Comparing Of mice and men to the hunger games
It’s a bit like the Hunger Games as they need ACH other as allies to survive. They would help each other and because Curlers wife knelt down beside him it’s like she sees him as one of her own, like they are on the same level power wise. Will return to this image later on in my essay. We have been introduced to Curlers wife as the libertine featherbrain by the males on the ranch “Jesus what a tramp [George to Leonie]”the boys don’t personally know her yet they are all prejudging her of her looks and the way she acts. This shows that the only way she has the power over the men is sexually.
Not even Curler takes her seriously. She mess lonely and only wants to talk to the men so that she can relate to them and find a friend. The reason why the men would judge her so much is due to sexual frustration that is caused by her. This could also link back to the sass’s as women we meant to just look pretty and pleasure their men. Not only that, they were seen to have no rights to themselves. They couldn’t vote, couldn’t go off on their own, they had to marry the first man that asks and do his dirty washing for the rest of their lives.
In Of Mice and Men, Curlers wife was viewed as ” jail bait” this basically means that she’s a trap that’s being fished onto all of the men and trying to catch one unlucky sap to say he forced himself upon her. This could lead to being fired or being lynched. In the sass’s all you needed to do was touch a women’s dress and she could say you penetrated her and get you lynched in front of the whole town. This shows that the male characters were scared and threatened by Curlers wife due to her power of getting them killed or tortured.
You’ve got to remember that these men were in an all-male society and this one woman comes in and to all these men she comes across like she’s purposely sexually frustrating them. This could link back to power as it shows that the men on the ranch are weak when it comes to sexual tension. It could show how little they think of themselves. Another way that we know they are sexually closed up or more like insecure. All the males go to a ‘Where house” at the end of each month. The fact that they go to women who do it for a living and are paid to pleasure the males no matter what they look or are like on the inside.
This shows that the males could be shy and insecure about intercourse. It doesn’t show much emotion and the girls don’t need to personally feel a connection between homeless and the clients. Just think of it like the end of the first hunger games; Jennifer Lawrence established a fake romance with Josh Hucksters to survive. Metaphorically, the prostitutes are Jennifer Lawrence as they are doing whatever they can to survive and it’s just so happened that they could only get work in the ‘Hover house”.
The males are josh Hucksters as they are weak and are supported in some way by the prostitutes. They are supporting the guys on the ranch by letting them release all of the sexual anger that builds up due to Curler’s wife. The more you hear about it the more it comes clear that the men on the ranch are assumed to been seen as the lowest of normal society’s power show. Although most characters have no recognized social power because of their low social class; they all try to absorb the little power each other has.
For example; Crooks’ nasty strike on Leonie is the best example upon this statement. “Expose George don’t come back no more [Crooks to Leonie)”. Crooks was taking his knowledge and Lien’s vulnerability and tried to seem more powerful. They are both outcasts drawn by people who tell them what to do; “yes ma’am” Crooks eying this to Curlers wife as it shows that she is the boss over him. Ma’am is used formally as the other guys on the ranch refer to her as “Curlers wife”. This show that Crook is powerless compared to her. She is holding the reins and Crooks is the horse.
A horse is seemed to be a free beautiful creature but they are controlled by others showing that they aren’t quite the same power as the rider but when they are by themselves they are the most powerful creatures around. This could represent crooks amazing as he is extremely powerful its only the color of his skin that hold him back. Like most colored people in the 1 ass’s. Going back to the statement that previously wrote; while Leonie breaks the segregation rule of the sass’s Crooks is feeling like it’s his right to be the most powerful person in the room.
Although he is colored it is also his “shed house”. It was the one place where he could be himself without having the pressure of society on his shoulders. Although you could argue that that Crooks having his own separate “shed house” is automatically reminding people of the society in the 1 ass’s, but it is the one place you could see him happy. Compared to all the men living in the bunk souse he is living in a palace! His living conditions are so much better than the bunk house. He gets personal possessions. No one in the bunk house seems to have meaningful possessions but crooks does.
Crooks has a whole room all to himself. It gives him some entitlement and a hope for some power. It gives off the power as he is the only person in the “shed house” it will only be disrupted when white people walk into his house. Like Leonie did. He was only fighting for his power like any person would if they felt intimidated in their own home. During the sass’s if there was one slight thing rung with you; you would be viewed as an outcast. If you were mentally or physically disabled they would chain you up in a mental institution.
If you were colored but mainly black they would lynch you for the color of your skin. You would be looked down on for the special qualities that made you. What IM trying to say is that everyone desperately wanted to fit in to society and be what was observed to be normal. There are many ways this is translated in the book. Id personally have to say that the best way to show this in the book is the conversation Crooks and Leonie shared when Leonie kook away Crook’s privacy when he entered his home; ‘ ‘They II take hay to the booby hatch …
Tie you up with a collar like a dog’ this shows that Steinbeck wanted everyone to know what would happen to the people who were unfortunate enough to be pushed to the bottom of the barrel. Booby hatch refers to a mental institution. Full of people who were looked upon as America’s sins. It isn’t a very pleasant thing to say but it was honest and that would’ve been quite lucky for Leonie and even Crooks! If Crooks stepped one foot out of line he would’ve been lynched for a fact! It goes on about saying hat they will tie him up with a collar like a dog; this gives us the impression of Leonie being pinned down like he has done something wrong.
When in fact he hasn’t done anything wrong. Once again this also links back to power when you see that dogs are pets, pets are meant to obey their owners. The owners being the powerful one in the situation. Leonie being the metaphoric dog shows that he has no power, he has to be the one to bow down. He is presumed to be the mute of the society on the ranch. In conclusion; people in Of Mice and Men were treated with abuse and prejudice. Most people were/ loud react differently depending on how they were treated; but they had to take it.
