There is a significant feeling of powerlessness, especially when someone constantly needs to have something done but is helpless when time the situation at hand calls for action. Steinbeck shows this throughout his novella by proving how powerlessness can impact a person’s life on three different levels. He uses examples of different conditions that are highlighted through the course of events in his book, to exaggerate the powerlessness that some of the characters face while working a small job on a farm. In his novella, “Of Mice and Men,” John Steinbeck uses the characters of Lennie, George, and Crooks shown as underdogs, to touch on how people were financially, socially, and intellectually powerless, during the period of The Great Depression.
…show more content…
Even George, who is Lennie’s best friend, tells Lennie that he is not allowed to speak because he fears that what Lennie might say, is going to harm both of their reputation, rendering Lennie not only suppressed, but powerless as well. George instructed Lennie not to do anything that could potentially cause them harm to them as he said, “‘...you ain’t gonna say a word. You jus’ stand there and don’t say nothing.’” (pg. 6) Steinbeck shows the incredibly low amount of power that Lennie’s character possesses as he writes about how Lennie’s actions are monitored by George’s words. Lennie is shown to be mentally slow and characters around him start to pick up on that without having to be notified of his condition, viewing him as powerless. This is shown in the conversation between Slim and George, when Slim says, “‘He’s jes’ like a kid, ain’t he.’” (pg.43) A person with a mental disadvantage is never allowed to make any sort of decisions in, or regarding the real world; similarly, Lennie is repressed of his points of view, and is shushed and put to the side, proving his lack of power. For the sole reason that Lennie has a mental issue, he is not viewed in the same perspective that everyone else is stands …show more content…
Crooks is a black person who is crippled; the amount of significance he has to anyone in Weed is very low, which makes him very powerless when compared to the majority of the men on the farm. His isolation and rank in society are presented to the reader by Crooks himself as he tells Lennie, “‘The play cards in there, but I can’t play cause I’m black.’” (pg. 68) The display of Crooks and the amount of power he is given shows how isolated, powerless, and alone black people really were during the Great Depression. His ranking in society brings him down so low that even if he wanted to stand up to something unjust, he could be shut down by anybody who ranks higher than him in the social scale, including a flirtatious tart. Curley’s wife was a white woman who took unjustified advantage of Crooks because he was a colored person when she told him, “...Nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.” (pg. 81) It is crucial to note how much Crooks wanted to stand up for himself and how quickly and easily he was suppressed by a white woman. Even though it is not portrayed often, Steinbeck used the character of Crooks to prove how racism could bring somebody a societal level even lower than animals, and he proved that power was the way that some people
Even George, who is Lennie’s best friend, tells Lennie that he is not allowed to speak because he fears that what Lennie might say, is going to harm both of their reputation, rendering Lennie not only suppressed, but powerless as well. George instructed Lennie not to do anything that could potentially cause them harm to them as he said, “‘...you ain’t gonna say a word. You jus’ stand there and don’t say nothing.’” (pg. 6) Steinbeck shows the incredibly low amount of power that Lennie’s character possesses as he writes about how Lennie’s actions are monitored by George’s words. Lennie is shown to be mentally slow and characters around him start to pick up on that without having to be notified of his condition, viewing him as powerless. This is shown in the conversation between Slim and George, when Slim says, “‘He’s jes’ like a kid, ain’t he.’” (pg.43) A person with a mental disadvantage is never allowed to make any sort of decisions in, or regarding the real world; similarly, Lennie is repressed of his points of view, and is shushed and put to the side, proving his lack of power. For the sole reason that Lennie has a mental issue, he is not viewed in the same perspective that everyone else is stands …show more content…
Crooks is a black person who is crippled; the amount of significance he has to anyone in Weed is very low, which makes him very powerless when compared to the majority of the men on the farm. His isolation and rank in society are presented to the reader by Crooks himself as he tells Lennie, “‘The play cards in there, but I can’t play cause I’m black.’” (pg. 68) The display of Crooks and the amount of power he is given shows how isolated, powerless, and alone black people really were during the Great Depression. His ranking in society brings him down so low that even if he wanted to stand up to something unjust, he could be shut down by anybody who ranks higher than him in the social scale, including a flirtatious tart. Curley’s wife was a white woman who took unjustified advantage of Crooks because he was a colored person when she told him, “...Nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.” (pg. 81) It is crucial to note how much Crooks wanted to stand up for himself and how quickly and easily he was suppressed by a white woman. Even though it is not portrayed often, Steinbeck used the character of Crooks to prove how racism could bring somebody a societal level even lower than animals, and he proved that power was the way that some people