Curley’s Wife a) What do you learn about Curley’s wife from the details in the passage? Curley’s wife is the only woman in the ranch. The passage starts off with her entering the bunkhouse as “the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off”. This could be seen as a reference to good and evil and light and dark, foreshadowing that Curley’s wife will end the American dream that is treasured by George, Lennie and Candy. The author uses different adjectives to describe to the reader the appearance and personality of Curley’s wife.
Curleys wife, In John Steinbeck’s novel ‘Of Mice and Men, is an example of how the readers perception of a character can change without the character actually changing. Curleys wife is first introduced when Candy describes her to George. Candy says things such as “she got the eye” and goes on to describe her as a woman who likes to look at other men and then finally calls her a “tart”. Through Candy’s words we develop an initial perception of Curley’s wife as flirtatious and promiscuous. This perception is further emphasized by Curley’s Wife’s first appearance in the novel.
Instead, she is called a girl. ‘Leaned against the doorframe so that her body was thrown forward” this quote creates an image of her behavior in a flirtatious manner and shows her provocative body language. Steinbeck shows the reader that Curley's wife is trouble; she's very flirtatious and dangles herself in front of the men on the ranch. Then the men gets afraid if Curley
In addition to the previous paragraph, we also know that Curley’s wife is a married woman, a possession of Curley’s. Perhaps Steinbeck does not give the wife a name throughout the book because during the 1930s, women were regarded as a sign of possession, an object or a personal belonging. This affects the reader by thinking Curley’s wife was nothing more than a sexual tool for Curley. Her character is symbolic to women in the 1930’s which contrasts to the women today and how much respect there is for women now. During the time of sorrow, many people had an imaginable dream to accomplish.
This further suggests her need to overcompensate in her image as an attempt to impress the ranch workers and her husband. The reader may infer that Curley’s wife succeeds in her attempt for their attention when slim addresses her as “good-lookin” in a friendly manner, however we notice George stays constantly wary of her and treats her with a similarly brusque air “well he aint now.” Steinbeck uses this short and abrupt sentence to perhaps highlight George’s intolerance of her, and her dangerously flirty personality. Steinbeck prefigures the death of Curley’s wife, later in the novel, also through his physical description of her. This is shown through use of the colour red in her; “rouged lips”; “little bouquets of red ostrich feathers” and “red mules” perhaps meaning her association with the colour red holds connotations of danger and death. Her death is also prefigured in the very first introduction of her entering the bunkhouse “the rectangle of sunshine in the doorway was cut off” Steinbeck presents the sunshine as being part of Curley’s wife’s’ ‘dream’ and perhaps being used as a metaphor for the freedom and happiness she longs for, however when the light is “cut
The word “tart” which shows the impression and effect Curley’s wife has on other workers on the ranch. The word “tart” is very blunt and straight forward which is the effect Steinbeck wanted to use because he wants to show the reader the immediate impression workers have about Curley’s wife. This further supports my point that Steinbeck presents Curley’s wife in a negative manner. The effect of this is that the reader has made an unfair judgement about Curley’s wife without her even speaking. This means that the reader sees her as a danger to Lennie but also makes the reader think that she is unfaithful and has married Curley for the wrong reasons such as money and power which is what all ambitious women
Curley’s wife Tart Curley's Wife, in John Steinbeck's novel Of Mice and Men, is an example of how the reader's perception of a character can change without the character actually changing. We first hear about Curley's Wife when Candy describes her to George and Lennie. Candy 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 and even immoral. Tart light/dark This perception is further emphasized by Curley's Wife's first appearance in the novel.
Curly's wife is powerless in a masculine world, Steinbeck doesn't even give her a name; she is simply Curley's property. Check out this quote where she uses her femininity for attention "Oh!" She put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward. "You’re the new fellas that just come, ain’t ya?" (chapter 2, pg 145) Note: my page numbers probably don't match your but the chapter will Point: Steinbeck’s use of the character of Curley’s Wife is the only female character in the novella.
He documents a complex woman’s struggle to cope, as she is suffocated by the male dominated society that she has been forced to subject herself to. The following essay will in particular discuss the relationships between the women of Hedda Gabler. Ibsen uses the themes explored in the play to examine and challenge the role of women in society. This is evident through the relationships that Hedda has not only with the male characters in the play but from those that she has with the two other prominent female characters in the play; Thea Elvsted, the delicate love interest of Ejlert Lövborg and Aunt Julie the benevolent aunt of Hedda’s new husband Jörgen Tessman. Both women are contrasting representations of Hedda.
A Doll’s House In Henrick Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, the main relationship we see is Nora Helmer and her husband Torvald Helmer’s. Their relationship is seemingly influenced by their era. When first reading the play, one may suggest that the women in this play are victims of this era. As the plot develops, we see that the relationship is also influenced by Nora’s lies, which suggest she was also a victimizer in her relationship, aside from her era. By the end of this play, we see how Nora’s secret changes the relationship between the couple, as she violates the stereotypical role-play as a wife and mother in her era, which generates her inspirational growth.