How does the theme of loneliness affect the friendship and relationships in “Of Mice and Men?” Essay

The novel is set in California in the 1930’s. It is about migrant workers working on a ranch. The novel tells us about two lonely men who travel together. While they are together they carry something inside called â€Å"The American Dream†. It was a dream that one day they would make money and have a place of their own but it was hard because of The Great Depression. The Great Depression was a result of the Wall Street crash which meant economy declined and people worked hard but got low wages. Migrant workers had to travel from ranch to ranch for work and often stayed for a short period of time. Because of their circumstances, life was lonely. Migrant workers led a lonely life, but often factors in the 1930’s prejudice caused people to become lonely. Society discriminated people because of their race, gender, age and often simply because someone was different, which meant if you black, or too old and weak to be useful or if you were a women on a ranch, you could lead a very lonely life. This affects a number of characters in â€Å"Of Mice and Men† Furthermore, some characters isolate themselves from others. Carlson and Crooks do so, in order to protect themselves from the harshness of life. George and Lennie are two men who travel together trying to save money so that one day they can have their little place where Lennie could pet the rabbits and chickens and they can â€Å"live ‘off the fatta the lan†. To an extent George and Lennie understand each other emotionally but are physically different. George is described as having â€Å"strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose†. Whereas Lennie is the opposite, he is, â€Å"a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide, sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws†. Steinbeck often compares Lennie to animals which reinforce the wild uncontrollable side of his character. Lennie is like a child in a man’s body. George gives a lot of care for Lennie so he doesn’t get in any trouble like he did in Weed. People thought Lennie was going to rape a girl. Lennie provides George with company and without Lennie, George would probably be an ordinary lonely isolated worker. George and Lennie have a relationship that is almost like father and son, George the father and Lennie the son. George needs Lennie by his side to keep him motivated but he does not like to admit it as we see in the novel, â€Å"If you don’t want me, I can go off in the hills and find a cave. I can go away any time†. George then replies â€Å"No look! I was just foolin’. Lennie cause I want you to stay with me†. George is much more dominant because he has all the control over Lennie and is much cleverer therefore he would know what to do in difficult situations, but on the other hand George is also lonelier because he looks after Lennie who is simple minded. George does not have a friend who is his intellectual equal and makes him even lonelier. â€Å"God a’ mighty, if I was alone I could live so easily. I could get a job an’ work†. Showing us there is an advantage and disadvantage with George having to look after Lennie. Lennie’s shortcoming leads George and Slim to make friends. George confides in Slim in manor that suggests he has not been able to talk with someone who understands him for some time. Migrant workers had a bad way to make relationships with women who they simply paid for sex and because they worked all day they were too tired to make friends or relationship. They moved from place to place which meant they did not have many possessions, just anything they could carry with them. Whit is a good example of the life of a typical migrant worker. He was lonely and found it hard to make friends or relationships with anyone, but when making friends he sees them as very important as his friend Bill, who he reads about in the magazine. Migrant workers went through that sort of lifestyle because they thought â€Å"The American Dream† was something worth working hard for so everyone did their best to accomplish the dream but as Steinbeck illustrates, many failed due to loneliness, they have no motivation or support from anyone so being lonely does not help at all. Slim thinks, â€Å"Everybody in the whole damn world are scared of one and other†. This might be because there is hardly any communication in the ranch. George and Lennie’s â€Å"Dream† was to own a ranch of their own and Lennie to pet rabbits and feed the chickens. It was the ambition that bought them and kept them together. Candy is an old man who has only his dog left in his life. He is not physically strong like the other men so he is useless in the ranch. He gossips a lot because he wants to make himself seem useful and make friends. He is isolated by the other men because he is old and so is his dog. When Candy wants to go in the bunk house he can not leave his dog outside because he loves it, so he brings it in but the other men kick him out. Carlson says, â€Å"God almighty that dog stinks. Get him outta here, Candy! I don’t know nothing that stinks so bad as an old dog. You gotta get him out!† Candy’s dog gets shot because it is old and worthless to the other men. Steinbeck shows us what life is like in the ranch by the dog. The dog gets shot but life continues. This influences George at the end of the novel, Lennie gets shot but life continues. Candy’s dog is a metaphor for Candy’s life and what might happen to him when he becomes useless. Candy is frightened he will lose his job in the ranch and end up with no money because he is old. He then tries to get involved with George and Lennie’s dream so he does not end up with any money. Lennie talks ambitiously about the dream and Candy says, â€Å"An’ they give me two hundred an’ fifty dollars cause I los’ my hand. An’ I got fifty more saved up right in the bank, right now†. He says he could be useful when they buy yhe place and feed the chickens. The dream makes Candy more confident after his dog had got shot. Curley’s Wife’s death made Candy give up hope on the dream because he knew things were not going to work. This happened before Curley’s wife was killed. As readers we feel sorry for Candy because he has nothing left in his life now. At the time of the novel everyone was prejudice and racist to Crooks because he is black. Crooks works in the â€Å"horse stable†. He is