In a society where the focus on equality amongst different races, religions and sexes continues to grow, it is no surprise that literature has begun to follow suit. Publishers have seen a rise in strong, capable female protagonists who overcome a variety of struggles to save themselves or others and both teens and adults alike rush to get their hands on this material. With such popular literary works to choose from, it seems strange that many schools continue to rely on somewhat archaic material that mistreats and degrades so many women. In John Steinbeck 's Of Mice and Men, for example, the only female character the reader interacts with is treated like a lower-class prostitute who is ultimately killed off due to her seductive behavior. Though Steinbeck 's treatment of women comes mainly from classic gender roles, his portrayal of female characters in Of Mice and Men is …show more content…
Two migrant workers, George and Lennie, attempt to reach their version of the American Dream or “the ability of all Americans to attain a better standard of living, including owning a home” (“American Dream” 96). The two men are most concerned with owning “a little house and a couple of acres” and their ability to “live off the fatta the lan’” (Steinbeck 14). Their journey, however, is presented as more challenging than most as Lennie struggles with a mental deficiency and relies heavily on George for both structure and guidance. Each time George and Lennie begin to settle into a job, Lennie makes a mistake causing George to uproot his life and yell at Lennie for how he “Jus’ keep[s] [him] shovin’ all over the country all the time” (Steinbeck 11). Although their quest for happiness and success along with Lennie’s difficulties appear to be the main conflicts of the novel, there is much more below the surface as the two big relocations discussed in the novella come about because of a woman’s
The title of the novel Of Mice and Men has a unique meaning behind it. The saying “Are you a man or are you a mouse?” has a connection to novel itself but more importantly the characters. Each main character in this novel can be classified as either a “man” or a “mouse”. The “men” seen in the novel are George Milton, and Curley. The “mice” can be classified as Lennie Small and Curley’s wife. The “mice” are represented by the weak or the socially unacceptable characters; the “men” are represented by the strong, independent characters.
Marguerite Gardiner once said “Prejudices are the chains forged by ignorance to keep men apart” (Wright). Gardiners quote ties in wonderfully with one of the themes that Steinbeck portrays in his well-known novel “Of Mice and Men.” Steinbeck tells a story of two men who search to live a better more prosperous life, demonstrating the good and the bad that life can bring. The story takes place during the Great Depression era (Attell). During this time it was extremely difficult for individuals to find and have a set place to call home; people were continuously moving from place to place to find work and shelter. He uses many different characters to tell the story and to present major themes that were frequently
Men are supposedly “more powerful” than women when it comes to a lot of things. The book Of Mice And Men takes place in the1930’s where feminism would show up a ton. A lot of feminism is still relevant today, like groups who support feminism and some that are against it. And lots of women are being disrespected because of those who are against feminism or those who just don’t have respect for women and their rights. Even though the ways that men disrespect women have changed the disrespect for them is still alive and relevant today.
For readers who observe literature through a feminist lens, they will notice the depiction of female characters, and this makes a large statement on the author’s perception of feminism. Through portraying these women as specific female archetypes, the author creates sense of what roles women play in both their families and in society. In books such as The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the roles that the main female characters play are, in different instances, both comparable and dissimilar.
First thing I noticed as fantasy was the toad. Not at first, but Winnie kept talking about the frog at the house, then the woods, at the lake, and back at the house when she gave it the “water”. The details of the toad made it seem real. Then at the very end when the toad jumped out in front of the Tucks in the road and almost got ran over by a truck.
In Steinbeck's book Of Mice and Men, he uses minor characters to represent what type of people they are in American society, which all of them are discriminated in some sort of way. Steinbeck uses many motifs from minor characters in the book often, to foreshadow the ideas of darkness and lightness. When Steinbeck writes down these motifs, it helps us know more about characters or their actions they do.
Throughout time, male dominance has been found in many cultures in generation after generation. Sexism existed with that, and was accepted as normal in society. Although women have more equality today, back in 1939 sexism was common in the United States, especially in the South. Women’s rights were few during this time period, which is brought up in Jon Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men. In that novel, sexism hurts Curley’s wife physically and emotionally. The three most obvious acts of sexism seen in the novel are that Curley’s wife was not given a first name by the author, she was labeled a “tart”, and the she was abused by Curley.
