Please take some time to post two responses to Of Mice and Men before you return to class on January 4. Each post should be at least 100 words long and should include direct references to the text you are discussing. Even if you are responding to a quote in the prompt, you should bolster your own response with other references. Those references should include internal citations to note where you are in the book (p. #). When you make a post, please read all other posts for that question so that you are participating in a conversation. Please do not repeat what other students have already said. There are many questions from which to choose, so you should be able to discuss your ideas somewhere without being redundant. Remember to make some post-it notations about symbols and archetypes, along with any other ideas you would like to discuss when we get back to class.
Feel free to respond to as many prompts as you would like. If you respond to more than two, please asterisk the responses that are NOT for evaluation. Be sure your name appears on each comment, so I can see who you are. I think you will need to log in to your Google account as you work. If you can, please post with your school Google identity. If you post as "Anonymous" without your name, you will not be able to receive credit for your work, so be sure your name appears within the comment if you do that.
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Minor Character
The minor characters are all important in developing
this story's ideas. Choose one character and discuss what idea you think he or
she symbolizes and why this idea is important to the work as a whole.
Candy’s character displays a great example of loneliness, isolation, and sometimes the nature of human existence; each of the are themes that can be found throughout the novell. Candy, an old aged handyman possessing only a single hand, lives in fear of becoming useless to his boss Curly and being thrown out of the ranch in which he works. Life on the ranch, as well as Candy’s dog support this ongoing fear which he has. His pet who was once an impressive and helpful dog, grew to be foul-smelling, useless and old aging pet who ultimately paid the price for its uselessness by being shot to death. As Carson insists on putting the dog out of its misery, emotional ties matter little. In such a world, Candy’s dog serves as a harsh reminder of the fate that awaits anyone who outlives his usefulness. For a short period of time, the dream of living out his days with George and Lennie on their dream farm distracts Candy from this harsh reality. “‘Tell you what-’ He leaned forward eagerly. ‘S’pose i went in with you guys. Tha's three hundred an’ fifty bucks i’d put in. i ain’t much good, but i could could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How’d that be?’” Candy’s belief that his life’s savings are worthy of only a few acres of land shows his desperate need to believe in a world that is much kinder than the one in which he lives.
I agree with you, Jada, that Candy is a minor character that helps develop the emotional ideas in "Of Mice and Men," especially in concert to his relationship to his dog that he has to let go of. I feel like Candy's connection to his dog is a reflection of George's connection to Lennie; At the tragic end of the novel, Lennie represents the poor dog that had to be killed by someone, and while Candy did not have the strength to kill his loyal friend, George's strength is actually highlighted because he was the one who actually shot Lennie and it was not someone else who could "make the job easier." I believe that the major significance John Steinbeck wanted to display about the minor character of Candy was to compare the relationships between Candy and his dog versus George and Lennie.
Crooks' character displays isolation and weakness, two themes that appear throughout the book. Crooks is a crippled black man who is constantly being oppressed and put down by other characters and is forced to live in his own world. Crooks, while generally not hated by the other characters, is definitely ostracized and seen as inferior. He lives in a small shack alone apart from all of the other characters and spends most of his time alone, as he is not allowed into the bunk house where everybody else spends their time. His loneliness contributes to the theme of isolation that is shown in the novel. Crooks also demonstrates weakness throughout the book, another theme that shows up periodically. Crooks is crippled and black, two attributes that condemned a person to weakness at the time. Crooks especially exposes his weakness when he is threatened by Curly's wife in his room. After he threatens to tell the boss that she was invading his privacy, she says: "You know what I can do to you if you open your trap?" After Curly's wife says this, Crooks "stared hopelessly at her, and then he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself... Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality - no ego" (80-81). Crooks' weakness is entirely caused by circumstance and gives insight into Steinbeck's views on race and contributes to the overall theme of weakness in "Of Mice and Men".
Crooks' character displays isolation and weakness, two themes that appear throughout the book. Crooks is a crippled black man who is constantly being oppressed and put down by other characters and is forced to live in his own world. Crooks, while generally not hated by the other characters, is definitely ostracized and seen as inferior. He lives in a small shack alone apart from all of the other characters and spends most of his time alone, as he is not allowed into the bunk house where everybody else spends their time. His loneliness contributes to the theme of isolation that is shown in the novel. Crooks also demonstrates weakness throughout the book, another theme that shows up periodically. Crooks is crippled and black, two attributes that condemned a person to weakness at the time. Crooks especially exposes his weakness when he is threatened by Curly's wife in his room. After he threatens to tell the boss that she was invading his privacy, she says: "You know what I can do to you if you open your trap?" After Curly's wife says this, Crooks "stared hopelessly at her, and then he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself... Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality - no ego" (80-81). Crooks' weakness is entirely caused by circumstance and gives insight into Steinbeck's views on race and contributes to the overall theme of weakness in "Of Mice and Men".
