Of Mice And Men Motif Of Loneliness

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John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men contains many motifs that create the theme, one of the most important being the motif of loneliness. The main characters experience varying forms of loneliness, however, the secondary characters are plagued with desolation, making them just as important to this theme as the central characters. This motif applies to the old swamper Candy, who lost his hand working on the ranch and is nearing the end of his working ability, distancing him from the other workers. Another character that displays is Curley’s wife; since she’s a woman she’s not allowed to make her own decisions and since she does not like Curley, she strives to make friends with the other men whom she has been forbidden to talk to. Also, the motif of loneliness applies to the black stable buck, Crooks, whose race prevents …show more content…

After Carlson shoots his old dog, Candy confesses to George his fear of being sacked and having no family to go to. For example, Candy says, “I won’t have no place to go” (Steinbeck 60). This quote proves Candy’s loneliness by showing how he has no family or friends to return to after he’s fired, and since his dog was shot, he has no one that he truly cares for. Another way Candy shows his loneliness is when he offers to leave George and Lennie everything in his will because he does not have any family left to give his possessions and money to. For instance, in the bunkhouse, when Candy overhears George and Lennie’s plan to buy a plot of land, he says, “I ain’t got no relatives nor nothing” (Steinbeck 59). This shows that Candy is isolated because he has nobody related to him to care for him or to provide shelter for him once he’s fired. The combination of being old, disabled, and having no one outside of the ranch creates a character that carries the weight of the world in

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