The novel, Of Mice and Men is about the adversity of two men, a wise George and a dumb Lennie. Tragedy also strikes other characters throughout the story. Set in the Great Depression on a California ranch, the story depicts more than just the tragedy of Lennie but also the sadness and suffering of many individuals in a harsh world.
Lennie has a mental illness which is the obsession of wanting to stroke soft things. Lennie is also a gigantic man who is unaware of his enormous strength and when under pressure, panics and often grasps onto things. These two flaws lead to his suffering and sadness. An example of this is when he crushes Curleys hand out of self-defence: Suddenly Lennie let go of his hold. He crouched cowering against the wall. You told me to George, he said miserably. This extract suggests that Lennie would have slid down the wall and started crying which shows his sadness and suffering because of his enormous strength and his panicking. When he kills Curleys wife, it is caused by his obsession to stroke soft things and also because of his strength. Curleys wife is partly to blame as she leads Lennie on: Here feel right here. She took Lennies hand and put it on her head. Feel right aroun there an see how soft it is. This incident leads to Curleys wife being killed, Lennie being shot and killed and George suffering from the agony of having to shoot his friend. These events would have created widespread sadness as Curley lost his wife, Candy lost his dream and George lost his dream and only companion. All of these tragic occurrences show that this novel is more than the tragedy of Lennie but it shows the sadness and suffering of many individuals.
Another main character who suffers in the novel is George. He is described as being sensible, rational and caring. This last characteristic is probably what made him look after and stick with Lennie. This partnership brings him happiness but also a lot of sadness and suffering. When Lennie is shot by him, his only companion and true friend is gone, his dreams are shattered and now he is left lonely like most of the other ranch workers. George made it clear he did not want to become like this: I aint got no people. I seen guys around the ranches alone. They aint no good. This statement suggests that since George is not a natural loner, he endured quite a lot of suffering and sadness when Lennie passed away. This event shows that sadness and suffering hits even the good individuals in this world.
The character who is probably the most immoral is Curley. He is arrogant, insecure, aggressive, and an authority figure as his father is the boss. Curley dislikes people bigger than him. He suffers in this novel physically, emotionally and mentally. An example of this is when Lennie breaks Curleys hand. He suffers physically as his hand is in pain, emotionally as evidenced by his crying and mentally when Carlson orders him not to say anything or else everyone will laugh at him. Curley does not like to be alone. He is always looking for his wife and vice versa. Because of his unrefined character, he is lonely as most people are either intimidated by him or do not want to socialise with him. Curleys character suffers probably the most when he discovers that son-of-a-bitch killed his wife. He reacts angrily as he is probably outraged and wants to avenge his wifes death: Im gonna get him. Im going for my shotgun. Ill kill the big son-of-a-bitch myself. Ill shoot him in the guts. This suggests Curley is still very sly whilst being outraged and distraught at the same time. These incidents show that sadness and suffering expectantly impacts evil individuals in this harsh world.
The loneliest, most discriminated and separated person in the ranch is Crooks. He is a coloured man with a hunched back and is the stable buck on the ranch. He suffers in this novel mostly because he is black and in the 1930s, some black people were still seen as a lower class with fewer rights. An example of this is when everyone plays rummy except for Crooks because he is black. He also lives in a barn by himself unlike the others on the ranch. Because of this, he is definitely the loneliest. Spose you didnt have nobody. Spose you couldnt go into the bunkhouse and play rummy cause you was black. Howd you like that? proves that Crooks is definitely suffering and feeling sad and depressed as he is disliked and separated because of his appearance and race. The discrimination inflicts much emotional pain and suffering on Crooks.
Curleys wife is the only woman on the ranch and is flirtatious, self-conscious and lonely. She is lonely as she can never find Curley and no one will ever talk to her on the ranch. He aint never home. I got nobody to talk to, I got nobody to be with. Think I can just set home an do nothing but look for Curley? I want to see somebody. Just see em and talk to them. is an example of this. When she does get the attention of men, she uses the excuse of finding Curley to enter forbidden places in order to flirt with the men. This flirting in the end has disastrous consequences as she is killed. This incident leads to George being forced to kill Lennie as a friend to save him from suffering. It also leads to George and Curley suffering afterwards because of their losses. Another example of Curleys wifes suffering is when her original dream of becoming a movie star is dashed because her mother will not let her go. Impulsively, she just had to marry Curley probably out of rebellion against her mother. She does not really love Curley but is merely using happy events like marriage to hide her pain. Sadness and suffering happen women striving to survive in a mens arena.
Lennie probably suffers the most in this story as he suffers throughout his life whilst George only experiences pain after Lennie dies. Others also face sadness and suffering throughout the story. Sadness and suffering are prevalent in the novel because life during the 1930s was harsh. Loneliness is what caused a lot of widespread pain in the characters. Anger and revenge cause the injuries and deaths in this novel. The big picture is that many tragedies which cause sadness and suffering can be avoided if the vicious cycle of hatred, revenge and retaliation is stopped decisively. If this is done then two people would not have been killed, (Curleys wife and Lennie). This novel is more than just about the tragedy of Lennie; it shows the sadness and suffering of many individuals in that period of time of the world.
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