Racial Discrimination In Of Mice And Men

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Of Mice and Men: racial discrimination and its effects In Of Mice & Men by John Steinbeck, several characters were used to portray the effects of societal discrimination during the 1930’s. One of these characters was Crooks, a disabled African-American horse tamer who is alienated due to his race; causing him to doubt the possibility of attaining a better future for himself. Like Candy, --a swamper who is becoming fearful for his own future as a disabled elderly man--, his biggest aspiration is to be seen as an equal to everyone else; something society has stripped them both from. Because Candy and Crooks are continuously shut down by those around them, both characters struggle to formulate a future for themselves, revealing how difficult…show more content…
For instance, when Lennie first enters the room Crooks appears defensive at first. Stating how “[no one has] any right [to be in his room] but him”(68), painting Crooks as an overly guarded person; exemplifying the effects of his alienation. But on the contrary, once Candy enters the room, Crooks is said to struggle with concealing his pleasure with anger (75). Using juxtaposition to illustrate Crooks reaction to the company of characters, it becomes evident that he has become skeptical and vulnerable to how people treat him. Crooks’ skepticism and degradation of himself can also be seen when Lennie questions why no one invites him to play cards, Crooks’ reasoning being that because he’s black they won’t interact with him (68), demonstrates how lowly he thinks of himself. Consequently, leading him to close himself off from accepting any company, and also explains his skepticism on Lennie’s arrival. Unfortunately, this has led Crooks to become hesitant in receiving company--something that he is strongly longing for-- thus keeping him in this cycle of prejudice. Making it even more difficult for him to create a better future for
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