Prejudice
Examples
Pages 61-62
The door opened. Slim came in, followed by Curley and Carlson and Whit. Slim's hands were black with tar and he was scowling. Curley hung close to his elbow.
Curley said, "Well, I didn't mean nothing, Slim. I just ast you."
Slim said, "Well, you been askin' me too often. I'm gettin' God damn sick of it. If you can't look after your own God damn wife, what you expect me to do about it? You lay offa me."
"I'm jus' tryin to tell you I didn't mean nothing," said Curley. "I jus' thought you might of saw her."
"why'n't you tell her to stay the hell home where she belongs?" said Carlson. "You let her hang around bunk houses and pretty soon you're gonna have som'pin on your hands and you won't be able to do nothing about it."
All of the men on the ranch besides Curley assume that Curley's Wife is nothing but trouble. Flirting with her would be crossing Curley, and crossing Curley means losing your job. To the workers, Curley's Wife is nothing more than an extension of Curley's irritating tendencies, because she belongs to him.
Page 70
"My old man had a chicken ranch, 'bout ten acres. The white kids come to play at our place, an' sometimes I went to play with them, and some of them was pretty nice. My ol' man didn't like that. I never knew till long later why he didn't like that. But I know now." He hesitated, and when he spoke again his voice was softer. "There wasn't another colored family for miles around. And now there ain't a colored man on this ranch an' there's jus' one family in Soledad." He laughed. "If I say something, why it's just a nigger sayin' it."
It doesn't come as a surprise that Crooks has been discriminated against, but it is necessary for the author to point out as it emphasizes the point he is trying to make about prejudice. Even if Crooks overcame adversity in the form of persecution in the past, it still just ended up with him having a bad job on a ranch, with an injured back to boot. Prejudice in no way helped Crooks; in fact, it completely ruined his life.
The door opened. Slim came in, followed by Curley and Carlson and Whit. Slim's hands were black with tar and he was scowling. Curley hung close to his elbow.
Curley said, "Well, I didn't mean nothing, Slim. I just ast you."
Slim said, "Well, you been askin' me too often. I'm gettin' God damn sick of it. If you can't look after your own God damn wife, what you expect me to do about it? You lay offa me."
"I'm jus' tryin to tell you I didn't mean nothing," said Curley. "I jus' thought you might of saw her."
"why'n't you tell her to stay the hell home where she belongs?" said Carlson. "You let her hang around bunk houses and pretty soon you're gonna have som'pin on your hands and you won't be able to do nothing about it."
All of the men on the ranch besides Curley assume that Curley's Wife is nothing but trouble. Flirting with her would be crossing Curley, and crossing Curley means losing your job. To the workers, Curley's Wife is nothing more than an extension of Curley's irritating tendencies, because she belongs to him.
Page 70
"My old man had a chicken ranch, 'bout ten acres. The white kids come to play at our place, an' sometimes I went to play with them, and some of them was pretty nice. My ol' man didn't like that. I never knew till long later why he didn't like that. But I know now." He hesitated, and when he spoke again his voice was softer. "There wasn't another colored family for miles around. And now there ain't a colored man on this ranch an' there's jus' one family in Soledad." He laughed. "If I say something, why it's just a nigger sayin' it."
It doesn't come as a surprise that Crooks has been discriminated against, but it is necessary for the author to point out as it emphasizes the point he is trying to make about prejudice. Even if Crooks overcame adversity in the form of persecution in the past, it still just ended up with him having a bad job on a ranch, with an injured back to boot. Prejudice in no way helped Crooks; in fact, it completely ruined his life.
Characters
George - Most migrant workers travel alone, and the other workers find it strange that George travels with Lennie. This causes them to be wary of him.
Lennie - It's no secret that Lennie is retarded, so naturally George doesn't want Lennie to speak when the other workers around, especially the boss. It could cost them their jobs. The one person who opens up to Lennie is killed.
Candy - Candy is old and can't work well, and he knows he is at risk for losing his job because of this.
Slim - Everyone assumes that Slim has all the answers to every issue, which is a lot of pressure to put on one man. This isn't hate-based prejudice, but it is still prejudice nonetheless.
Carlson - Nobody particularly cares about Carlson because he's just another worker, and therefore insignificant in the eyes of both the other characters and the narrative itself.
Curley - Curley has worked up a bad reputation for himself, and he has cemented his position as a joke to his peers. They will never take him seriously no matter how hard he tries.
Crooks - Obviously, Crooks has faced discrimination for his race.
Curley's Wife - All the workers assume she is nothing but trouble because she is Curley's property, yet she flirts with other workers. Nobody bothers actually getting to know her.
Lennie - It's no secret that Lennie is retarded, so naturally George doesn't want Lennie to speak when the other workers around, especially the boss. It could cost them their jobs. The one person who opens up to Lennie is killed.
Candy - Candy is old and can't work well, and he knows he is at risk for losing his job because of this.
Slim - Everyone assumes that Slim has all the answers to every issue, which is a lot of pressure to put on one man. This isn't hate-based prejudice, but it is still prejudice nonetheless.
Carlson - Nobody particularly cares about Carlson because he's just another worker, and therefore insignificant in the eyes of both the other characters and the narrative itself.
Curley - Curley has worked up a bad reputation for himself, and he has cemented his position as a joke to his peers. They will never take him seriously no matter how hard he tries.
Crooks - Obviously, Crooks has faced discrimination for his race.
Curley's Wife - All the workers assume she is nothing but trouble because she is Curley's property, yet she flirts with other workers. Nobody bothers actually getting to know her.