Crooks, a black stable-hand, is segregated because of the pigment of his skin. Steinbeck depicts discrimination through Crooks’ isolation from other men, his desire for friendship, and his way of turning his vulnerability into a weapon. First, Steinbeck demonstrates Crooks’ loneliness through his separation from the other men on the ranch. Initially, the other ranch hands discriminate Crooks because of his disability that sets him apart from them. Steinbeck describes Crooks’ living condition to be, “For being alone…Crooks could leave his things about, and being a stable buck and a cripple, he was more permanent than the other men” (67).
This quote shows that rejection can cause most people to become crazy, as it did to Crooks. Racism, which leads to not having any friends is one of the main reasons why Crooks is so lonely. The other workers on the ranch take place in rather fun activities, such as horseshoes and card games. Crooks
Crooks, named for his crooked back, is one of the most vulnerable characters on the ranch, mostly due to his race combined with general racist attitudes at the time. He lives by himself because he is the only black man on the ranch, and he has been so beaten down by loneliness and prejudicial treatment of that he is now suspicious of any kindness he receives. Crooks is painfully aware that his skin color is all that keeps him separate in this culture. This outsider status causes him to lament his loneliness, but he also delights in seeing the loneliness of others, perhaps because misery loves company. When Lennie arrives at his room, he turns him away, hoping to prove a point that if he, as a black man, is not allowed in white men’s houses, then whites are not allowed in his, but his desire for company ultimately wins out and he invites Lennie to sit with him.
It shows Slim as a sort of true king with power of knowledge and understanding but being trapped in the society all the same. When George and Lennie arrive together at the bunkhouse people think it is strange for men to travel together. This shows that society is use to people travelling alone. So through Slim, Steinbeck uses him as a way of criticising society. With all of Slim's God-like features it is hard for us to understand why he is there at the ranch.
The prologue introduces us to a nameless narrator who is living on the edge of society as a proverbial “invisible man.” The narrator’s central struggle revolves around the conflict between how others perceive him and how he perceives himself. He becomes obsessed with the past, allowing it to define him in the present. The narrator tells us of his previous efforts to be a part of society, by paying bills, working, etc, only to be continually judged and viewed by others as somehow less than human. Racism is prevalent at the time the story is written. The story portrays how other members of society view him in terms of racial stereotypes—as a mugger, bumpkin, or a savage.
When the Hater Meets the Hated- Why is Tom Robinson Guilty? One may be punished for something he or she never did depending on the circumstances in their community. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows in Maycomb County, a society being controlled by racism, Tom Robinson is punished for assaulting Mayella Ewell even though he is the victim. If the majority of the inhabitants of a community are racist, the racist social values influence everything that takes place in the courts of the community. Thus the racist social values of Maycomb County are responsible for the failure of Atticus Finch’s defense for Tom Robinson.
The Streetcorner acts as a area of comfort. “Failures are rationalized into phantom success”(Liebow). Seeing how these men are somewhat adrift, the Streetcorner is the only place that allows these men to feel comfort within their lives, which are peppered with struggle and regret. From an ideological standpoint, these “streeconer men” use their lack of success in life, as a factor that binds them closer together. Rather then
He feels isolated and bitter. He is the victim of oppressive violence and prejudice on the ranch. When he first meets Lennie, there is an immediate rejection of friendship mainly due to the anguish of his loneliness. · ‘Well, I got a right to have a light. You go on get outa my room.
He also writes "an ash-pile made by many fires". This shows that many men must have walked through this road to enter a lonely and miserable life, moving from ranch to ranch finding useless work. I think all the people living in the ranch are lonely. There are particular people in the ranch who have lonelier lives than others. The loneliest person on the ranch has to be Crooks, who suffers from extreme loneliness because he is black and he is living in a ranch and the surrounding area which is very racist.
Ascher compares the chosen lifestyle of The Box Man, to the undesired for loneliness of the victims; although, one may be poor and alone it does not mean that one is unhappy. For example paragraph twelve explains the mayor has offered him help, but yet and still The Box Man pushes his offer away. In paragraph eighteen it describes how The Box Man actually enjoys his dark life. However it is portrayed as if life is a solo journey and more are miserable by going through life accompanied than being a box collector. Ascher brought up memories from her own past, The Box Car Childrean.