Loneliness And Isolation In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Crooks’ loneliness is more noticeable because he states to Lennie, “ A guy needs somebody-- to be near him” (74). Crooks is African American, and is discriminated by the other men on this farmland. He doesn't have any friends, so all he can do is his job and then come back to read or sit by himself, alone, watching the men in the bunkhouse play cards and have fun. George’s loneliness is hidden but still present. George would love to leave Lennie and have his own life without having to babysit his friend.

For example, he starts lying and disobeying him. Who knows what would happen if George didn’t kill him and went with him one more time. George might’ve been another one of Lennie’s victims. Also, how about you put yourself in George’s shoes for a second. Imagine how many times George had to do the same thing.

Not to mention, what happened back in Weed. Lennie always finds a way to get into trouble and George was tired of running from town to town because of Lennie. George felt like Lennie was his responsibility and he had to protect him. That is a lot of responsibility to put on someone. Lennie was going to die one way or another.

This also shows the overpowering control George has over Lennie’s conscience, and the consequence that Lennie can’t remember his own actions, only the stories George repeats. He is never truly angry with Lennie for his petty mistakes, he is simply thinking of the limitations of their dreams because of Lennie’s unpredictable actions. It seems George can only control Lennie by threatening him with the thing he cares about most which is the farm, “But you ain’t gonna get in no trouble, because if you do, I won’t let you tend the rabbits” he threatens, trying to make Lennie remember the importance of his actions (36). George is constantly complaining that he could have a better life and even have a farm without Lennie to look after, but he also wants a companion. Lennie is often simple minded and easily influenced, but intuitive enough to manipulate George’s loneliness, “If you don’t want me George I can go up in that cave over there and leave,” George quickly denies this saying “No, look I was just foolin’ Lennie, ‘cause I want you to stay with me” (20).

If he lets Lennie go on his own then George knows that he will get into more trouble and probably get

George would protect Lennie at all costs even from himself. After Lennie kills a young woman, George decides it is better for Lennie to be dead rather than to be tortured and kept in a cell or a mental asylum. The decision of killing Lennie hit George like a train, but he knew it was something that was in Lennie’s own good. Knowing he could have an easier life without Lennie, George still kept him around because he needed George and George needed Lennie. George tells Slim “Course Lennie’s a God damn nuisance most of the time, but you get used to goin’ around with a guy an’ you can’t get rid of him.”

Everyone on the ranch is faced with the difficulty of not only making money during the depression but also steering clear of loneliness. The novel Of Mice and Men demonstrates how loneliness can negatively affect someone's life by making them feel isolated and alone because they have no one to talk to and are lacking human connection. While on the ranch, George and Lennie meet a black man named Crooks who is shut out by the men on the farm and doesn't have anyone. Crooks is the only black man on the ranch and the other men on the ranch don't let him go in their bunkhouses, so instead Crooks lives in a small section of the barn.

George asks him to turn his head and look beyond, then says, “I’ll tell you so you can almost see it” (105). Even if this was a furtive way to get Lennie to turn the other way so he could shoot him, it still had the effect of making Lennie feel at peace and it was a way to give him hope. By helping Lennie imagine the farm they had dreamed of, George creates a sense of security and promise for Lennie, which was an image that kept him going day after day. Something else George does to comfort Lennie before he kills him is reassure him with his words, which often held the most significance to Lennie. Lennie asks George if he’s going to give him hell and George responds by saying, “I never been mad, an’ I ain’t now.

He has harmed mice, puppies, and people in this way. Hence, even if they were mistakes, George had to stop Lennie from doing these things. George was in charge of Lennie; he was aware of his personality and acted in

Loneliness and Alienation in “Of Mice and Men” In John Steinbeck’s novel, “Of Mice and Men”, many characters were plagued with loneliness and alienation, and most characters were in need of acceptance. The harsh time period of the Great Depression affected three characters in, “Of Mice and Men” greatly. Three characters that are plagued by loneliness and alienation and are in need of acceptance the most include George Milton; the protagonist of the novel, Crooks; the negro stable buck with a crooked back, and Curley’s wife; a young woman who just wants somebody to talk to. In this essay, you will learn why George, Crooks, and Curley’s wife were the loneliest and why other characters were not plagued with loneliness and alienation as much as these three characters. George Milton is the protagonist of the novel.

He life has so far been trying to keep a steady job while caring and looking after Lennie, who easily gets them kicked out of almost every place they go to. “An’ you ain’t gonna do no bad things like you done in Weed, neither,”(Steinbeck 8). George honestly knew he would be better off without Lennie. But because of Lennie’s aunt, he would keep him safe even if a town was after him. Multiple times he has saved Lennie from others who misinterpreted him for a fool or a creep, when really they acted on impulse than understand the situation at

Lastly Crooks goes through this theme because he has to stay in a room next to the barn and is isolated from the others because he is black. Steinbeck uses different factors to portray the loneliness and isolation within characters such as physical or mental, which then deliver various messages to readers. Curley’s wife struggles through loneliness and isolation because she is the only woman on the ranch. Curley’s wife is

A key aspect of any novel or story is the way the characters interact and feel towards everything. In John Steinbeck’s, “Of Mice and Men”, the characters tend to give off the effect of loneliness and the feeling of isolation throughout the novel. The main characters that give off the effect of loneliness and the feeling of isolation are Curley’s wife, Crooks, and George. They’ve been truly alone, if not in mind then in body.

However he first tells Lennie about their dream, about tending rabbits, living off the land from the crops, and shoots him. Friendship and Loneliness is shown here where George is Lennie’s best friend, and everyone else stays away leaving Lennie alone. Other times in the novel the reader witnesses many other characters face this same factor of isolation. Some examples are,

One’s self has experienced loneliness from choice or forced into isolation. The novel ¨Of Mice and Men¨ written by John Steinbeck, took place during the Great Depression, near Soledad, California. The protagonist, George and the antagonist, Lennie are mid aged, white men who are working on a ranch with other mid aged, white men. Along with ones who aren’t as focused at the time, such as Crooks, the negro or black, Curley’s wife, the woman and, Candy, the old and weak man were treated differently from all the white, strong males in the novel due to the setting the novel. This making distance in relationships in Of Mice and Men, isolating these characters into loneliness.