Theme Of Oppression In Of Mice And Men
Explore the way that oppression is presented in ‘Of Mice and Men’ and two poems by John Agard
Oppression is the act of a person in a position of power controlling the less powerful in cruel and unfair ways. These two authors present the theme of oppression in various different ways. John Agard is a mixed race poet, his poems, ‘’Half Caste’’ and ‘’Checking Out Me History’’, are written in non-standard English as he writes about what it is like being black and challenging racist attitudes. Likewise, John Steinbeck, the author of, ‘’Of Mice and Men’’, talks about racism and also sexism within the 1930s society through the ways that some of the characters are treated and presented.
Within his writing, Steinbeck presents ideas about people …show more content…
Steinbeck describes Crooks’ ‘bed’ as, a ‘long box filled with straw’ in the barnyard, this shows the reader that Crooks is treated like an animal, the word ‘straw’ is significant because it is often what animals sleep on and this helps to describe the way in which Crooks is seen on the ranch. During the 1930s, racism was accepted within society therefore Crooks had no choice but to accept the discrimination, this shows that they lived in a time of social oppression as Crooks was discriminated against by the other ranch workers and treated unfairly through the way that he was made to live his …show more content…
However, they explore similar themes about racial discrimination. Agard’s poems are written from a personal view whereas Steinbeck’s writing presents the oppressive society through the thoughts and feelings of the different characters. Agard’s poem, ‘’Checking Out Me History’’ talks about his experiences while learning about history. He draws attention to the fact that the history he was taught was biased towards white people and prevented him from learning about black lives. As the repetition of the phrase- ‘’dem tell me’’, is used, he is referring to the people in power, this shows his anger towards them as he does not name them. He continues to say- ‘’dem tell me wha dem wanna tell me’’, this suggests that he believes he was taught what other people wanted to tell him and not what he would’ve wanted to know. Agard then goes on to say- ‘’Bandage up me eye with my own
Oppression is the act of a person in a position of power controlling the less powerful in cruel and unfair ways. These two authors present the theme of oppression in various different ways. John Agard is a mixed race poet, his poems, ‘’Half Caste’’ and ‘’Checking Out Me History’’, are written in non-standard English as he writes about what it is like being black and challenging racist attitudes. Likewise, John Steinbeck, the author of, ‘’Of Mice and Men’’, talks about racism and also sexism within the 1930s society through the ways that some of the characters are treated and presented.
Within his writing, Steinbeck presents ideas about people …show more content…
Steinbeck describes Crooks’ ‘bed’ as, a ‘long box filled with straw’ in the barnyard, this shows the reader that Crooks is treated like an animal, the word ‘straw’ is significant because it is often what animals sleep on and this helps to describe the way in which Crooks is seen on the ranch. During the 1930s, racism was accepted within society therefore Crooks had no choice but to accept the discrimination, this shows that they lived in a time of social oppression as Crooks was discriminated against by the other ranch workers and treated unfairly through the way that he was made to live his …show more content…
However, they explore similar themes about racial discrimination. Agard’s poems are written from a personal view whereas Steinbeck’s writing presents the oppressive society through the thoughts and feelings of the different characters. Agard’s poem, ‘’Checking Out Me History’’ talks about his experiences while learning about history. He draws attention to the fact that the history he was taught was biased towards white people and prevented him from learning about black lives. As the repetition of the phrase- ‘’dem tell me’’, is used, he is referring to the people in power, this shows his anger towards them as he does not name them. He continues to say- ‘’dem tell me wha dem wanna tell me’’, this suggests that he believes he was taught what other people wanted to tell him and not what he would’ve wanted to know. Agard then goes on to say- ‘’Bandage up me eye with my own