliness Analysis

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.

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.

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.

"'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.

“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.

The character Crooks has shown loneliness throughout the whole story and that drives him to a point where he doesn’t want to be existent to all the other men. In the middle of the book Lennie and Crooks start a conversation and Crooks explains how he’s feeling. Steinbeck writes, “‘They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, all of you stink to me’”(68). Crooks doesn’t get much sympathy from the men because he is black. He is so desperate to play cards with the guys, but all of them leave him out and makes him feel even more lonely. Crooks experiences the most desolation because the men tell him that he “stinks” and can’t play cards because he’s “black. In addition to the last example, the novel also explains in the story how separated Crooks is from everybody else and shows us how alone he actually is. Crooks is the most lonely character in the novel and it shows by his actions and personality. Steinbeck shows, “This room was swept and fairly neat, for Crooks was a proud, aloof man. He kept his distance and demanded that other people keep theirs” (67). He felt desperate enough to tell the men to keep their distance so he

“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.

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.

To have self-respect or respect for others is hard to do in the modern world, let alone The Dust Bowl and Great Depression where everyone is struggling for themselves. It is stressful for anybody living on the edge of society while keeping your composure as well as having a thought for others in a difficult time. John Steinbeck, the author of Of Mice of Men as well as The Grapes of Wrath has given nobility to Tom Joad, Ma Joad, Crooks, and Slim. Through the struggle of isolation, not letting the past affect one's future, sacrifice, and authority, people have the ability to attain one's dignity even in a time of despair.

In the novel, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck, he shows the theme the pain of loneliness all throughout the story. Steinbeck demonstrates this theme in three main characters; Candy, Crooks, and Curley’s Wife. These three characters express this theme in multiple ways throughout this story. The first character introduced to us, that demonstrates the pain of loneliness, is Candy. Candy in an old man who works on the ranch and has only one hand, his left hand.

Imagine that you are treated like trash, forced to live alone or suppose that you are only allowed to speak to your spouse, no one else. Wouldn’t this continuous cycle of mistreatment and being ignored make you feel lonely? The biggest characters that follow this trend were written about by John Steinbeck. Both of them can be found in his novel, Of Mice and Men. These aren’t the main characters, however they both interact with Lennie and George throughout the novel.

Loneliness,we’ve all felt it before. Whether by ourselves, or surrounded by people, the feeling of loneliness is an inevitable feeling. It hits you,and what do you do? You try to find something to fill the void;too make you less lonely. In the book Of Mice and Men,loneliness is just one of many underlying themes,people are often driven to find some sort of friendship in order to escape loneliness. It could be another person,maybe it’s an animal. However it is done, a form of friendship is formed,and the loneliness is gone.

What is the significance of loneliness in the novel and how does it affect the characters in John Steinbeck’s novel, of Mice and Men? Loneliness can be used by authors in many ways such as describing isolation to the audience or even in the matter of proving that people do not have an equal chance of achieving something. The significance of loneliness in of Mice and Men is to show that not everyone is not allowed or not given the chance to partake in the promise of the American Dream.

‘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