Curley's Wife

Malak M. Noba
English Homework
In this passage, what methods does Steinbeck use to present Curley’s wife and the attitude to others and how does Steinbeck present attitudes to women in the society in which the novel is set in? Refer closely to the passage in your answer.

John Steinbeck uses the contrast of light and dark and colour imagery to foreshadow Curley’s wife’s future and to also portray the fact that the ranch hands consider Curley’s wife as a “tart” and “jail bait”.
Steinbeck first introduces Curley’s wife at the start of the passage as he describes how “the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off” by her body. The use of darkness symbolises despair and it hints at the reader that Curley’s wife will suffer, later on in the novel. This use of darkness also reflects on the attitudes towards Curley’s wife by George, as he informs her that Curley was not in the bunkhouse “brusquely”. This straightaway tells the reader that George senses that Curley’s wife is nothing but trouble, and will only bring despair to him and Lennie’s lives.
Steinbeck also describes her in physical terms, as her having “full rouged lips”, “her fingernails […] red” and the fact that she wore “red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers”. The use of colour imagery informs the reader of the type of character Curley’s wife is, as she wears a lot of red. The colour “red” is mostly associated to danger, warning, bloodshed and sex, and from this the reader learns that Curley’s wife is quite dangerous and she uses her sexual attractiveness to control some of the ranch hands. The reader can see that “Lennie watched her, fascinated”. Therefore, the reader learns that so far, Curley’s wife’s method of getting attention is working. Alternatively, it could be argued that Curley’s wife only uses her physical looks to get attention, because she is, in fact lonely. The reader can see this, as Curley’s wife turns apprehensive when she is told by Slim that he “saw [him] goin’ in [the] house”. This implies to the reader that not only Curley doesn’t pay much attention to his wife, but that there is an element of violence in their newly-found marriage.
Furthermore, Steinbeck presents the attitudes towards women in the society the novel was set in as men not valuing women. During the 1930’s, women were not valued as they were not physically strong and men believed that women needed to rely on them for support. However, during the depression, women who were able to work were highly respected. Furthermore, as Curley’s wife is the only main female character in the novel, this highlights her status in the novel as an outcast. Steinbeck emphasises this, by stating that the ranch “ain’t no place for a girl”. This suggests to the reader that Curley’s wife may not be welcome in the ranch, whether she is the Boss’ son’s wife or not.
In conclusion, Steinbeck uses the contrast of light and dark and colour imagery to present Curley’s wife as dangerous, unaware of her future and lonely and he also presents the attitudes towards women in the society that the novel is set in as men not valuing women, due to their physical inability.