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The Character Crook from Steinbeck's Novel Essay

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The extract I have chosen is from the beginning of chapter four and stretches from page 71 to page 73. This extract gives a detailed description of Crooks, his room and his possessions. The extract I have chosen is from the beginning of chapter four and stretches from page 71 to page 73. This extract gives a detailed description of Crooks, his room and his possessions. The entrance of Lennie into Crooks´ room and the development of their relationship throughout the scene is shown. At the beginning of the extract Lennie is not welcomed into Crooks´ room, but at the end they begin to befriend each other. I chose this extract because it provides us with excellent examples of descriptions, dialogue, themes, relationships and …show more content…

This is illustrated by the extensive detailing of Crooks´ 'crooked spine, his 'deep black wrinkles and 'pain-tightened lips. The reader sympathises with Crooks because he is physically inept and suffers silently. Due to years of loneliness, Crooks is a private man and so was very annoyed when Lennie interrupted him whilst applying liniment to his back; this was a private act of a private man. "If you guys would want a hand to work for nothing-just his keep, why I´d come an´ lend a hand. I ain´t so crippled I can´t work like a son-of-a-bitch if I want to," is an example of Crooks´ loneliness as he proposes to work for George and Lennie if they buy a ranch of their own. He tries to reassure Lennie that he can still work hard despite his disability. He wants to join George and Lennie´s dream to counteract his loneliness. This is emphasised by the fact that he is willing to work for just a bed and some food and go without wages. "They say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me," is a possible reference to Carlson´s remark about Candy´s dog. This gives the impression that the general idea within the ranch is that Crooks is inferior to the others. This suggests that Steinbeck thinks that some black people feel the same way about white people as some white people feel about black people. Steinbeck uses 'Of Mice and Men´ to portray issues which he feels strongly about

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