Of Mice and Men Quotes. Discrimination and Prejudice

Transcription

1 Of Mice and Men Quotes Discrimination and Prejudice Racial Crooks he s coloured, so automatically he is isolated by the others. He is often referred in the novella as a nigger the negro stable buck why it s just a nigger sayin it s pose you couldn t go into the bunk cause you was black he blocks himself from the other ranch hands because he is not used to being part of a society. No one feels pathos for him because no one can sympathise with him. Sexism Curley s wife- she s the only woman on the ranch, always excluded from activities such as horse shoes. She seeks for attention. she always goes onto the ranch to seek for company. Can t talk to nobody but Curley Cat house also shows how women had low value back then. They were used as items to please men and is shown without self-respect. Disability Lennie- he had learning disability. this shows that people did not understand this kind of illness and is badly treated by others. He is called the Dum Dum along with Candy. Candy-he lost a limb on the ranch, due to this, he is given simple jobs. He s also at an old age which means he cannot do much work. They ll can me purty soon. Jus as soon as I can t swamp out no bunk houses they ll put me on the county. Crooks-he is not given a real name; clearly the character is named after his disability which is a crooked back. Busted-back nigger Ageism Candy-he is allowed to stay at the ranch despite his old age. He is described as a lousy ol sheep by Curley s wife. Slim is treated as a god of the ranch, Godlike eyes, Slim s opinions were law. This shows that people were honoured by his presence and his decisions were conclusive. They showed Slim a tremendous amount of respect. Slim is a very calm and collective character, who has a peaceful aura about him. Slim s calm invitation to confidence. "He's got a team" showing Slim is a leader. This quote shows us the different levels of authority amongst the itinerant workers. Slim's "authority" means that he gets to decide who deserves justice, and who deserves a little leniency. He's good at reading character, saying "I can tell a mean guy from a mile off", this too shows his influence on the rest of the ranch members. You hadda, George. I swear you hadda Slim seems to agree with George s decision about killing Lennie. George s actions are justified by Slims lawful verdict. Carlson 1. I don t see no reason for it This shows that Carlson has no personal attachments in the matter and does not think about Candy s personal emotions for the dog. He would willingly shoot Candy s dog showing no compassion and sympathy with him at all.

2 2. Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin them two guys? Carlson is unable to place himself in the position of George when he shoots Lennie. He is different as George and Lennie both had someone who cared about them, each other. He shows a lack of empathy towards George. 3. Ranch workers are the loneliest guys in the word. Carlson comes across as aggressive and shows no sympathy towards the characters with friendships as he might have never experienced it in his life; perhaps it is his jealously talking. 4. It won t hurt him none at all. This shows another side to Carlson s personality where he is thinking about other people s feelings showing sympathy. This is an unusual change in his day to day manner. 5. You come for me, an I ll kick your God damn head off Carlson clearly has a disliking towards Curley and he lets his feelings be known to all where he appears to be hyped up. This is quite surprising considering how Curley is the bosses son and so he could easily get Carlson fired. But it seemed Carlson didn t care. Candy Why n t you shoot him, Candy? The old man squirmed uncomfortably. His dog is his company and his equivalent of a friend. No one else understands the idea of their friendship and they simply want the dog shot because it is no longer useful and is a nuisance in the bunkhouse. I had im too long ; I had him from a pup. Candy has a certain affection for his dog. He knew deep down that it was the best thing, but he dreaded losing his long-time companion. Maybe tomorra. Le s wait til tomorra. He tries to delay the shooting of his dog as he pleads with them to let the subject drop. They ll can me purty soon. Jus as soon as I can t swamp out no bunk house they ll put me on the county. Candy knows that he is useless and cannot do as a good a job as the other workers as he only has one hand so as soon as he can no longer do his minor job, they will send him on his way. You seen what they done to me dog tonight? They says he wasn t no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebody d shoot me. He knows that by shooting the dog it was for the best, so he wishes that when he has no place where he belongs he could just be shot and put out of his misery. His is comparing himself to the dog.

3 I ought to of shot that dog myself, George. I shouldn t ought to of let no stranger shoot my dog. Candy feels that it should have been his responsibility to shoot the dog. He knew it was best for him and he should have taken it upon himself to do that. Lennie 1. So you forget that awready, did you? I gotta tell you again, do I? Jesus Christ, you re a crazy bastard This introduces us to the idea that Lennie is a bit slow, and has a bad memory. We also learn about the relationship between George and Lennie, and how George approaches Lennie with new things; he is clearly childlike and is small minded. Although George doesn t approach Lennie as a child, for example using swear words, the relationship between the two is a guardian-to-child relationship. 2. Why do you got to get killed? You aint so little as mice. I didn t bounce you hard. Lennie s compassion for the small dog is clear here. We are given a distinct description of how he thinks, and feels. His understanding of how animals should be treated is small, and he does not know how or why they die. His understanding is little and his childlike mind shows frequently throughout the book. 3. You re nuts, but you re a kinda nice fella. Jus like a big baby. (Curley s Wife) Curley s wife has previously said that Curley is not a nice fella, and in this quote you can see a small reference to what she said; although Lennie does not understand. He thinks that he is normal, and does not know the difference between a friend, a girlfriend and a pet. It shows again, that he isn t the smartest of them all. We also see a spark in Curley s wife, towards him. 4. Let s do it now, let s get the place now! This is just before he dies, and we can see a small sense of impatience; something that is often seen in children. In the midst of the drama that is unfolding around him, he is still in a happy place. This childlike reference gives the effect of George killing a child, and the reader is inclined to be against George, especially after he lured himself into a false sense of hope. 5. George says I gotta stay here and not get in no trouble By saying this, Lennie is referring to George as his guardian. Much like a child would refer back to their parents forbidding them from doing something. George may have foreshadowed trouble and disallowed Lennie to leave this particular place; this puts George as alpha male. 6. He [Curley] stood crying, his fist lost is Lennie s paw Lennie is rather large and the fact that Curley s hand is LOST gives the effect that Lennie may even be twice the size of Curley and is just throwing his weight around as an advantage. Describing Lennie s hand as a paw gives the illusion, not only that he s big, but also he s like a hopeless dog; a dog who doesn t understand what s right and what s wrong. The metaphor of a dog makes the reader understand how lost and helpless Lennie really is.

