Those who do not have anyone can begin to change into vile and heartless people. The novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck tells the story of two migrant workers who travel to a ranch. On this ranch, they find many people that have been brutalized due to their solitary way of life. Through this story, the changes caused by isolation are seen first hand through many characters and their cruel treatment of others. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd also deals with the idea of becoming cruel due to isolation It depicts a young girl named Lily who runs away from her abusive father to try to find answers about her late mother. This quest leads her to the home that her mother stayed when she left T. Ray, Lily’s father. Lily discovers
…show more content…
Steinbeck uses the dialogue of Curley’s wife while Kidd uses T. Ray’s actions and dialogue to convey that loneliness can cause one to become inhumane and cruel.
Curley’s wife is living a life full of loneliness and solitude which leads to her callous and malicious behavior towards others. None of the men talk to her, her husband is too busy and self-centered to care about her, and there are no other women on the ranch for her to spend time with. Curley’s wife believes that she even gave up a life as a model for this lonely, despair filled one. Instead of her glamorous dream life, she has a desolate ranch life that is far different than what she imagined. She married the boss’s son which may imply that she would be respected by the other men on the ranch, however, they all either ignore her or are rude to her. In just a few weeks, Curley’s wife has grown to resent her new married life and the people she is now supposed to spend it with, as everyone refuses to interact with her, leaving her completely alone. After most of the men, including her husband, left the …show more content…
Ray’s wife causes him to become cruel, and both physically and verbally abuse his daughter, Lily. T. Ray loved his late wife very much, so much so that he became consumed by this love, as if she was his only joy in life. When his wife grew unhappy and tried to leave him, he grew angry and heartless. He began to force his daughter to kneel on wood chips that dug into her skin, called her “‘no better than a slut’” (24), and did even more that caused Lily to run away. Although it appears as though T. Ray may hate Lily, he still continues to look for her. His search leads him to find the place where Deborah, his wife, was hiding when she left T. Ray. Learning that this was where his wife had been all along sent him into a flurry of rage. Kidd writes, “He stood over me. ‘Deborah,’ I heard him mumble. ‘You’re not leaving me again.’...I saw he had the knife. He waved it in front of my face...he was no longer talking to me but to Deborah...He seemed crazy with anguish, reliving a pain he’d kept locked up all this time, and now that it was loose, it had overwhelmed him. I wondered how far he’d go to try and take Deborah back. For all I knew, he might kill her,” (294-295). A simple reminder of everything he has lost caused T. Ray to take a knife to his daughter and make her fear for her life. Before losing his wife, T. Ray was in love, he had a happy family. He was happy. However, after Deborah tried to leave, a hole
Steinbeck uses the dialogue of Curley’s wife while Kidd uses T. Ray’s actions and dialogue to convey that loneliness can cause one to become inhumane and cruel.
Curley’s wife is living a life full of loneliness and solitude which leads to her callous and malicious behavior towards others. None of the men talk to her, her husband is too busy and self-centered to care about her, and there are no other women on the ranch for her to spend time with. Curley’s wife believes that she even gave up a life as a model for this lonely, despair filled one. Instead of her glamorous dream life, she has a desolate ranch life that is far different than what she imagined. She married the boss’s son which may imply that she would be respected by the other men on the ranch, however, they all either ignore her or are rude to her. In just a few weeks, Curley’s wife has grown to resent her new married life and the people she is now supposed to spend it with, as everyone refuses to interact with her, leaving her completely alone. After most of the men, including her husband, left the …show more content…
Ray’s wife causes him to become cruel, and both physically and verbally abuse his daughter, Lily. T. Ray loved his late wife very much, so much so that he became consumed by this love, as if she was his only joy in life. When his wife grew unhappy and tried to leave him, he grew angry and heartless. He began to force his daughter to kneel on wood chips that dug into her skin, called her “‘no better than a slut’” (24), and did even more that caused Lily to run away. Although it appears as though T. Ray may hate Lily, he still continues to look for her. His search leads him to find the place where Deborah, his wife, was hiding when she left T. Ray. Learning that this was where his wife had been all along sent him into a flurry of rage. Kidd writes, “He stood over me. ‘Deborah,’ I heard him mumble. ‘You’re not leaving me again.’...I saw he had the knife. He waved it in front of my face...he was no longer talking to me but to Deborah...He seemed crazy with anguish, reliving a pain he’d kept locked up all this time, and now that it was loose, it had overwhelmed him. I wondered how far he’d go to try and take Deborah back. For all I knew, he might kill her,” (294-295). A simple reminder of everything he has lost caused T. Ray to take a knife to his daughter and make her fear for her life. Before losing his wife, T. Ray was in love, he had a happy family. He was happy. However, after Deborah tried to leave, a hole