Racism In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Marguerite Gardiner once stated “Prejudices are the chains forged by ignorance to keep men apart” (Gardiner). This quotation suggests that prejudice is the symbol of ignorance, for men to either recognize or ignore the judgements they hold against others. Prejudice creates barriers for people with different backgrounds, which makes it harder for people to communicate with each other. In these two articles, one titled “Of Mice and Men, Masterplots, Fourth Edition,” by Angela D. Hickey and the other titled “Of Mice and Men, Masterplots II: Juvenile & Young Adult Literature Series, Supplement,” by Lynn C. Munro, the authors explain the way John Steinbeck wrote about prejudice. These authors also demonstrate various kinds of prejudice can make it difficult for many to achieve the American Dream. In the novel “Of Mice and Men”, author John Steinbeck reflects on the prejudice that even still plagues modern times. The novel is set in the rural Salinas valleys of California. The issues in the novel illustrates the routine and frustrations in the lifestyle of a nomadic migrant worker. Steinbeck uses the main characters’ personalities to show how people were affected during the Great Depression. He also incorporates the idea of the American Dream, and how every character has their own vision of it.

In Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, power struggles are an evident topic in social groups, racial groups and between individuals. Lennie struggles against his ill-equipped mind’s way of viewing the world, Crooks faces discrimination because of the colour of his skin, and three separate people all experience feelings of loneliness and isolation.

“I ain’t a southern negro,” he said. “I was born right here in California." With these

Equality has been a hot topic in the past century. Women and African-Americans have not had equality for that long. Women gained quality in the 1920s and African-Americans gained equality in the 1960s. It took them a lot of time to get those rights and dream in Of Mice and Men, show equality must be worked for. In Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck utilizes the characters of Crooks and Curley’s wife to illustrate that equality takes a long time to come by.

The novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck begins and ends in 1930’s southern California, during the great depression. This book is centered around two main characters, George Milton and Lennie Small. George is a short, quick thinking man, and Lennie is pretty much his opposite: huge, clumsy, and mentally ill. The book starts off with George and Lennie walking to a ranch to get work, which they desperately need. Once they get to the ranch, they meet several other folks, most of which suffer from some sort of oppression. There’s a black, a cripple, a woman, and a whole lot of poverty. In Of Mice and Men, oppression is presented as a major issue, one that affects nearly every character in the book to some degree, whether it be through racism, sexism, or ageism.

In chapter 4, Curley’s wife states, “well you keep your place then nigger. I could get you strung up on at so easy, it aint even funny.”(81). this is the type of language we see used towards the only African-American character in this story. The story of mice and Men was about two migrant workers named Lennie and the other was George. These two migrant workers found new work in Soledad, California and once they arrived there were many problems that they encountered. In the end of the story, sadly Lennie who was mentally disabled got killed by his partner George because Lennie killed a lady. The fictional story Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck talks about African Americans during this time This shows how Crooks represents racism towards African Americans and loneliness.

Back in the day, around the 50s and 60s, racism was an enormous issue all over the world. Decades ago and to this day, racism may have been thought of as one person being less than another. For example, a human may have been considered less because of his/her skin color, religion and beliefs, or language. Despite the reality, none of those ideas show whom that person really is. In “Of Mice and Men,” Steinbeck has the characters use very racist actions toward the stable-buck, Crooks. It is evident that the men in this story are extremely racist because of the racial slurs used towards the black man, no one seems to care what he has to say or what he does, and Crooks is being separated from everyone else in the bunkhouse.

When you see colors what do you feel? Different colors have the ability to convey different emotions. For example, red can commonly be associated with anger and blue is often associated with sadness. In the book, Of Mice and Men, many emotions are conveyed, especially by Lennie. Lennie is like a child, trapped in the body of a big, strong man and he experiences many emotions throughout the book, ranging from innocence to loyalty, which are represented by the color, yellow. Yellow is representative of innocence, loyalty, and helplessness, that Lenny experiences throughout the book, Of Mice and Men. From its childlike quality to its warm undertones, I’m going to tell you why.

Discrimination plays a big role in Of Mice and Men, since it takes place during the Great Depression. Racial segregation, gender rights, and handicap vulnerability are all problems in Of Mice and Men that reflect the society at the time. Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Candy are discriminated against on the ranch just like they would be in society.

Discrimination have been happening everywhere in the world and as long as anyone can remember. Discrimination is still a problem today. America just had protests dealing with Black Lives Matter and African Americans feel they are still discriminated against and treated differently. The time that the novel Of Mice and Men takes place in is important because during the Great Depression it was hard to find money, so Lennie couldn’t just stay at home while George had to work. They both had to make money to support themselves. Lennie, Crooks, and Curley's wife all face discrimination which greatly impacts their lives.

The novella, “Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck , is set in California in the 1930s. The story revolves around and Lennie and George, two workers who travel together. They find their way to Salinas Valley, where they hope to begin work. They hope to make it big, get rich, and buy some land for themselves. However, they encounter some challenges that could possibly be a roadblock to their dreams. One of these challenges is discrimination because not everybody in the novella is treated equally. Discrimination is displayed in many ways in the book, especially with the characters of Lennie, Crooks, Curley’s wife, and Candy. Lenny is discriminated against because he is mentally disabled, Crooks is black, Curley's wife is a woman, and Candy is old.

“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

The actions, attitude, and adult like figure of the characters in Of Mice and Men make the opposing characters Stereotype them in such a way that that are discriminated from each other.

Money is power. A timeless expression, one that often proves true. But money doesn’t always automatically grant one power, or prevent being powerless in a scenario, like in the face of racism or sexism. Something that money does do, however, is change the way that prejudice affects one, whether its by making dreams difficult, or tipping the scales in a power struggle. In his novella “Of Mice and Men”, John Steinbeck portrays this power imbalance by showing that those who are oppressed, but wealthy, experience prejudice differently that those who are oppressed and poor.

“Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts.” This quote, once said by E. B. White, excellently states what the novel, Of Mice and Men, is trying to clearly state. Of Mice and Men is a profound novel that has many things to teach society. This novel, written by John Steinbeck, reflects many flaws in the world today. It mirrors many of the characteristics that every human possesses. Prejudice is still a common way of thinking in today’s society, and to the people who feel victimized, it can be hard to overcome. Curley’s wife, Lennie, and Crooks all deal with prejudice against themselves different ways.