Curley and Slim in Of Mice and Men
‘Of Mice and Men’, written by John Steinbeck, is a novel set in 1930s California and tells the story of two migrant workers, George Milton and Lennie Small, who move from ranch to ranch looking for work during the Great Depression. This novel is set while George and Lennie are in a small working ranch in the Salinas Valley of northern California, and over a period of 3 days we are introduced to a variety of characters that also live on the ranch. This essay will show how Steinbeck develops and presents two of the minor characters; Curley, the boss’ son, and Slim, the jerkline skinner.
The introductory paragraphs of these two characters are interesting because they are highly contrasted. We are first introduced to Curley, “a thin, young man” on page 46. The use of the word “thin” (as opposed to Lennie’s opening description of being George’s “huge companion”) implies that he is delicate, fragile, weak, and the word “young” suggests he is brash, arrogant, and connotes naivety. Furthermore, Curley is immediately compared with his father, the boss of the ranch. A few pages before, on page 41, we are introduced to the first description of the boss, in which it says “on his head was a soiled brown Stetson hat, and he wore high heeled boots and spurs to prove he was not a labouring man.” Curley, “like the boss”, also wears high heeled boots. Steinbeck deliberately uses the word “prove” as it instantly demonstrates to the reader that Curley’s position in the ranch is extremely important to him - he wants everyone to know that he is the boss’ son; however he needs to show he holds power over the others, rather than naturally receiving this authority. Steinbeck, in my opinion, has used imagery to try and show the connection the boss and his son have by them wearing the same shoes. This adds to the development of the character because from our first view of him we already see a man who wants to dominate and control. Candy says Curley “won’t ever get canned ‘cause his old
The introductory paragraphs of these two characters are interesting because they are highly contrasted. We are first introduced to Curley, “a thin, young man” on page 46. The use of the word “thin” (as opposed to Lennie’s opening description of being George’s “huge companion”) implies that he is delicate, fragile, weak, and the word “young” suggests he is brash, arrogant, and connotes naivety. Furthermore, Curley is immediately compared with his father, the boss of the ranch. A few pages before, on page 41, we are introduced to the first description of the boss, in which it says “on his head was a soiled brown Stetson hat, and he wore high heeled boots and spurs to prove he was not a labouring man.” Curley, “like the boss”, also wears high heeled boots. Steinbeck deliberately uses the word “prove” as it instantly demonstrates to the reader that Curley’s position in the ranch is extremely important to him - he wants everyone to know that he is the boss’ son; however he needs to show he holds power over the others, rather than naturally receiving this authority. Steinbeck, in my opinion, has used imagery to try and show the connection the boss and his son have by them wearing the same shoes. This adds to the development of the character because from our first view of him we already see a man who wants to dominate and control. Candy says Curley “won’t ever get canned ‘cause his old