Isolation In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

A man who is good from docility, and not from stern self-control, has no character. In the novella, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, characters face isolation by distancing themselves from others by feeling pain, thinking they are useless, feeling lonely since they are migrants with little hope, and having different varieties of attitudes. Many characters controls one another physically and mentally, which makes it difficult for them to express their feelings towards one another. Having an intellectual disability, or coming from a different background won’t have you accepted for you being who you really are and not being welcomed into society. Crook isolated himself from others who worked at the ranch by living alone in his own barn, being separated from the others since he is colored. “ Don’t make no difference who the guy is, long’s he’s with you. I tell ya,” he cried.” I tell ya a guy gets too lonely an’ he gets sick” (73). Crook isolated himself from others since he is black. He knows that no one wants to be around him since they think he is different, so he keeps himself away from everyone. Crook feels lonely, but knows that it is his fault that he is this way. “A guy sets alone out here at night, maybe readin’ books or thinkin’ or stuff like that. Sometimes he gets thinkin’, an’ he got nothing to tell him what’s so an’ what ain’t so. Maybe if he sees somethin’, he don’t know whether it’s right or not. He can’t turn to some other guy and ast him if he sees it too. He can’t tell ”(Steinbeck 73). Crook just wants someone to be there for him. His whole life, he has been left alone with no one there to be by him. His siblings weren’t really social, so he had to grow up on his own. He knows that he could have been more active with others around him, but chose not to. Curley’s wife is seen as a tramp. …show more content…
She dresses up and wears tons of makeup. Curley’s wife intimidates men by her beauty, making her get whatever she wants. Curley’s wife is isolated by others by being alone and her not being able to express her feelings towards others. “Why can’t I talk to you? I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely” (86). Curley’s wife doesn’t get to talk to anyone. If she is seen talking to other guys, people would think that she is flirting with other men or either cheating on Curley. “I always thought my ol’ lady stole it. Well, I wasn’t going to stay no place place where I couldn’t get nowhere or make something of myself.. So I married Curley” (88). Curley’s wife had a full life ahead of her, but no one believed in her. She had to give up her dream of becoming an actor because no one would be there by her side. She chose a life she didn’t want to be apart of but knows that there is no way of leaving it. She knows that this is her life now and is living it to the fullest. Candy is an old man with an injury. He lost his right hand while working at the ranch. Ever since he had lost his dog, he feels lonely because he had been through thick and thin with him. “You seen what they done to my dog tonight? They said he