'Of Mice and Men', Steinbeck portrays a world dominated by powerful white able-bodied males. It is the views and opinions of this social type that permeate ranch society and those who come from outside these boundaries are ostracized and persecuted. Thus we have a world where Steinbeck describes the plight of women, black people, disabled people and those with mental disabilities showing the persecution and suffering they have to endure.
In 1930's American people had no work. Migrant workers moved from place to place to find work, without any proper relationship with others. They looked after themselves. It was a selfish and violent society of working and living in harsh environments, and where sexist attitudes towards women were commonplace.
As George and Lennie arrive at the bunkhouse of the ranch, Steinbeck describes the bleak scenery of the bunkhouse. The wall of this "rectangular building...", "the floor unpainted....", and "there was a nailed apple - box".
Lennie James
Lennie James
Lennie JamesAlmost every part of the bunk is made of things that were already used. It wasn't a nice place to sleep at all. When George and Lennie came into the bunkhouse, George immediately commented "What the hell kind of bed you giving us, anyway?" George said this because the bed was very dirty and full of lice. Bleakness and darkness are the general atmosphere of the world at that time and we learn that bunkhouse is a metaphor of the society which characters live in. Through this metaphor, Steinbeck tried to show harsh environments of human society, which force people to be selfish and violent to survive.
In this novel, there are many social outcasts. Crooks, the stable buck, may be the most persecuted character in the novel. He lived separated from other people because he was black. At Christmas, they made Crooks fight with...