How Does Steinbeck Present Curley's Wife
Steinbeck indicates through Curley’s wife’s attention seeking personality throughout the book that women in general are disrespected on their gender rather than their capabilities or personality resulting in a loss of identity and putting up a façade. Curley’s wife represents not all, but most women in the early 1900s, she is overlooked upon by the men on the ranch so she uses her looks to get their attention. She simply does this because she is lonely and has nothing else to do.
Lennie and George were in the bunkhouse when they first meet Curley’s wife. After she’s gone George shares his thoughts about her, he says, “’ Ranch with a bunch of guys on it ain’t no place for a girl, ‘specially like her’” (Steinbeck 51). The men on the ranch
don’t think it’s a good idea for her to be around because she is always walking around the place with excuses of looking for her husband Curley and asking all the guys if they’d seen him around. She is very sneaky and always looking for trouble. She has more authority on the ranch then the other men just because she is married to Curley, the bosses’ son. But in reality she has about the same amount of rights and freedom then they do, maybe less. Her flirtatious actions and conversations bother the men because they don’t want any trouble with Curley.
When Curley’s wife appears again in the barn right after Lennie killed the puppy. When Lennie see’s her he tells her that he was told not to talk to her. Curley’s wife replied to that saying, “’ why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely’” (Steinbeck 86). When Curley’s wife walks into the barn, Lennie knows that she is looking for trouble from what George said, but when she comes in and starts talking she tells Lennie that she just wants somebody to talk to. Just like the other men on the ranch she admits to becoming lonely on the ranch and her personality becomes more humanly. Steinbeck’s intent on including this in his writing is to show that even some of the terrible and mischievous people in our world have our humanity.
Lennie and George were in the bunkhouse when they first meet Curley’s wife. After she’s gone George shares his thoughts about her, he says, “’ Ranch with a bunch of guys on it ain’t no place for a girl, ‘specially like her’” (Steinbeck 51). The men on the ranch
don’t think it’s a good idea for her to be around because she is always walking around the place with excuses of looking for her husband Curley and asking all the guys if they’d seen him around. She is very sneaky and always looking for trouble. She has more authority on the ranch then the other men just because she is married to Curley, the bosses’ son. But in reality she has about the same amount of rights and freedom then they do, maybe less. Her flirtatious actions and conversations bother the men because they don’t want any trouble with Curley.
When Curley’s wife appears again in the barn right after Lennie killed the puppy. When Lennie see’s her he tells her that he was told not to talk to her. Curley’s wife replied to that saying, “’ why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely’” (Steinbeck 86). When Curley’s wife walks into the barn, Lennie knows that she is looking for trouble from what George said, but when she comes in and starts talking she tells Lennie that she just wants somebody to talk to. Just like the other men on the ranch she admits to becoming lonely on the ranch and her personality becomes more humanly. Steinbeck’s intent on including this in his writing is to show that even some of the terrible and mischievous people in our world have our humanity.