A mother and daughter, boyfriend and girlfriend, a loser and his Yu-Gi-Oh cards, relationships can be found everywhere; including the novella Of Mice and Men. Of Mice and Men is a realistic fiction novella written by John Steinbeck. Throughout the novella there are several examples of different kinds of relationships which in “Living in Sym” has discussed and explained. Three relationships types found in the novella are mutualistic, quasi-pathogenic, and commensalistic.
...present powerful characters, while females represent unimportant characters. Unaware of the influence of society’s perception of the importance of sexes, literature and culture go unchanged. Although fairytales such as Sleeping Beauty produce charming entertainment for children, their remains a didactic message that lays hidden beneath the surface; teaching future generations to be submissive to the inequalities of their gender. Feminist critic the works of former literature, highlighting sexual discriminations, and broadcasting their own versions of former works, that paints a composite image of women’s oppression (Feminist Theory and Criticism). Women of the twenty-first century serge forward investigating, and highlighting the inequalities of their race in effort to organize a better social life for women of the future (Feminist Theory and Criticism).
When a character does something unexpected or acts in an unusual way, it typically carries significance. Specifically, females are bound to change and break from the stereotypes and roles expected of them. These stereotypes–which have been deeply rooted into society’s culture–and the ways in which female characters differ from or react to them are of main interest to feminist critics. Feminist critics focus on the gender roles and stereotypes present in literature and whether literature reinforces those stereotypes (Siegel). This particular school of literary criticism requires one to “look beyond rigid or stereotypical views of people and strive to value all humans… by emphasizing their unique individuality and importance” (Gillespie 1). These
Despite the perception that women are inferior and incompetent, seldom do women withstand this consistent discrimination upon their sex. Under the jurisdiction of men in their families, women are oftentimes restrained from opportunity and development. Curley, a man with an intimidating complexion, forces many, including his flirtatious wife, to succumb to his power. However, he fails to recognize his wife’s rising empowerment as she manipulates men around him into becoming her pawns. John Steinbeck’s usage of Curley’s wife in the novel Of Mice and Men delineates the desire of women to eliminate the over dominance of men through deceit in exchange for their own power.
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is about the adventures of two men, Lennie and George. Lennie has some form of a mental disorder, and George cares for him. George is also a very mean and small man. They go from farm to farm looking for work. They meet new people and one of them becomes a friend. His name is Candy. Lennie's mental issues get him into trouble, causing him to kill another person, and to lose his life. But before all of that, Lennie and George had a dream. This dream strengthened the men and helped them push through. They had something to look forward too. Steinbeck develops the theme that dreams affect people's behavior in the 1930's through different characters.
The novella focuses on the dream shared by George and Lennie, which emphasizes upon their independence of other people other than each other. In this sense, they appear to be much more capable of fulfilling their American Dream than others. The reception to George and Lennie’s kinship further draws attention to the difference between the partners and the rest of the workforce, putting attention upon their desolated lifestyles and the social (or more appropriately, antisocial) lifestyles of the men of the day (Goldhurst 52). Steinbeck reinforces this idea through repetitive dialogue between the two characters, which stresses upon their relationship: “But not us! An’ why? Because…because I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after
In non-fiction novels, especially textbooks, the content of the textbooks lacks a female presence. All textbooks written in school focus on man’s history, partly because women had no real role for most of history. They lack focus on female figures, and generally focus on the acts done by males. Feminine rights don’t take precedence until the 19th century. In history textbooks men were mentioned seven times more. (Paynter, “Gender Stereotypes and Representation in Children's Picture Books” ).
Throughout American Literature, women have been depicted in many different ways. The portrayal of women in American Literature is often influenced by an author's personal experience or a frequent societal stereotype of women and their position. Often times, male authors interpret society’s views of women in a completely different nature than a female author would. While F. Scott Fitzgerald may represent his main female character as a victim in the 1920’s, Zora Neale Hurston portrays hers as a strong, free-spirited, and independent woman only a decade later in the 1930’s.