Write about the way that the men on the ranch view friendship in Of Mice and Men. In particular, examine the character of Crooks and his attitude towards Lennie.

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Christopher Bell

Write about the way that the men on the ranch view friendship in Of Mice and Men.  In particular, examine the character of Crooks and his attitude towards Lennie.

Lennie and George, like many other men in America, lived a very lonely existence.  In America, there was a depression, a period of economic decline and high unemployment in the Western industrialised nations like America.  Men moved from place to place alone seeking work, never staying in a place long enough to form a relationship with anyone.  The lack of health and safety standards on these ranches is shown through Candy’s accident of losing his hand.  Itinerant workers were cheap and plentiful and in 1930s America, had no job security, social security or pension arrangements.    

On the ranch in Soledad where this novelette is set, there are few strong relationships due to the short length of time men spend there.  This can be seen where Steinbeck simply calls Curley’s wife, Curley’s wife showing that no one ever stays there long enough to find out her name.  This also has the effect if how insignificant she is in the life on the ranch, and how little respect people have for her, therefore showing the loneliness there is on the ranch.  Despite their lack of respect for Curley’s wife, the men must not treat her in this way because their jobs and physical well-being depending on not upsetting her mean and jealous husband, Curley.  Due to her lack of companionship, it comes as no surprise that she seeks company b means of her sexual charms.  Even before we meet her, Candy has criticised her for giving other men “the eye.”  Candy also accuses her of being a “tart”.  Steinbeck reinforces this image by the following description of her:

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“Full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up.  Her finger-nails were red.  Her hair hung in little rolled clusters, like sausages.”

George views her as “a tramp and jail bait” because of the way she uses her body, “her hands behind her back, leaning against the doorframe so that her body was thrown forward”, and her persistent attempt to look for company by using flimsy excuses to visit the men’s quarters.  George also says:

“Ranch with a bunch of guys on it ain’t no place for a girl, especially like her.”

One relationship could be between Candy and ...

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