Patriarchy In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Living in a man’s world is no easy feat for the opposite sex. 1930’s California is a perfect example of a world that was tailored specifically for men. In Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, Lennie and George are living in that world. As well as all the other migrant workers, they spend their lives moving from ranch to ranch, searching for new job opportunities. Because they are constantly moving, they do not carry around many belongings, but there is one thing that they all carry with them: the ideals of patriarchy. When they arrive at the new ranch, George and Lennie begin to get acquainted with their new temporary housing and the other people that inhabit it, however, there are very few women that they come in contact with. Curley’s wife is the

Curley’s wife suffers the most because she does not provide the men with what they think she should. Interactions with her are widely believed to bring the men “trouble” because of Curley’s jealousy. However, the reason behind his jealousy is not because he cherishes her as a person, but rather because “she is to him a thing, a possession” (Gale) that he can brag about to the others. In order to avoid any conflicts with Curley, the ranch workers avoid her fervently. In their eyes, the only thing that she can give them, sex, would bring more problems than it’s worth. George immediately catches on to the danger that she could potentially present and warns Lennie to stay away from her. However, Curley’s wife continues to search for someone to hold a conversation with on the male-dominated ranch. When she finally manages to get what she’s yearned for and manages to talk to Lennie, she ends up lying in the barn, with her neck snapped and Candy, one of the workers, aiming derogatory terms towards her unmoving corpse. George and Candy are more concerned with the symbolic death of their dream than the death of an actual human being, because she never acted the way they thought she was supposed