OF MICE AND MEN (CRUELTY)
“All cruelty springs from weakness,” said Lucius Annaeus Seneca. To me, this quote means that cruelty comes out from a person who is feeling weak. A big question people ask each other is “Why are people cruel to each other?” In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, there are many incidents of cruelty. Cruelty appeared in the book when George yells at the mentally handicapped Lennie in the beginning of the book. This trend of cruelty continues throughout the book. Characters that were notably cruel in the book are Curley, Curley’s wife, and George. The three things that motivate people to be cruel in the book are: when people feel they are powerless, when a person wants a feeling of short term enjoyment from being cruel to others, and when individuals feels like someone doesn’t belong with them.
Sometimes people tend to be cruel to others when they feel they have no power and they want to use cruelty to make themselves feel superior or more powerful. An example of this is when Candy and Slim are in the bar and they get on Curley’s nerves. During this episode, Lennie is listening to George talk about their dreams. Lennie is smiling because he is lost in his daydreams. Curley thinks Lennie is laughing at him. He runs up to Lennie like a terrier and says, “ Get up on your feet. No big son-of-a-bitch is gonna laugh at me.” (62) Curley feels threatened by people that are bigger than him. Basically, he feels like he is powerless compared to Lennie. His actions are especially Wong 2
cruel because Lennie is mentally challenged. He doesn’t know how to defend himself. Curley isn’t the only one that is cruel in this way. There were multiple incidents where this motivation for being cruel appeared. Another example is later in the book, when Crooks is telling Curley’s wife that he is going to ask the boss not to let her go in his room anymore. After this incident, she retaliates by saying, “ Well
Sometimes people tend to be cruel to others when they feel they have no power and they want to use cruelty to make themselves feel superior or more powerful. An example of this is when Candy and Slim are in the bar and they get on Curley’s nerves. During this episode, Lennie is listening to George talk about their dreams. Lennie is smiling because he is lost in his daydreams. Curley thinks Lennie is laughing at him. He runs up to Lennie like a terrier and says, “ Get up on your feet. No big son-of-a-bitch is gonna laugh at me.” (62) Curley feels threatened by people that are bigger than him. Basically, he feels like he is powerless compared to Lennie. His actions are especially Wong 2
cruel because Lennie is mentally challenged. He doesn’t know how to defend himself. Curley isn’t the only one that is cruel in this way. There were multiple incidents where this motivation for being cruel appeared. Another example is later in the book, when Crooks is telling Curley’s wife that he is going to ask the boss not to let her go in his room anymore. After this incident, she retaliates by saying, “ Well