How Does Steinbeck Show Loneliness

Of Mice and Men In the book Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck shows loneliness in a lot of the characters. In the novel, a quick-witted man named George travels with and cares for Lennie, whom is disabled. They’ve had an ambition to buy their own ranch. They went through many obstacles that revealed the nature of dreams, pride, loneliness, and sacrifice. Loneliness is caused by a depressing feeling of being alone. Steinbeck says that loneliness can make people cruel, helpless, or seek for attention. Crooks is one of the loneliest people; he is always cruel to everyone. He is isolated from everybody and lives in the barn. When Lennie comes into Crooks’s room, Crooks says, “You got no right to come in my room. This here’s my room. Nobody got any right in here but me” (Steinbeck 68) because he doesn’t think that anyone wants to talk to him except for Slim. He thinks that just because his race nobody respects him. Crooks is being cruel to Lennie by saying, “S’pose George don’t come back no more. S’pose he took a powder and just ain’t coming back. What’ll you do then… Le’s say he wants to come …show more content…
She uses Curley as an excuse to talk to other men. For example, “I’m looking for Curley… If he ain’t, I guess I better look some place else… Nobody blames a person for looking” (Steinbeck 32) she talks to George and Lennie and wants to flirt with them. Curley’s wife starts to talk to Lennie because she sees how Lennie mesmerises her. “Listen. All the guys got a horseshoe tenement goin’ on. It’s on’y about four o’clock. None of them guys is goin’ to leave the tenement. Why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely” (Steinbeck 86). Lennie doesn’t know any better and he is the only one she can talk to and doesn’t look away; she likes it. She gets closer to Lennie, which makes Lennie nervous, and he accidently kills her. Curley’s wife seeks for attention and ends up