Curley's Wife And Candy example essay topic

In the novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck looks at the theme of loneliness as it affects many characters on the ranch. Crooks, Curley's wife, and Candy are the most excluded characters on the ranch, because they all have dreams that they will not be able to live out and they all are at loss when it came to companionship. Crooks is lonely because he is the only black man on the ranch. Since this book is set during the Depression, Jim Crow laws are still in effect, whites and blacks had separate facilities for socializing and living.

Crooks comments that he can't live in the bunkhouse, and cant even play cards in there. 'I cant' play because I'm black. They say I stink. ' (68) This quote illustrates that Crooks feels the pain of rejection more that he let's people see.

In fact, Crooks protects himself by acting like a 'proud and aloof man. ' (67) The full extent of Crooks's suffering is made clear in chapter 4 when Crooks lashes out at Lennie. Viewing Lennie as a symbol of all the white men who had hurt him, Crooks strikes out in anger, saying 'You got no right to come in my room... Nobody got any right inhere but me. ' (68) Steinbeck states that 'Crooks's face lighted with pleasure in his torture. ' (71) Crooks's anger, though, is really just a cover for the pain he experiences from constant isolation.

'A guy goes nuts if he aint got nobody... A guy gets too lonely and he gets sick. ' (73) This desire to have a connection is apparent later in the scene when Crooks hears Lennie and Candy's plan to buy a little ranch. Wistfully, he suggests, 'If you guys want a hand to work for nothing, just his keep, why Id come and lend a hand.

' (76) No matter how hard Crooks may try to hide the hurt he feels, he clearly would like to be included in this venture with the other men. Crooks's dream, however, lasts only for a few minutes. When Curley's wife threatens Crooks with a lynching, he quickly remembers the terrible reality of his situation. Steinbeck writes 'Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego - his voice was toneless. ' (81) The character of Crooks reflects the universal need for human connection as well as the brutalizing effects of racial prejudice.

Like Crooks, Curley's wife is very lonely, but she is lonely for different reasons. Like Crooks Curley's wife suffers from prejudice. At the time of the book women didn't have the rights that they have today. Curley's wife is the most anonymous person on the ranch, she doesn't even have a name. She is also perhaps the saddest person. She married the first man who cam along, and she chose badly.'s ure I gotta husband'.

You all seen him. Swell guy, ain't he? Spends all his time say in' what he's gonna do to guys he don't like, and he don't like nobody. ' (78) This quote showsCurley's wife's displeasure with her husband it also shows that Curley doesn't really spend much time with her unless he's talking about who he want's to fight next. Curley's wife try's to make up for her husbands absenteeism by trying to make friends with the other ranch hands, but she go's about it in a way that scares the away from her. She wears too much makeup and shows off her body to the men in provocative ways.

During a conversation between Candy and George Candy remarks 'I seen her give Slim the eye... an I see her give Carlson the eye... Well I think Curley married a tart. ' (29) This quote shows us the point of view of one of the men on the ranch and his feelings toward her. Its how how the men all think that she is trying to stray from Curley to one of them. Curley's wife has a dream to become and actress but it is crushed on two occasions.

'A show came through, an' I met one of the actors. He says I could go with that show. But my ol' lady wouldn't let me... If Id went, I wouldn't be liv in' like this, you bet. ' (88) This quote shows how much Curley's wife wishes that she would have went with the show, because at the end of the quote she makes it clear that she doesn't like the way she's living. Butter dream was crushed a second time also 'Nother time I met a guy, an' he was in pitchers... he says he was gonna put me in the movies.

Says I was a natural. Soon's he get back to Hollywood he was gonna write to me about ir... I never got that letter... I always thought my ol' lady stole it. ' (88) It's obvious that the man never wrote the letter and her mother didn't steal it but the man was just leading her on.

Curley's wife's character in the book was obviously misunderstood. She had a husband that didn't love her and she lived on a ranch where all the workers thought that she was coming onto her for these reasons you can tell that she was a very lonely character that needed connection with another person. Another character in the book that suffered from loneliness is Candy. Candy has a lot going against him.

Not only is he old, but he is missing a hand. He is worried that he soon will be seen as being as useless as his dog. Then he, too, might be disposed of. Candy is the only person on the ranch other then George with a partner. His friend and longtime companion is his dog, though this partnership is doomed to fail. 'Look, Candy.

This ol' dog jus's uff ers his self all the time. If you was to take him out and shoot... he'd never know what hit him. ' (45) After reading this quote you know that Candy is gonna be talked into killing the dog even though he doesn't want to. After Carlson kills the dog Candy says to George 'I ought of shot that dog myself, George.

I shouldn " thought to of let no stranger shoot my dog. ' (61) You can tell that Candy feels regret for killing the dog. Not only for letting Carlson do it but for killing it all together, when the dog was killed so was his only companion. But Candy gets some life back in him when he hears George and Lennie talking about their dream farm. Hearing this gives Candy a reason to live. He would love to join George and Lennie on there farm and he even tells them that he " ll give them money to help finance it 'I aint't much good with on'y one hand.

I lost my hand right here on this ranch... an' they give me two hundard an' fifty dollars 'cause I los' my hand. An' I got fifty more saved upright in the bank, right now... and I got fifty more more comin... S'pose I went in with you guys. Tha's three hundred an' fifty bucks I'd put in. ' (59) When George agrees to let Candy jump on the wagon and join the farm, you can tell Candy is extremely pleased. But with death of Lennie the dream of the farm dies to.

Like the other characters Candy's dream was stolen from him. Candy's character was lonely because he needed human contact but his only companion was his dog which was killed. Loneliness affected many characters in John Steinbeck novel, Of Mice and Men. Crooks, Curley's wife and Candy were affected the most by this loneliness because none of them had a real companion and all of them had dreams which were shattered.