There is a scale of sympathy for certain characters in the course of any story. We side with the heroes and hate the villains. Curley’s wife is a complex character in the novella ‘Of Mice and Men’. Some view her as the protagonist and others view her as the antagonist. How much sympathy does this character really deserve? Curley’s wife emerges an interesting and complex character, she oscillates between innocence and seductiveness so that the reader sympathizes with her at some points and condemns her at the other.
Curley's wife, a nameless character, was portrayed as a villain rather than a hero at the beginning of the novella. She was first introduced by rumors. We don’t know much about her background. Candy describes her from …show more content…
Many believe her death was not fair. She did not do anything to Lennie to deserve her sudden and violent death. Steinbeck portrays her innocence in death, “And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face. She was very pretty and simple, and her face was sweet and young. Now her rouged cheeks and her reddened lips made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly. The curls, tiny little sausages, were spread on the hay behind her head, and her lips were parted (Of Mice and Men).” Through this description, we can see the girl she might have been underneath her concealed face. On the other hand, her death may be a symbol of freedom from the life she was given which was a bird that came through the barn window circled it and flew out again (Joan, 2015). Furthermore, Curley’s wife was somehow the cause of her own death. She underestimated Lennie’s strength by thinking he was an ‘easy to get’ guy. To add upon that, she asks for trouble. For instance, she knew that Lennie crushed her husband’s hand yet she invites him to stroke her hair.
In ‘Of Mice and Men’, John Steinbeck makes each situation have as less details as possible to leave the reader to decide what's really happening. This means that it is up to each person to either sympathize or condemn the character. I believe that even the worst of us have humanity and deserve to be sympathized with. Although Curley’s wife was rude and flirtatious, she was lonely, hurt and killed violently at the
Curley's wife, a nameless character, was portrayed as a villain rather than a hero at the beginning of the novella. She was first introduced by rumors. We don’t know much about her background. Candy describes her from …show more content…
Many believe her death was not fair. She did not do anything to Lennie to deserve her sudden and violent death. Steinbeck portrays her innocence in death, “And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face. She was very pretty and simple, and her face was sweet and young. Now her rouged cheeks and her reddened lips made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly. The curls, tiny little sausages, were spread on the hay behind her head, and her lips were parted (Of Mice and Men).” Through this description, we can see the girl she might have been underneath her concealed face. On the other hand, her death may be a symbol of freedom from the life she was given which was a bird that came through the barn window circled it and flew out again (Joan, 2015). Furthermore, Curley’s wife was somehow the cause of her own death. She underestimated Lennie’s strength by thinking he was an ‘easy to get’ guy. To add upon that, she asks for trouble. For instance, she knew that Lennie crushed her husband’s hand yet she invites him to stroke her hair.
In ‘Of Mice and Men’, John Steinbeck makes each situation have as less details as possible to leave the reader to decide what's really happening. This means that it is up to each person to either sympathize or condemn the character. I believe that even the worst of us have humanity and deserve to be sympathized with. Although Curley’s wife was rude and flirtatious, she was lonely, hurt and killed violently at the