Of Mice and Men Stereotypic Analysis - Book Report/Review Example

The society Steinbeck paints in Of Mice and Men is a world of stereotypes, prejudices and racist beliefs. Those considered normal live by strict setsof rules, which from the outside, seem inhumane. This is true of life in the bunkhouse and of life on the ranch in general. Since living outside the norm is considered criminal, being outside the norm results in social and sometimes physical, alienation, verbal abuse, and a loss of autonomy. Sometimes it leads to a loss of life. For example, George's close relationship with Lennie causes those around them to look suspiciously at George. Certainly Lennie's character is portrayed as marginal due to his mental disability and Candy's advanced age and his missing limb push him to the margins of society as well. Crooks, the "stable buck", is marginalized because he is black and also disabled. In each of these cases the normal characters, such as Slim, Carlson, Curly and his wife, exercise an unquestioned power and influence over the abnormal characters within the story. While Lennie seems to be the most obvious victim of these cruel standards, Steinbeck appears to suggest that all are victims of this society and its prejudices and racism. Crooks serves as both character and symbol, of California's ranch culture. At different times Steinbeck portrays Crooks in dehumanizing terms, as "the nigger," not the man. The ranch employees casually refer to Crooks as the nigger using this derogatory name with an ease that suggests they do not consider it offensive or insulting. Yet Steinbeck also uses Crooks to critique the racism that has shaped his life. Steinbeck seems to use Crooks as literary device to illustrate the quietly hostile and impersonal mentality of the culture in which George and Lennie live. An introductory exchange between George and Candy in which they try to determine the ranch owner's personality based on his treatment of Crooks illustrates this. Candy explains some of the boss' qualities to George and Lennie: "He was sure burned when you wasn't here this morning. Come right in when we was eatin' breakfast and says, 'Where the hell's the new men' An' he give the Stable Buck hell, too." George patted a wrinkle out of his bed, and sat down. "Gave the Stable Buck hell" he asked. "Sure. Ya see the stable buck's a nigger." "Nigger, huh" "Yeah, nice fella too" (Steinbeck, 1994, p. 20) This exchange illustrates the complicated role of race painted by Steinbeck in this society/culture. Candy can on one hand see it as perfectly normal/acceptable for the boss to abuse Crooks because of his race. Simultaneously Candy comments that he likes Crooks, but does not find this racist paradox at all problematic. None of the men seem to dislike Crooks but neither do they refer to him by his name or allow him into the bunkhouse. Only Slim ever addresses Crooks by his name, supposing, of course that Crooks is not just an unkind reference to his crooked back. In other words, Crooks is victimized due to his race. Crooks is shown to have little or no control over his life, he is the frequent target of racial slurs and physical and mental assaults. Just like Candy's old dog, Crooks has very little control over his fate; both are at the mercy of the whims of the ranchers. This treatment of Crooks helps characterize the harshness of both the people on this ranch and the culture of ranch life in general. A small verbal exchange in the third chapter illustrates the rigid nature of these people and this place. George is in the bunkhouse playing cards with Whit and the discussion turns to Curly's wife. Whit laid down his cards impressively. "Well stick around an' keep your eyes open. You'll see plenty. She ain't concealin' nothing. I never seen nobody like her. She got the eye goin' all the time on everybody. I bet she even gives the stable buck the eye. I don't know what the hell she wants." (p. 50) Steinbeck reveals the pervasive racism and sexism of this culture through Whit's suggestion that flirting with Crooks is the most offensive act possible. Indeed, sexism and racism intermingle here whereby Curly's wide is perceived of as an immoral woman whose lack of control over her own sexual desires is such that she desires, not a family employee but, a black one at that. The fact that the novel exposes sexism just as much as it does racism is evidenced in the fact that throughout the novel, Curly's wife is the constant object of scrutiny as the hands frequently describe her sexual behavior causing them to scorn and avoid her. Sexism and racism are compounded by social prejudices; prejudices which instigate cruelty as evidence in the scene which unfolds between Curly's wife, Lennie, Candy and Crooks, which takes place in Crooks' room. She begins to tease Lennie causing Crooks to come to Lennie's defense. As soon as rooks does, however, Curly's wife reveals her own racist attitudes and social prejudices:. "Listen Nigger," she said. "You know what I can do to you if you open your trap" Crooks stared hopelessly at her, and then he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself. She closed on him. "You know what I could do" Crooks seemed to grow smaller, and he pressed himself against the wall. "Yes, ma'am." "Well you keep your place then, Nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny." He said, "Yes, ma'am," and his voice was toneless. For a moment she stood over him as though waiting for him to move so that she could whip at him again; but Crooks sat perfectly still, his eyes averted, everything that might be hurt drawn in. (p. 78-9) The above exposes the fact that Curly's wife is capable of great cruelty towards the people considered beneath her. She understands perfectly that they all live in a starkly cruel culture in which a sexually based accusation against Crooks would be enough to get him killed. The fact that a character whom Steinbeck did not perceive of as worthy of being given a name should possess the power to have an honest black man killed on the basis of an empty and false accusation is expressive of the depth of the racism which runs throughout this society. At the same time, the fact that the only female character in the novel is not given a name and is portrayed as both cruel and immoral, is reflective of the sexism which pervades throughout the culture in question. Given the pervasive racism found on the ranch it is no wonder that Crooks is an aloof man. As later revealed, however, aloofness is instigated by Crooks' desire to protect himself from further hurt and degradation. Certainly he is aloof but that does not mean he is not lonely but that he craves company and interpersonal exchange without the hurt that tends to accompany his interactions with others. It is, thus, that when he finally opens up and engages in an extended dialogue with any, it is Lennie whom he chooses to speak to. The exchange between Crooks and Lennie allows the former to respond to the racism that has gone unanswered and unquestioned until now in the novel. Lennie serves as a welcome and uncritical audience for Crooks as he begins to reveal the isolation he has experienced; having grown up in California, he has never lived within the company of other blacks and therefore has never made real friends or significant connections with anyone, outside of his family. His statement about not being a southern Negro also implies a sense of superiority over blacks born in the South; it suggests a subtle hierarchy in which Crooks' being a native Californian separates him from all of the implied struggles and complications of coming from the South. Crooks' family once owned land in California and therefore experienced the opportunities of self employment and self-possession.. Crooks is utterly alone; he knows no other blacks, his family seems to be gone and so too is their land. Crooks opens up and exposes himself to Lennie because he is so desperately lonely but also because he is aware of the fact that Lennie understands little to none of what he is saying. He also opens up to Lennie because he ultimately views him as sub-human; a man who is not quite a man; an adult who is, to all intents and purposes, little other than a child. The implication here is that Crooks is as prejudiced towards Lennie, because of his mental disability, as are the ranch hand towards him because of his race. As indicated in the preceding, Of Mice and Men, is an exposition of the prejudices which pervade throughout the society in question and revolves around a revelation of the extent to which societal rigidity is absolutely intolerant of any who defy the norm. In a man's world, Curly's wife defies the norm through her femininity; in a white man's world, Crooks defies the norm by being black; and in a world where men are independent, Lennie's mental disability and subsequent dependency renders him little other than a freak of nature. Quite simply stated, this is a society which operates according to well-established and rigid norms and, consequently, is absolutely intolerant towards anything or anyone which falls outside the norm. It is, in blunt terms, a society of prejudices and stereotypes; a sexist and racist society. Read More