Theme
Characters
Key quote
Comment/link to context/Steinbeck P.O.V
Loneliness & Friendship
Curley’s Wife
Candy
Crooks
‘Being with another guy’
‘I should’ve knew’
“ Ain’t I got a right to speak to nobody”
Highlights importance of ‘being with another guy’. 1930’s migrants – no roots – sense of belonging key. Most characters lonely for different reasons Age, race, sex, G&L, Unused – but doomed – (Tragedy). Traditional ‘marriage’ also dysfunctional (CW/C) All lonely characters desperate for a connection…prejudice.
Fate & Inevitability
Lennie, Curley’s Wife, Crooks
Lennie, starts novel in the brush, the novel ends novel in the brush – Cycle of hopelessness
Dreams & Dreaming
George & Lennie, Curleys wife, Candy, Crooks
“We gonna have a little place – an’ rabbits”
“I Coulda’ been in the movies”
Curley’s Wife – Dreams of being in the ‘movies’ but she is living in her own fantasy world.
Violence & Danger
Curley, Curley’s Wife, Carlson.
“Why’n’t you shoot him…?”
“Shoot him in the guts”
Curley’s Wife is described as being dangerous with the red nails, red dress, red=Danger.
Carlson – no sympathy, no emotions. Inability to understand other people’s feelings.
Prejudice
Crooks, Curley’s Wife
“They let the nigger come in that night”
Curley’s wife in the time period seen as a whore or dangerous – not to be trusted.
Crooks, being the only black guy on the farm is segregated and separated from the other ranchers as he lives in the barn.
Nature & Man
Lennie
Steinbeck presents nature to be a beautiful and peaceful, idealistic place, but threatened by man – the water pool disturbed by G&L.