not allowed to step in the bunk house with the other men so he is separated and is forced to sleep in the â€Å"horse stable† with the horses. Crooks is independent, one of the loneliest characters in the novel and keeps to himself. He is bitter to other people because of the way he is treated. He is not used to socializing with others. We notice this when Lennie suddenly appears at â€Å"horse stable† to ask Crooks if he could check on his pup and Crooks replies bitterly, â€Å"Well I got a right to have a light. You go an’ get outta my room. I aint wanted in the bunk house and you aint wanted in my room†. Crooks carries this attitude because of all the racism that went on. He then says, â€Å"Cause I’m black they say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all stink to me†. Lennie tells Crooks about the dream and Crooks starts getting friendlier because he becomes interested on what the dream is about. All of a sudden Curley’s wife steps in and asks for Curley but then ends up talking about Lennie’s dream. Crooks sticks up for himself and tells her to go out of his barn or he will tell the boss to never let her in. Curley’s wife intimidates Crooks saying, â€Å"Well, you keep your place then, Nigger. I could get you stung up on a tree so easily it ain’t even funny†. It shows how Curley’s wife made Crooks bitter and all to himself again just when he started to have a bit of faith in people. Curley’s wife is the only women living in the ranch. We never know her name in the novel, she is only described as Curley’s wife and Steinbeck clearly does this to show she is his possession and she does not have any freedom. Because of this she lives a life of loneliness with no friendships with anyone other than Curley. The other women in the novel are Sussy, Clara and Aunt Clara. Susy and Clara both run a whorehouse each but Susy’s whorehouse is more successful. Aunt Clara used to give Lennie mice to pet. And What does this tell us about men and women in that society? Curley’s wife puts make up on and has her hair neat. â€Å"She had full, roughed lips and wide spaced eyes, heavily made up. Her fingernails were red. Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages. She wore a cotton house dress and red mules, on the insteps of which were little bouquets of red ostrich feathers†. Steinbeck describes Curley’s wife with the colour red because red is the most emotionally intense colour and the colour of love and blood. It also symbolizes danger which comes at the end of the novel when Lennie kills her. Curley’s wife also stands in a very sexy manner as Steinbeck illustrates she put her hands back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward and she then says, â€Å"You’re the new fellas that just come, ain’t ya?†. The men in the ranch call her different names. Candy says â€Å"Well, I think Curley’s married a tart†. George says, â€Å"Jesus what a tramp†. Whit calls her a â€Å"bitch†. She is a very lonely woman so she acts very sexy towards the other men in order to get attention because she has no friends. Curley imposes her loneliness on her. He doesn’t like her being in the ranch with the other men and so she is lonely because is not entitled to friendship. In the novel the men say she is a tart but I think she is just lonely and wants attention. As readers we feel a lot of sympathy for her. Curley’s wife had a dream too. She says she could have been a star because she met a man in the movie business. â€Å"He says he was gonna put me in the movies, said I was a natural†. She also says â€Å"Coulda been in the movies, an’ had nice clothes†, but her mother stole a letter she was expecting so she could be a movie star. She ends up marrying Curley and becomes a woman in a ranch affected by â€Å"loneliness†. Curley’s wife’s death is significant to the other characters because it changes everyone. George knew Curley’s wife’s death was a mistake by Lennie. Lennie got very scared and panicked. Candy was confused and did not know what was going to happen next. Curley wanted revenge. Lennie and Curley’s wife are both very lonely people affected by loneliness because they are both one of a kind, Lennie being simple minded and Curley’s wife being the only woman in the ranch. They are both two people in the novel that can not communicate with any one else well in the novel because no one can understand their unique personalities. Lennie and Curley’s wife find themselves alone right after Lennie killed his pup. Lennie did not want to talk to Curley’s wife because George said, â€Å"she is nothing but trouble†. Eventually they both start talking friendly amongst each other. Curley’s wife shares a secret with Lennie. She tells him something she has not told any one. She says, â€Å"I don’t like Curley. He’s not a nice fella†. We find out that she does not even like Curley so she’s even lonelier then us as readers thought. Lennie tells Curley’s wife he likes to touch and feel velvet and anything that is soft. Curley’s wife lets Lennie stroke her hair because it is soft. Lennie says, â€Å"Oh! That’s nice†. He gets carried away and starts stroking harder. Curley’s wife yells out â€Å"stop†. Lennie panics and covers her mouth and nose with his big hand. He accidentally kills her. Steinbeck shows us that the death of Curley’s wife and Lennie are both due to loneliness. As readers we are affected by their death because we can se what excess of too much loneliness can come to. We also feel very sorry for Curley’s wife because she could have had a much better life being a movie star but ended up in the wrong environment and now, dead. The life she led was unfair. We feel sorry for Lennie because he does not realise what he does and George has no choice but as a good friend, George shot Lennie. George also learnt that its better he shot as a favour of a good friend than to have Curley to kill him with revenge. As soon as George saw Curley’s wife’s body he knew Lennie had committed a big mistake. Candy lost hope in the â€Å"dream† because he knew things were not going to work out, whereas everyone else got their guns and wanted to kill Lennie. Steinbeck shows us that all the characters in â€Å"Of Mice and Men† are affected by loneliness in one way or another. As readers we learn from the novel that loneliness can lead to death. We learn we should not choose to be lonely. We are all alone in this huge universe so companionship should be treasured.