The minor character of Candy's old dog is symbolic to Lennie. The death and situation of the dog can be directly related and foreshadowing to Lennie's own death. As the old dog sits next to candy's bunk, Carlson and the other men try and persuade Candy to let him go, "We can't stand him in here,' said Carlson. 'That stink hangs around even after he's gone.' He walked over with his heavy-legged stride and looked down at the dog. 'Got no teeth,' he said. 'He's all stiff with rheumatism. He ain't no good to you, Candy. An' he ain't no good to himself. Why'n't you shoot him, Candy?'" (p.44). Lennie too can be considered a burden by all the men who agreed with Carlson's opinion on the dog. The dog might stink and irritate the men, while Lennie kills and is a threat to the men. While the dog can be considered "No good" for Candy, Lennie can be considered as "no good" for George as George himself says after finding Lennie in the bush after Curly's Wife's death, "George shook himself . He said woodenly, 'If I was alone I could live so easy.' His voice was monotonus, had no emphasis. 'I could get a job an' not have no mess'" (p.103). Even Lennie can be considered no good to himself because of the emotion beating he puts himself through. A glimpse of his mind can be examined in his hallucination after committing a "bad thing". Over all, Candy's dog helps the plot progress by providing foreshadow for Lennie's ultimate fate. Madison R.
Crooks is a great example of a minor character that helps to represent the struggles of loneliness and insecurity in the search for belonging. Crooks says to Lennie, "Maybe you can see now. You got George. You know he's goin' to come back. S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't get into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black" (72). Crooks is a lonely man and because Lennie isn't bright he feels open to share his struggles with him. Crooks is all to himself but it's clear that he would rather be included. This is shown in Crooks's room, "Candy leaned against the wall beside the broken collar while he scratched his wrist stump. "'I been here a long time,' he said. 'An' Crooks been here a long time. This's the first time I ever been in his room.' Crooks said darkly, 'Guys don't come into a colored man's room very much'" (73). Crooks feels the weight of racial bias but also the loneliness of working on a ranch as the only african american. The idea of being on their own land speaks to Lennie and George but it's because they're together that it's really desirable. That's why Candy wants to join them and that's why Crooks had offered to work for them to stay on the land, but his fear and isolation left him too afraid to branch out and work for them. Lennie was able to branch out to Crooks when no one else even tried to. It was clear Crooks liked the attention even though he pretended to be annoyed. Crooks's insecurities left him alone despite a desire for belonging.
Candy’s character displays a great example of loneliness, isolation, and sometimes the nature of human existence; each of the are themes that can be found throughout the novell. Candy, an old aged handyman possessing only a single hand, lives in fear of becoming useless to his boss Curly and being thrown out of the ranch in which he works. Life on the ranch, as well as Candy’s dog support this ongoing fear which he has. His pet who was once an impressive and helpful dog, grew to be foul-smelling, useless and old aging pet who ultimately paid the price for its uselessness by being shot to death. As Carson insists on putting the dog out of its misery, emotional ties matter little. In such a world, Candy’s dog serves as a harsh reminder of the fate that awaits anyone who outlives his usefulness. For a short period of time, the dream of living out his days with George and Lennie on their dream farm distracts Candy from this harsh reality. “‘Tell you what-’ He leaned forward eagerly. ‘S’pose i went in with you guys. Tha's three hundred an’ fifty bucks i’d put in. i ain’t much good, but i could could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some. How’d that be?’” Candy’s belief that his life’s savings are worthy of only a few acres of land shows his desperate need to believe in a world that is much kinder than the one in which he lives.
ReplyDeleteJada Hillman
I agree with you, Jada, that Candy is a minor character that helps develop the emotional ideas in "Of Mice and Men," especially in concert to his relationship to his dog that he has to let go of. I feel like Candy's connection to his dog is a reflection of George's connection to Lennie; At the tragic end of the novel, Lennie represents the poor dog that had to be killed by someone, and while Candy did not have the strength to kill his loyal friend, George's strength is actually highlighted because he was the one who actually shot Lennie and it was not someone else who could "make the job easier." I believe that the major significance John Steinbeck wanted to display about the minor character of Candy was to compare the relationships between Candy and his dog versus George and Lennie.
