Curley's Wife

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This chapter introduces all of the other characters to feature in the novel. One of the characters we meet in Chapter 2 is Curley's wife. In chapter two, Candy specifically tells George and Lennie about Curley's wife. On the ranch there is a well-known woman merely referred to as ‘Curley’s Wife’. Her lack of identity could imply she is not woman but rather a possession of her husband. She is shown to represent the loss of identity after being associated with something or someone. That is why she has no name; her identity is being someone's wife. As this character develops we find that she is not in fact the unimportant, nameless character we first perceive her as, but rather she is a relatively complex and interesting character, with much more to her than we first gather. Alternatively, it could suggest she is insignificant and not as important of a character as George, Lennie or any of the other men on the ranch. It could also be referring to how during the great depression women were oppressed and treated less equally. Steinbeck may have portrayed women in this light to allow the reader to recognize the inferior role of women at that time. The lack of name demotes Curley's wife to insignificant status. Curley’s Wife is first presented to us through the dialogue of ranch-hand Candy, when he describes her to George. She is perceived by Candy to be the cause of all that goes wrong in Soledad: ‘Ever’one knew you’d mess things up. You wasn’t no good’. This demonstrates that he uses expressions such as ‘she got the eye’ and goes on to describe her as looking at other men, before eventually calling her a ‘tart’. Through Candy’s words, we develop an initial perception of Curley’s Wife as flirtatious ‘tramp’ and even immoral. The word ‘tart’ suggests she presents herself in a flamboyant manner, which portrays her desperation to be noticed. Steinbeck enables the

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