“I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick… He can’t turn to some other guy and ast him whether it’s right or not. He got nothing to measure by” (Steinbeck 73). This is something Crooks says while talking to Lennie about himself. He’s explaining what it’s like to be him, all alone, with no one by your side . In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, marginalization plays a very large role in many of the characters lives. To put it simply, marginalization is when someone, or a group of people is treated as insignificant. Along with Crooks, Lennie and Candy are also marginalized by the rest of society. However, people can be marginalized in different ways. There is more than one reason for someone to be seen as less important or insignificant, …show more content…
Unlike all of the other characters in the story, Crooks is treated as an outcast for one very simple reason that everyone can see, he’s black. In more current and progressive times, people of african descent are treated much more equally than in the past when this story took place. The problem is that people have always discriminated against others for being different, no matter how different they are. If someone has a crooked nose, people will make fun of it. If someone has a lazy eye, people will make fun of it. If someone is in the vast minority and looks completely different from most other people, people are definitely going to marginalize that person. In the story when Crooks tells Lennie to leave his room, he mentions how he isn’t allowed in the bunkhouse. Lennie responds by asking why he isn’t wanted, and crooks says simply, “Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all stink to me” (Steinbeck 34). In that small statement he summed up every single reason why we has lived in marginalization for his entire life, it’s simply because he’s black. Just because he was born a certain way, he is treated as less of a human, and there is nothing he can do about it, he just has to live his life being isolated and …show more content…
Unlike Crooks, Lennie is treated differently because of what’s on the inside and the outside. People are terrified of the colossal giant they witness on the outside, yet they also tease and make fun of the simple minded soul on the inside. He is seen as an outcast for two reasons, both very different from each other. Nearly every single person in the entire book makes comment on how he’s so odd. The only person who is always there for him is George, but even then, George doesn’t respect Lennie. In chapter four of the book, when all of the guys go to the brothel and Lennie goes to see Crooks, he asks Lennie to leave. Lennie replys by saying, “Ever’body went into town, Slim and George and ever’body. George says I gotta stay here an’ not get in no trouble” (Steinbeck 34) Here you can see that George doesn’t treat Lennie as an equal, he’s more taking care of him, he thinks of Lennie like a dog or something you have to constantly look after or it’s going to mess something up. This shows that every person in the book marginalizes Lennie, even George, someone who he sees as his closest friend treats him differently than everyone else. He has become a burden to everyone around him, and now he is just
Lennie is judged because he acts childish and is labeled as immature. Lennie is imitating George: “He pushed himself back, drew up his knees, embraced them, looked over to George to see whether he had it just right.”(Steinbeck 4). Lennie is trying to be exactly like George showing that he looks up to him, like children do.
Why are people treated differently and why are they isolated from others? The book I read was Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. The story is about two men named George and Lennie who move from place to place in California, searching for new job opportunities. Crooks and Candy are marginalized because they are different from the other men.
Marginalization, also known as social exclusion, is a popular theme in the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Characters were marginalized because of their race, gender and disability. The characters that were marginalized are Curley's wife, Lennie and Crooks, to name a few. These characters face many difficulties because of things that were out of their control.
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, Steinbeck cleverly incorporates a main problem that America faces: racism. Racism is the
Throughout the novel Lennie is heavily discriminated against. He is different than the rest of the men that work on any of the farms. George tells Lennie to be quiet when meeting new bosses because he doesn’t want people to jump to conclusions about Lennie before they get a chance to see the work that he can do.””O.K. Now when we go in to see the boss, what you gonna do?” Lennie thought. His face got tight with thought. “I…. ain’t gonna say nothin’. Jus’ gonna stan’ there.” ”Good boy. That’s swell. You say that over two,three times so you sure won’t forget it,”” (6) George treats Lennie like he is a helpless little kid who can’t think for himself, so George always tells Lennie how to act or what to say. George wants to get the job and if he says the wrong thing about him and Lennie being together or why he won’t let him speak it could cost
Because of his mental disability he does things that further put him out of the “normal” group of ranch hands. Lennie has a good friend in George but he is portrayed as being lonley in the book anyway. He just wants to be like every one else on the ranch.
“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
If a person does the same job as another and experiences the same things, why should he or she get treated differently? In the book Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, every character has their own individual role and different characteristic. Even though the characters are all different, they all related back to each other in some way. Except Crooks, he was different in every way to the other character's since he was not the same race. Crooks race played a very important role in the story, and it was to be the "different" one.
Throughout Of Mice And Men, by John Stienbeck, the minor character Crook who try to live independently and have some security. He isolated from the others because of his race. Crooks has been lonely and friendless. Nobody except his boss ever came into his house before. Steinbeck’s use of diction conveys the struggle and discrimination of the African Americans in the early 19’s.
I could also notice when I was reading through the first chapter that George has a sense of authority over Lennie, “you gonna get that wood”. This is like a parent telling a child to do his chores. On some occasions though George shows a bit of hatred towards Lennie, he thinks of what he could have if Lennie wasn’t around and contrasts that with George.
Marginalization of People of color John Steinbeck, the author of “Of Mice and Men,” uses ideas of marginalization to show the readers of his novel the effects marginalization has on our society. The main character that Steinbeck uses to illustrate this idea is Crooks. Crooks is the poorly treated stable buck. He is mistreated because he is black unlike the ranchers who are white. He is segregated and forced to sleep in the stable with the horses because of something that is out of his control.
Racial discrimination has been around for a long time, judging people for the color of their skin. Crooks is affected by
“Look, George. Look what I done” (Steinbeck, Pg. 3). Here Steinbeck gives us the idea that Lennie looks up to George in everything he does like a child does to his parents. Lennie can’t take of himself since he is mentally handicapped so we get an idea that even though they are just friends, George is like a father figure to Lennie. Also by the word choice in the dialogue we can see that Lennie communicates in a particular way like if he just learn to speak, therefore he could be compared as a child. “I wasn’t doin’ nothing bad with it, George. Jus’ strokin’ it.” Steinbeck uses dialogue to give us an idea of George’s strong personality. “Don’t let him pull you in-but- if the son of a bitch” This quote gives us the idea that George’s personality is very strong and defensive by the explicit language which shows us anger. Also it gives us a idea that even though he is strong and aggressive he cares about what happens to Lennie. This can relate to the link that he treats him like he is his
Crooks brings into perspective the loneliness experienced by all the characters in "Of Mice and Men" by saying "a guy gets too lonely, an' he gets sick." He is telling of the need for human interaction, the need for company and the need for someone to care and provide security. The oppression Crooks experiences in living in a barn and not in the bunkhouse where he could play rummy as one of the group leads him to this desperate plea to be realised as equal. Just because when he cuts himself, the blood he bleeds is looked upon as different from a white perspective, this does not mean he is not entitled to benefit from human nature. John Steinbeck is portraying here the feelings of Americans of his day and age: their aloneness and their salvation - in the American Dream.