Theme of Loneliness in Of Mice and Men Essay Example

Mother Teresa once said, “The most terrible poverty is loneliness and the feeling of being unloved.” No one hopes for the feeling of loneliness but almost everyone experiences it and when they do they become desperate. Desperate for the attention and acceptance of anyone they can get it from. In the novella, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, this idea of being alone is told through the journey of two migrants named George and Lennie. Lennie faces the challenges of a mental handicap and George takes care of him out of compassion and guilt. Throughout the story, the two men dream of having their own farm where they can grow whatever they want. They travel to a ranch where they meet the lonely characters, Candy, an old man, Crooks, a black stable buck, and Curley’s wife, the only woman on the farm, who all live in isolation. This character’s all dream of acceptance but their loneliness causes them to be desperate for attention which leaves them lonelier than before. 

Candy dreams of companions and a place where he can belong, but his old age and inability to work causes him to be lonely and isolated from the men on the ranch. After the men head to their beds for the night, Candy and his dog enter the bunkhouse. All of the men complain to Candy that his dog stinks so Candy is pressured into letting Carlson shoot his dog because the animal is no good to himself or anyone else. Not only does this death mean that Candy lost his only companion, but it also symbolizes Candy and how he is reaching the end of his working life where he can be of no use to anyone. The death of his dog reveals how alone Candy is on the ranch because of his lack of companions and his decreasing workability. Later in the story, Candy mournfully lays in his bed until he overhears George and Lennie talking about the dream farm. As George tells Lennie their hopes, Candy becomes intrigued and states, “S’pose I went in with you guys. Tha’s three hundred an’ fifty bucks I’d put in”(59). Even though Candy barely knows the men, he is giving up his life-saving just to belong somewhere. His eagerness shows that he has never fit in but he believes that if he goes with the two men, he can finally have a place where he belongs. Towards the end of the story, after Lennie killed Curley’s wife, Candy studies George and with no ounce of hope, Candy asks, “What we gonna do now George? What we gonna do now?”(94). As Candy realizes what happened, he knows that his dreams are crushed. Candy knows that now he can never buy the farm that will make his dreams come true. His disappointment shows how he knows he has no chance of ever belonging somewhere. This story reflects how everyone fears the consequences of getting old because of the loneliness it can bring.

Crooks dreams of living in a place where he is not mistreated but his separation from the other men because of his skin color causes him to be lonely. After Lennie got in a fight with Curley, the author describes Crooks’ shed, “leaned off the wall of the barn”(66). He tells how Crooks’s belongings and books were scattered throughout the floor. This shows how isolated Crooks is from the men because of where he lives. All of the other men on the ranch get to live in the bunkhouse where they can talk to each other but Crooks is forced to live on his own with the only company from his books. Crooks’ physical separation from the men shows how he is treated as an outcast. Later in the story, Lennie and Candy come into Crooks’ room and tell Crooks about their plan to buy the dream farm. They tell him how they are going to live in a place where they do whatever they what at any time which makes Crooks interested. Even though it takes time for Crooks to adjust to the idea, he shows how eager he is to be part of this place that will treat him based on his personality and not skin color. He also views this farm as an opportunity to have companions and not be as alone. Crooks’ hope for the dream farm shows how lonely he is at the ranch. After Curley’s wife comes into Crooks’s room, Crooks builds up the courage to tell her that she has no right to enter. After Curley’s wife threatens to lynch him, Crooks tells Candy to forget about living at the dream farm and that he, “wouldn’ want to go no place like that”(85). After experiencing the discrimination, Crooks comes back to reality and realizes that he rather be alone than be treated horribly. He declines his dream because he knows no matter where he goes, he will always be treated less than a person because he is black. In the end, Crooks becomes discouraged and realizes that being alone is better than risking his own life. 

       Curley’s wife dreams of having a companion that will talk to her, but her loneliness causes her to become desperate for attention, which leads to her death. When George and Lennie first see Curley’s wife, she stands in the doorframe of the bunkhouse, emphasizing her body shape and her nice dress. As she steps closer, George and Lennie see that “She had full, rouged lips and wide-spaced eyes, heavily made up”(31).  She pretends to be looking for Curley even though she tries to attract the attention of George and Lennie with her fancy dress and her face filled with makeup. She believes that the only way she can have a conversation with someone is to show off her femininity and figure. Her desire to look pretty is due to her exclusion on the farm. Later in the story, Candy, Crooks, and Lennie begin having a conversation in Crook’s room until Curley’s wife interrupts asking for Curley. The men scowl at her but she responds, “If I catch anyone man, and he's alone, I get along fine with him. But just let two of the guys get together an’ you won't talk” (77). She tells how she gets along with one man but when two come, they treat her like an object. Furthermore, the workers are all terrified to lose their job and the boss, Curley, forbids anyone to talk to his wife. Because of this, the men are scared that the other guys might catch them breaking the rule so they avoid talking to Curley’s wife. When the men ignore her it makes her more isolated on the ranch. Additionally, after Lennie kills the puppy, Curley’s wife enters the barn looking fancy. She tells Lennie how much she dislikes her husband and about her dream that was interrupted after she married Curley. This proves that Curley’s wife has no one to talk to except for her husband but he never pays attention to her. When she allows Lennie to touch her hair, she reveals how desperate she is for attention because no one else will give it to her. This lack of attention reveals how she is alone at the ranch. This story shows that during this time period, women like Curley’s wife just wanted to be recognized since they were viewed as objects and not humans. 

Throughout the story, the characters Curley, Crooks, and Curley’s Wife all experience some type of exclusion on the farm. Whether it’s their age, their skin color, or their gender, they all are separated from everyone else. Their desperation for acceptance makes them vulnerable which leads the characters to become more alone than before. The theme of solitude in the story shows how every human craves a companion but that desperation can lead to more loneliness.