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"The unexamined life is not worth living." SocratesOf Mice and Menby John Steinbeck |
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Class NotesCurley's Wife's NameWhy is Curley's wife nameless? While I have my own interpretation, which agrees with many of the
interpretations of most of the critics, Ben H., Class of '06, has the view that
if Curley's wife had a name, the reader might feel even more sympathy for her
and, more importantly, less sympathy for Lennie. I thought this was rather
insightful since much of the poignancy of the climax has to do with the reader
feeling sorrow for Lennie which means thinking about the situation Lennie is in
and not about his victim who did not deserve what happened to her. She was
ignorant and she was mean when it suited her, but no more or less than any other
character in the novel. Because John Steinbeck wants you to understand something about the men, that's why. On that ranch, that land of men, women are not treated as people Women are objects. Women serve a function. Women can be mothers, wives or objects of physical desire. That seems to be the range. The woman that Curley married is his wife. That is her name as far as the men are concerned. They can think of her only as she relates to Curley and their opinion of him. If they fear Curley, they will stay away from his wife. If they have no fear, they will only relate to her with the intention of forming a physical relationship. Those are her options. Look at the double standard applied to Curley's wife. She seeks company because she is lonely. She does so in the only manner in which her culture has allowed her to seek company: she flirts. Because this arouses the interest of the men which puts them in direct conflict with the boss's son, they despise her for it. She is labeled a tramp and a tart by the men. These are the same men who will go to town on the weekends and visit the local "cathouse" or house of prostitution. She is not allowed the same thoughts or desires or choices that any of the men, save Crooks, have. Steinbeck draws the character of Curley's wife not because he wants to portray her, but because he wants to illustrate that the men are not only separate, isolated and lonely, but they also cause separation, isolation and loneliness through their own bigoted natures. Please do not think that the world that Steinbeck describes is an alien world that has no connection to our own. If you don't think that these attitudes of the men in the bunkhouse are prevalent in our society, you have not been observant. Think of the television commercials you see. The majority of commercials portray women in one of two categories: wife and mother or object of desire. Are those the only two roles that are open to women? Are you not convinced? Watch especially the commercials shown during the average professional football game to see how women are made into objects. Further proof of a double standard? Tell me the male equivalent of the word slut. Does your choice convey the same insult in general society that the word slut conveys, or does seem to come with a leering laugh and a slap on the back in the locker room? Our society also causes separation, isolation and loneliness through our acceptance of these bigoted attitudes. CrooksCurley's Wife was not the only person who was made into an object through labeling. Crooks, the stablebuck, is marginalized to the degree that he lives a separate life from the other men in the barn with the animals. This happens because he is black. He is labeled with the terrible epithet of "nigger" and therefore is dehumanized to the point where his very life exists at the whim of the other men. Crooks is a relatively complicated character. There are boundaries set up for him but he knows how to use those boundaries to gain a measure of control and power, though the power is illusory. The few liberties he has, he will fight to keep. He is given a room that is all his own and he will state flatly that no one has a right to go in there besides him. He says it it because he has no right to go into the bunkhouse, they hands have no right to go into his space, but that is not the real reason. He is allowed to argue for that right because few white men on the ranch would risk the blow to their prestige to be caught in the room of a black man. This gives Crooks the edge to chase people out Crooks looks for an edge over other people. He constantly looks to gain an advantage that society denies him. He chases Lennie from his room until he sees that Lennie can offer him a kind of company he lacks and later Crooks sees that Lennie will offer him the advantage to cause Lennie pain. Not used to having the upper hand, Crooks attempts to torture Lennie by suggesting that George may abandon him. Crooks quickly realizes his mistake when he sees the latent violence of an aroused and frightened giant moving toward him. Crooks placates Lennie just in time and is noticeably relieved. Later Crooks tries to chase Curley's wife out of his room but she knows her trump card. She is a white woman and the wife of a violent man in a violent world. While her status would suffer severely if she were caught in a black man's room, the honor of Curley would demand that she be turned into a victim and Crooks would be the evidence that would have to be destroyed. She knows this and lets Crooks know he could be lynched in a moment's notice. There is no answer to this and Crooks knows it. Ultimately, on this ranch he has no power and could be killed because of the lie of a vengeful woman. This is why Crooks folds into himself, loses his ego, his "self," so that there is nothing that anyone can do to hurt him. SlimSlim has always been my favorite character in the novel until this year. In discussion with students it seems that really there is very little to Slim. Zach G., Class of '06, suggests that Slim is merely a vehicle for George to explain his feelings. Without the quiet understanding of Slim, there is no other character in the novel for George to reveal himself to. or to justify himself to. Slim's role is to accept the two men and the relationship they have. Slim has the quiet power and the status to make the bond between George and Lennie acceptable on the ranch. Without Slim, the movements of George and Lennie might come under a cynical cloud of suspicion. Was George really taking advantage of Lennie? Without the conversation between Slim and George there is doubt. After the conversation, the is no doubt. Slim has the silent power and the status to offer a benediction on George and Lennie that the other men will accept. But if this is the case, Slim in not very complicated. His character is a tool, an object. It is a functionary of the writer. E-mail Thomas Trevenen
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