DeleteJulia Wolf
in concern* to his relationship
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DeleteCrooks' character displays isolation and weakness, two themes that appear throughout the book. Crooks is a crippled black man who is constantly being oppressed and put down by other characters and is forced to live in his own world. Crooks, while generally not hated by the other characters, is definitely ostracized and seen as inferior. He lives in a small shack alone apart from all of the other characters and spends most of his time alone, as he is not allowed into the bunk house where everybody else spends their time. His loneliness contributes to the theme of isolation that is shown in the novel. Crooks also demonstrates weakness throughout the book, another theme that shows up periodically. Crooks is crippled and black, two attributes that condemned a person to weakness at the time. Crooks especially exposes his weakness when he is threatened by Curly's wife in his room. After he threatens to tell the boss that she was invading his privacy, she says: "You know what I can do to you if you open your trap?" After Curly's wife says this, Crooks "stared hopelessly at her, and then he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself... Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality - no ego" (80-81). Crooks' weakness is entirely caused by circumstance and gives insight into Steinbeck's views on race and contributes to the overall theme of weakness in "Of Mice and Men".
ReplyDeleteAndrew Ness
Crooks' character displays isolation and weakness, two themes that appear throughout the book. Crooks is a crippled black man who is constantly being oppressed and put down by other characters and is forced to live in his own world. Crooks, while generally not hated by the other characters, is definitely ostracized and seen as inferior. He lives in a small shack alone apart from all of the other characters and spends most of his time alone, as he is not allowed into the bunk house where everybody else spends their time. His loneliness contributes to the theme of isolation that is shown in the novel. Crooks also demonstrates weakness throughout the book, another theme that shows up periodically. Crooks is crippled and black, two attributes that condemned a person to weakness at the time. Crooks especially exposes his weakness when he is threatened by Curly's wife in his room. After he threatens to tell the boss that she was invading his privacy, she says: "You know what I can do to you if you open your trap?" After Curly's wife says this, Crooks "stared hopelessly at her, and then he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself... Crooks had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality - no ego" (80-81). Crooks' weakness is entirely caused by circumstance and gives insight into Steinbeck's views on race and contributes to the overall theme of weakness in "Of Mice and Men".
ReplyDeleteAndrew Ness
The minor character of Candy's old dog is symbolic to Lennie. The death and situation of the dog can be directly related and foreshadowing to Lennie's own death. As the old dog sits next to candy's bunk, Carlson and the other men try and persuade Candy to let him go, "We can't stand him in here,' said Carlson. 'That stink hangs around even after he's gone.' He walked over with his heavy-legged stride and looked down at the dog. 'Got no teeth,' he said. 'He's all stiff with rheumatism. He ain't no good to you, Candy. An' he ain't no good to himself. Why'n't you shoot him, Candy?'" (p.44). Lennie too can be considered a burden by all the men who agreed with Carlson's opinion on the dog. The dog might stink and irritate the men, while Lennie kills and is a threat to the men. While the dog can be considered "No good" for Candy, Lennie can be considered as "no good" for George as George himself says after finding Lennie in the bush after Curly's Wife's death, "George shook himself . He said woodenly, 'If I was alone I could live so easy.' His voice was monotonus, had no emphasis. 'I could get a job an' not have no mess'" (p.103). Even Lennie can be considered no good to himself because of the emotion beating he puts himself through. A glimpse of his mind can be examined in his hallucination after committing a "bad thing". Over all, Candy's dog helps the plot progress by providing foreshadow for Lennie's ultimate fate.
ReplyDeleteMadison R.
Crooks is a great example of a minor character that helps to represent the struggles of loneliness and insecurity in the search for belonging. Crooks says to Lennie, "Maybe you can see now. You got George. You know he's goin' to come back. S'pose you didn't have nobody. S'pose you couldn't get into the bunk house and play rummy 'cause you was black" (72). Crooks is a lonely man and because Lennie isn't bright he feels open to share his struggles with him. Crooks is all to himself but it's clear that he would rather be included. This is shown in Crooks's room, "Candy leaned against the wall beside the broken collar while he scratched his wrist stump. "'I been here a long time,' he said. 'An' Crooks been here a long time. This's the first time I ever been in his room.' Crooks said darkly, 'Guys don't come into a colored man's room very much'" (73). Crooks feels the weight of racial bias but also the loneliness of working on a ranch as the only african american. The idea of being on their own land speaks to Lennie and George but it's because they're together that it's really desirable. That's why Candy wants to join them and that's why Crooks had offered to work for them to stay on the land, but his fear and isolation left him too afraid to branch out and work for them. Lennie was able to branch out to Crooks when no one else even tried to. It was clear Crooks liked the attention even though he pretended to be annoyed. Crooks's insecurities left him alone despite a desire for belonging.
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