Essay on "Of Mice and Men" - Topic #4.
A lonely life can be a very sad life. There are people in this world that just do not fit in, and therefore are not accepted by society. Society, without knowing, has certain standard of how they think people are suppose to be, whether it is a certain skin color, gender, or just because they are being who they are. Society can be very hurtful without even knowing that their words or actions are causing people to feel lonely. In Steinbecks, novel "Of Mice and Men" there is much reason that causes certain people to feel as if they are not needed on the ranch. Steinbeck uses three characters, Crook, Candy, and Curley's wife, to express the theme of loneliness throughout the novel. .
The first in the novel to express loneliness is Crooks, a crippled, black, ranch hand. There was much reason for Crook to feel lonely, the two obvious reasons are that he is crippled and the second was the color of his skin. Because of his skin color he was not allowed into the bunk of the other ranch hands, to play cards, or even hang out. Crooks makes several comments like "S"pose you didn't have nobody. S"pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy "cause you was black". How"d you like that?" (Page 72), which made you think that he would have liked to be able to interact with the other ranch hands.
Crook is not the only person that is lonely on the ranch, Candy, another ranch hand makes his loneliness know during the novel. Candy seems to be fine until he loses his dog. His dog was shot by one of his fellow workers, because they complained that the dog stunk and that it was time to stop the dogs suffering. Candy offers to help George and Lennie reach their dream of owning property if he can live with them, doing small odd jobs around the house and yard just so that he does not have to be alone. Candy's only dream is of always being someplace where he is accepted.