4 The American Dream + Dreams George: "'Well, we'll have a big vegetable patch and a rabbit hutch and chickens." Their perfect world is one of independence. Workers like Lennie and George have no family, no home, and very little control over their lives. They have to do what the boss tells them and they have little to show for it. They only own what they can carry. Therefore, this idea of having such power over their lives is a strong motivation. A little bit of land, their own crops and animals-this is all they want. It is a simple American dream. They want to be self-reliant. George: "Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don't belong no place. " Whatever the American Dream is, this isn't it: a bunch of lonely, itinerant farmworkers that George describes as being without family or hope. Steinbeck seems to be saying that you can't build a nation on these men and we're inclined to agree. George: "For two bits I'd shove out of here. If we can get jus' a few dollars in the poke we'll shove off and go up the American River and pan gold. We can make maybe a couple of dollars a day there, and we might hit a pocket." What George fantasizes about here is a Grade A American Dream: heading out West to pan for gold, and striking it rich. Too bad that's only ever happened to maybe a handful of people in the entire country. The people who really got rich from the gold rush were the shopkeepers: it's not as romantic, but everyone needs to buy shovels and boots. This here s my room I ain t wanted in the bunkhouse Crooks dreams of being seen as equal to everyone else. He knows his civil rights. He remembers fondly his childhood, when he played with white children who came to his family's chicken ranch, and longs for a similar relationship with white people again. He says he was gonna put me in the movies This is the only reference of Curley s Wife as an individual. She isn t property of anyone when she is talking about her dream to Lennie. Tell you what S pose I went in with you guys. Tha s three hundred an fifty bucks I d put in. I ain t much good, but I could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How s that be? His isn t able to do much work so he volunteers to do anything he can. Candy is excited about the dream and wants if to become real as soon as possible. He offers all of his savings for it and gives them as many ideas as he can for his services. Steinbeck has purposely mad the individual dreams of each simply dreams and makes them progress no further. This tells us of how Steinbeck knew the unlikeliness of each happening but conveys to the reader of how many at that time were compelled forward by their own version of the American dream. (different characters dreams seen above in other bullet points)

5 Theme: LONELINESS AND ISOLATION 1. We got somebody to talk to that gives a damn about us George and Lennie are different from the other ranch hands, they have their own way of life and they are quite happy as a pair. They work well together; although, it is possible to feel lonely in a room full of people. As much as Lennie and George have each other, Lennie doesn t quite understand George as much as George understands him, this shows when it is only George giving advice to Lennie and not vice-versa. 2. I had him since he was a pup (CANDY) His dog is his companion and his equivalent of a friend. He has been stuck at the ranch for so long, due to injury and he has seen people come and go. He doesn t understand the idea of a true friendship and why the other workers don t like the dog. This gives more sense of isolation from the other ranch workers because they are isolating him because he has a dog. They could be jealous that he has a companion and they don t, causing more isolation on the ranch. 3. This here s my room I aint wanted in the bunkhouse and you aint wanted in my room. (CROOKS) He is segregated in the barn and this represents racial discrimination. He is so used to this isolation that he doesn t know how to react when someone actually wants to talk to him. He has had to put up with this for so long, and we can see the effect it has had on him; a bitter lonely man. 4. I never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy (BOSS) With the boss s previous experience of workers travelling individually, it is no surprise that it comes as a shock to him when George and his cousin Lennie, arrive together, after travelling together. This makes the boss suspicious and gives him an ulterior motive to keep an eye on Lennie and George for the remainder of their time. 5. I never get to talk to no-body, I get awful lonely (CURLEY S WIFE) Curley s wife is perhaps one of the loneliest people on the ranch. She has no girlfriends to talk to and she isn t allowed to venture into town. She often confides in the workers and goes looking for company. Curley has forbidden her from discussing her life with any of the workers, and has also threatened the workers against speaking to her. 6. I don t like Curley, he aint a nice fella Prior to this quote, we have heard the sob story of how she could not leave home at fifteen. As this conversation goes on she realises that she can confide in Lennie and goes on to discuss Curley. She only married him to get away from home; there is a bit of sympathy from the reader and we start to wonder how happy she truly is. She wanted to be an actress, and claims she was good, so as a reader you don t know whether she is just putting on a brave face for the workers and pretending everything is alright. When in reality, it s not okay. Her real world in lonely and miserable and being separated with her dream doesn t help anything. Being on a ranch, where no one shares your interests can make it harder for her.