The Role Of Prejudice In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men
1) When Carlson suggested for Candy to kill his old dog, he was not willing to do so, but later he reluctantly agreed for Carlson to do so, as it was favored by the majority in the bunkhouse. Candy’s actions showed that during difficult times, without the support of people on your side, the power of others make us do things we may not want to do. Candy had a strong attachment to his dog as he told Carlson: “ I had him from a pup” (Steinbeck 45), when Carlson was ready to shoot the dog, Candy tried his best prolong the process by saying: “Maybe tomorra, le’s wait till tomorra” (Steinbeck 47). This showed Candy’s desperation to keep his dog despite other’s opinions, when he finally agreed, Steinbeck described Candy’s speech as “softly” and “hopelessly”
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(Steinbeck 47) revealing his disappointment. In Of Mice and Men, Candy looked to Slim and the other men in the bunkhouse for support when Carlson wanted to kill his dog, but he received none, instead, the men had various reasons to support Carlson instead of Candy, including that the dog was old and smelled bad; also Slim’s dog had a litter of puppies that he would allow Candy to choose one to raise from. Despite the multiple reasons the men named, it should not have mattered more than Candy’s feelings towards his dog because their thoughts towards another person’s precious animal should not have the ability to end its life, but during tough decisions, other people’s ideas may overpower us and cause us to do thing we may not want to do.
3) In the second to last paragraph of Of Mice and Men, the two men, George and Slim is a symbol for friends. In the novel, when George killed Lennie, Slim was the only one who could understand his actions when the other ranch workers could not, saying: “you hadda, George, I swear you hadda” (Steinbeck 107). This showed us that Slim and George had a strong connection, as Slim could understand George’s actions and know the truth about Lennie’s death when nobody else understood. The symbolism of friends relates to one of the important theme of the novel, which is the importance of friendship. Although an unlikely pair, George and Lennie are great friends, with George looking after Lennie, but shockingly killed him in the hunt for revenge with Curly. This reveals that George would rather shoot his friend in the back of his head, knowing that he died peacefully than to have him die brutally in the hands of Curly. When the group found George, Slim comforted George by saying: “a guy got to sometimes” (Steinbeck 107). This showed the importance of friendship, as Slim was able to understand George’s intentions to let Lennie have a painless death, and agreed that George’s actions were done in the best interest of Lennie.
4) One of the many types of prejudices encountered in Of Mice and Men is the prejudice against African Americans.
Crooks, the only African American in the ranch, had a room to himself as he was not accepted in the bunkhouse with the other white workers. Another example of prejudice against Crooks is the racial slurs that he is referred to throughout the book by other characters. When Candy explained the ranch to George, he said: “Ya see the stable buck’s a nigger” (Steinbeck 20). During the 1930s, segregation, discrimination, and prejudice against African Americans were extremely common, but they greatly affected the African Americans like Crooks. As a result of the prejudice, Crooks became isolated from the ranch workers and became a lonely outcast among the group. When talking to Lennie, he explained: “A guy needs somebody to be near him, a guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody” (Steinbeck 72). This showed that Crooks’ isolation will lead him to lose his sanity. As a consequence of the prejudice endured by Crooks from the other men, Crooks began to form a strong hatred towards them as they were the cause of his sufferings, he told Lennie “ They say I stink, well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me” (Steinbeck 68). The prejudice against Crooks affected him, as he began to dislike white Americans. In conclusion, the prejudice against African Americans greatly affected them in a negative
perspective.
(Steinbeck 47) revealing his disappointment. In Of Mice and Men, Candy looked to Slim and the other men in the bunkhouse for support when Carlson wanted to kill his dog, but he received none, instead, the men had various reasons to support Carlson instead of Candy, including that the dog was old and smelled bad; also Slim’s dog had a litter of puppies that he would allow Candy to choose one to raise from. Despite the multiple reasons the men named, it should not have mattered more than Candy’s feelings towards his dog because their thoughts towards another person’s precious animal should not have the ability to end its life, but during tough decisions, other people’s ideas may overpower us and cause us to do thing we may not want to do.
3) In the second to last paragraph of Of Mice and Men, the two men, George and Slim is a symbol for friends. In the novel, when George killed Lennie, Slim was the only one who could understand his actions when the other ranch workers could not, saying: “you hadda, George, I swear you hadda” (Steinbeck 107). This showed us that Slim and George had a strong connection, as Slim could understand George’s actions and know the truth about Lennie’s death when nobody else understood. The symbolism of friends relates to one of the important theme of the novel, which is the importance of friendship. Although an unlikely pair, George and Lennie are great friends, with George looking after Lennie, but shockingly killed him in the hunt for revenge with Curly. This reveals that George would rather shoot his friend in the back of his head, knowing that he died peacefully than to have him die brutally in the hands of Curly. When the group found George, Slim comforted George by saying: “a guy got to sometimes” (Steinbeck 107). This showed the importance of friendship, as Slim was able to understand George’s intentions to let Lennie have a painless death, and agreed that George’s actions were done in the best interest of Lennie.
4) One of the many types of prejudices encountered in Of Mice and Men is the prejudice against African Americans.
Crooks, the only African American in the ranch, had a room to himself as he was not accepted in the bunkhouse with the other white workers. Another example of prejudice against Crooks is the racial slurs that he is referred to throughout the book by other characters. When Candy explained the ranch to George, he said: “Ya see the stable buck’s a nigger” (Steinbeck 20). During the 1930s, segregation, discrimination, and prejudice against African Americans were extremely common, but they greatly affected the African Americans like Crooks. As a result of the prejudice, Crooks became isolated from the ranch workers and became a lonely outcast among the group. When talking to Lennie, he explained: “A guy needs somebody to be near him, a guy goes nuts if he ain’t got nobody” (Steinbeck 72). This showed that Crooks’ isolation will lead him to lose his sanity. As a consequence of the prejudice endured by Crooks from the other men, Crooks began to form a strong hatred towards them as they were the cause of his sufferings, he told Lennie “ They say I stink, well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me” (Steinbeck 68). The prejudice against Crooks affected him, as he began to dislike white Americans. In conclusion, the prejudice against African Americans greatly affected them in a negative
perspective.