Humanity In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

A common question answered by literature throughout history has been of the basic goodness or immorality of humanity. John Steinbeck demonstrates the cruelness of humankind in his novella, Of Mice and Men, through the story of two migrant farmers, George and Lennie, who travel with one another looking for work in an apathetic world. Throughout their travels, they come across many people who all share the common feeling of loneliness that was prevalent in 1930s America. Their experiences on a ranch in California cause readers to lose faith in the goodness of humanity. In his Depression era novel, Steinbeck exposes the cruel side of human nature through his usage of dialogue, symbolism, and indirect characterization. Through dialogue, Steinbeck …show more content…
In the novel’s time period, African Americans were looked down upon and discriminated against. As the only African American on the ranch, Crooks is forced to live alone in the barn and is abused by the other men. Lennie, lonely and oblivious to social order, enters Crooks’ room and has a conversation with him. Through this conversation, Crooks confides in Lennie. Crooks says, “S’pose you didn’t have nobody. S’pose you couldn’t go into the bunk house and play rummy ‘cause you was black. How’d you like that? ...A guy needs somebody –to be near him” (Steinbeck 71). Through his conversation with Lennie, Crooks is indirectly characterized as a lonely man. He is mistreated and discriminated upon by the other men on the ranch due to his skin color. The isolation that Crooks is put through attests to the cruel tendencies of humanity. Curley’s characterization also uncovers the harsh reality of man’s inhumanity to man. As an agnostic character, Curley is pugnacious and cruel towards others. Looking for a fight and insecure about his wife’s actions, Curley storms into the bunkhouse. When Curley notices Lennie laughing to himself innocuously, he corners