Character Analysis Of Crooks In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Banksy once said, “We were all humans until race disconnected us, religion seperated us, politics divided us, and wealth classified us.” In the novel, “Of Mice and Men”, Steinbeck portrays several men and one woman on a ranch in California during the great depression. One of these men is an old black man named Crooks, and the woman is the boss’s son’s wife referred to as “Curley’s wife”. Crooks is the stable caretaker and has a separate room from all the other workers. Curley’s wife is the only woman on the ranch and is isolated by Curley from the other men who both have big dreams. Steinbeck illustrates that Crooks’s dream of being treated like any other white man, and Curley’s wife’s dream of being a movie star are destroyed by society’s racism and setting they’re in, showing that dreams don’t come true despite best efforts.
Crooks’s dream of being treated like any other white man is destroyed by society’s racism and judgment of black people. When Lennie visited Crooks in his room, and Candy asked to come in, Crooks tried to act angry, but “It was difficult for Crooks to conceal his pleasure with anger” (75). This illustrates that Crooks is secretly happy that all these white men are coming into his room as if
Crooks’s dream was crushed because of forces beyond his control which included exclusion because of his skin color. There are many people of color today, and would've been during the Great Depression, who are just as worthy of luxury as whites that range from athletes to comedians. Curley’s wife’s dream was also shattered because of forces beyond her control that included her mother being controlling over her and thinking she was too young to be able to go act in shows and movies to become famous. This is proved wrong by many young stars today that have become famous for their talent, and aren't judged for their