Role Of Loneliness In John Steinbeck's 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

“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.

In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, he illustrates the journey George and Lennie have throughout a significant part of their lifetime. Throughout the novel, many characters, including George and Lennie, are facing lonesome and they struggle to deal with it the right way. Most of the men are all alone because they have no family left or they isolate themselves from their peers. Loneliness touches each character at some point in the novel and it really emphasizes the impact it can have on an individual. Steinbeck uses the characters Curley’s wife, Crooks, and Candy to develop the theme that containing loneliness will make someone’s desperation deepen.

George and Lennie are different from other workers because they have each other to look after, and Candy has his dog as a companion so he would not feel alone. Crooks yearns for companionship because he is segregated and lonely. Similarly to Crooks, Curley’s wife doesn’t have anyone and she goes around the ranch flirting with other ranchers. Ranchers yearning for companionship reveal how hard it was during the Great Depression. For example, in Life As We Know It, humans have to find a way to survive the moon eclipse, to survive they have to fight for food. Survivals had face many emotional and physical challenges, where they start feeling lonely and longing for someone to be at their side during harsh times to soothe away their loneliness. Human beings are designed to feel and think, sometimes feeling alone cause them to lose their minds, and they would do anything to have a strong relationship with someone that will help them get rid the feeling of loneliness. In Of Mice and Men, characters are struggling to find a friend that helps them get through the Great Depression. Being lonely is not easy during the Great Depression, but it causes people to forget themselves and changes them into a different

Throughout the novel, Of Mice and Men (by John Steinbeck), loneliness is the major underlying theme of the novel. You could almost say that the book has ‘hormonal' up's and down's. Most of the characters are very lonely because they have no family. However, George and Lennie are the contradiction to this. George and Lennie's bond towards each other are so- strong that you can almost see it as you are reading the book. Candy the old crippled man wants to be part of George and Lennie's dream to own a farm and "live off the fatta the land". Curley and his dog are like the metaphor in the book for George and Lennie. Candy has to take care of his dog and George of Lennie. The other two

Loneliness plays an important role in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. He illustrates how people are driven to companionship through Candy, Curley's Wife and Crooks. Candy, the disabled and aged man, is devastated after his lifelong companion's death. Curley's Wife, ignored by her husband and seen as a troublemaker to the other ranch hands, seeks attention. Crooks, denies friendship because of the color of his skin and wastes away alone in his room as loneliness eats away the human soul.

“Guys like us...are the loneliest guys in the world”(Steinbeck 15). Loneliness as a common feeling by the millions of migrant workers all over the United States during the Great Depression. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, set in this era, depicts a story of loneliness within an old man named Candy; a young woman known as Curley’s Wife; and a discriminated African American named Crooks, on a barely farm in California. The ranch is filled with migrant workers, but two stick out more than all the others. George and Lennie have a dream for their future, and they plan plan to pursue their own land. Together they support each other while still surrounded by a sea of broken and isolated souls. The theme of

Of Mice and Men Essay Loneliness can be an unavoidable part of life that can affect anyone. In John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, loneliness is an experience shared by all of the ranch workers regardless of social class demonstrated by Curley, Lennie, and Crooks who all represent different social standings. As the boss’s son, Curley is somewhat of an authority figure to the other ranch workers, though not a respected one.

“Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted, is the most terrible of poverty” (Mother Teresa). Loneliness is the worst possible thing, because in the feeling of true loneliness, there is no one to comfort, or to help you. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, there is an overwhelming theme of loneliness on the ranch, as the guys that work on ranches are “...the loneliest guys in the world’” (Steinbeck 13).

As the Great Depression creates a sense of isolation and loneliness, two men seem to have it all figured out as they find their way through the vast land of California. During this time, men are forced into isolation and loneliness as they travel to find work, but George and Lennie represent the need for companionship as they have their whole lives planned together. In his writing, John Steinbeck uses character mannerisms, symbolism, and social injustice to show loneliness and the need for companionship in the novel, Of Mice and Men.

Isolation and loneliness are caused from being forced to be alone and being unaccepted for having dissimilarities in society. Among many of the ranchmen, Candy is among one of the most lonely characters in Of Mice and Men. Although Candy had possessed

Of Mice and Men is a novel written by John Steinbeck written in the 1930s, during the Great Depression, a time where numerous themes in the novel depict the hopeless lives of itinerant workers and the issues that were occurring. Steinbeck conveys the issues presented in the 1930s through contrasting characters and the settings. The key themes identified are dreams and loneliness. Of Mice and Men explores how the predominance theme of the importance of dreams and loneliness affects each character.

The word “soledad” in Spanish directly translates to the word “loneliness”. Can it be a coincidence that John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men takes place in Soledad, California, where the theme of uninviting loneliness and isolation is evident amongst the characters on the ranch? The theme of loneliness emerges through direct statements and actions made by specific characters in the novel. For example, a main character named Lennie feels dissociated from many people due to his mental disability, ultimately leading to his demise. Additionally, Curly’s wife—who never gets a name feels lonely and abandoned, causing her to look for affection from other men on the ranch, earning her a reputation of promiscuity and unfaithfulness.

Loneliness affects everyone in different ways, and most people are forced to make rash decisions. In Of Mice and Men there are a plethora of lonely characters but, some of the the top three loneliest characters in the book are Crooks, Candy, and Curley's wife. The loneliest character is Crooks because he is colored and all the ranch workers stay away from him because colored people were thought of differently back then. The second most lonesome character in the novel is Candy because he is the last member of his family, and his dog that he raised from a pup was killed. The third most desolate character is Curley's wife because she is the only girl near the ranch so she has nobody wanting to talk to her because her loneliness causes her to pry

Loneliness is one of the few things that may haunt society or bring a sort of calmness to it. In the novela, Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck tells the story of two ranch workers, George Milton and Lennie Small, who moved to a new job in hopes of making their American Dream come true. They met a number of foes and isolated people on the ranch, some causing Lennie’s mental disability to become more of a burden than it already is. Many different events led up to the death of Candy’s dog, the death of Curley’s wife, and the death of Lennie himself. Through various characterization, Steinbeck’s belief that both personal choice and social barriers cause isolation is demonstrated by the characters of Candy, Curley’s wife, and Crooks.