Other characters living on the ranch also have dreams. Candy, an old swamper, is afraid of being alone and dreams of living out the rest of his with other people. When he hears about George and Lennie’s dream, he asks them if he can join them so he will not be so lonely. ‘“S’pose I went in with you guys. Tha’s three hundred an’ fifty bucks I’d put in. I ain’t ... I won’t have no place to go, an’ I can’t get no more jobs.’” (59) Candy is desperate for companionship; he pleads with George and Lennie to live with them, although he has not known them very long.
Curley’s wife is another dreamer in the novel. ‘“Nother time I met a guy-he was in the pitchers. He said he’d put me in the movies. Said I was a natural. Soon’s he got back to Hollywood he was gonna write to me about it. I never got that letter. I always thought my ol’ lady stole it.’” (88)
Curley’s wife has this dream as an escape from her husband who is very sexist and discriminatory against women. At the time, the book is set during a time when women were treated poorly and only thought of as homemakers for bringing up children and were used commonly for sex purposes. Curley treats his wife poorly, so she dreams about being rich and famous being a movie star. Ironically, this is the dream of many American people nowadays; to be rich and famous as they aspire to be the everyday celebrities we see today. Another dream of hers is also not to be lonely. She explains to Lennie, ‘“I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.’” (86) This shows that she is lonely because she confides in Lennie about her problem and she does not even know Lennie.
Crooks is the Negro stable buck. He has a separate room away from the white people living and working on the ranch. This also shows the amount of racism at the time the story is set. It seems his dream is to not be treated differently because of his skin color. He says, ‘“I ain’t wanted ‘cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink.’” (68) It is obvious that he does not agree with these comments by the way he speaks. He ‘speaks sharply’ showing he is angry about these comments. He talks about everyone else except for him playing cards implying that he would like to play cards too, along with everyone else.
Throughout the novel, Steinbeck offers clues that lead the reader to believe that the dream will be fulfilled. Candy and Crooks’s interest in George and Lennie's dream is the main factor that causes the reader to believe that these two newcomers might actually succeed. Candy believes in the dream to the extent that he offers three hundred dollars that are needed to buy the land. Crooks, the Negro stable buck, adds to the effect. At first, he is skeptical of George and Lennie's plan: ‘“Ever'body wants a little piece of lan'... Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. It's just in their head.’” (74) However, when he learns of Candy's offer to contribute almost all of the money needed for the land, he wants to join them. Candy and Crooks’s desire to join George and Lennie is an important factor in "interrupting the pattern of inevitability" and causing the reader to think that these characters might actually succeed in their dream.
Dreams are a significant motif in Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. The author presents a couple of destitute workers driven by a single dream that seems unattainable. However, their friendship keeps the dream alive, and Steinbeck uses other characters to cause the reader to believe that they might actually succeed in their goals. Nevertheless, the dream is never fulfilled, and the characters who have counted on it the most are the ones who are the most devastated.
Steinbeck, John. Of Mice and Men. New York: Penguin, 1993.