Young, lonely, and desirous of attention, Curley’s wife spends her days roaming around the ranch looking for someone to talk to—even though she knows that the men all around are reluctant to talk to her for fear of incurring the wrath of her jealous husband, Curley. Curley’s wife represents such loneliness that she doesn’t get a name. She insults her husband, demeans Crooks, flirts with Lennie, and lords it over Candy. © 2020 Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. She's lonely. Curley's Wife in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men 2006 Words | 9 Pages. i wrote in my opinion candy says curleys wife can ,move quite because he is making reference to and notifying the fact that curley;s wife is quite sly in what she does as she causes problems and looks for trouble without being seen or heard from others especially curley. Curley whimpers like a baby and cries helplessly with the pain. Due to the fact that the ranch hands find Curley’s wife troublesome, it means that “she can’t talk to nobody” - John Steinbeck, Curley’s Life. Curley's wife met a man who was "in the shows" at the local dance palace. Curley’s wife, who walks the ranch as a temptress, seems to be a prime example of this destructive tendency—Curley’s already bad temper has only worsened since their wedding. Curley's wife knows her beauty is her power, and she uses it to flirt with the ranch hands and make her husband jealous. She married him to get away from her mother. She projects undertones of sexuality in almost everything she says. Curley’s wife is the only female character who is directly featured in the novel. She wears a lot of red like the girl lennie abused which Steinbeck planned to foreshadow Curley’s wife death. A. analogy B. irony C. sarcasm D. extended metaphor E. hyperbole damien has not effectively stated the position he is taking in this paper.Which of the following could best replace sentence 7 … He is too possessive over her. Why does Crooks tell Candy to forget what he said about hoeing … Steinbeck seems to show, through Curley's wife, that even the worst of us have our humanity. Chapter 5 sees Steinbeck give the reader a more developed picture ofCurley’s wife’s character. Her beauty is such that perhaps that dream might have come true. Her "best laid plans" involved a stint in the movies with all the benefits, money, and pleasure that would provide. 17 18 19. John Steinbeck presents Curley’s wife at the start of the story as an irrelevant character because she has no relation with George and Lennie. Curley's wife indicates that she doesn't like her husband. The men are lonely which only highlights her danger. She is utterly alone on the ranch, and her husband has seen to it that no one will talk to her without fearing a beating. Even her name, or lack of one, is designed to provoke men due to her being presented as an object, how could men respect a woman who doesn't have a name? and any corresponding bookmarks? Did it turn out to be a valid warning? Alive, she is connected to Eve in the Garden of Eden. Steinbeck reiterates this impression by portraying her innocence in death: Curley's wife lay with a half-covering of yellow hay. Basically, Curley's wife is just self-obsessed, and unable to judge herself and her position honestly. We find out she married out of spite; “So I married Curley.” This explains her constant flirting with men, she does not love Curley in any way. Even though she has a husband, she feels empty inside and feels very alone which suggests why she always hangs around the other men at the ranch. When Curley is gone she does the craziest things so she can use the moment to the fullest. Of all the characters in the novella, Curley’s wife is the one that shows this to be the case in the most pointed and poignant way. She is defined by her role: Curley's wife or possession. All rights reserved. She was very pretty and simple, and her face was sweet and young. CliffsNotes study guides are written by real teachers and professors, so no matter what you're studying, CliffsNotes can ease your homework headaches and help you score high on exams. Crooks tells George to forget what he said about hoeing and doing odd jobs on their dream ranch. 6. 5. This is shown at the introduction, of Curley’s wife’s way in. Why do you think Crooks is so cynical (negative)? Eventually, she brings about the end of the dream of Eden, the little farm where George and Lennie can live off the fat of the land. Aside from wearisome wives, Of Mice and Men offers limited, rather misogynistic, descriptions of women who are either dead maternal figures or prostitutes. Why do you think she married him? 2010-05-21 21:15:39 2010-05-21 21:15:39. For extra marks, put in a critic, Curley wife's behaviour is overally relaxing and emoitonally restrained - feminists would argue that this … She is a temptress of sorts and she is a possession of Curly’s (hence her name). Now her rouged cheeks and her reddened lips made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly. Steinbeck does a great job of symbolism of women through Curley’s wife. She brings evil into mens' lives by tempting them in a way they cannot resist. Top Answer. Curley's wife, like the other players in the drama, is simply a character type and the only woman in the plot. Curley’s Wife is one of the many characters who represent a minority in the American society in the 1930s. Removing #book# George had a bad feeling about her because of the way she was flouting her body around to get their attention, her attempt to get one of the men’s attention worked as lennie fell upon her spell. She doesn’t necessarily try to talk to the men to start trouble but she just wants someone to talk to. Steinbeck does not give her a name because she is treated like a possession by Curley and is not expected to have her own personality. What does it mean when the workers say that Curley's wife has "the eye" (26)? The irony is that while she pretends to be looking for Curley, she is actually trying to avoid him. She wears too much makeup and dresses like a "whore" with red fingernails and red shoes with ostrich feathers. and this causes her to be lonesome. In the scene in Crooks' room, she reminds Crooks of his place and threatens to have him lynched if he doesn't show her the proper respect as the wife of the boss' son and a white woman. Not affiliated with Harvard College. Alive, she is connected to Eve in the Garden of Eden. Answer. It was during the depression and she needed money. Steinbeck's initial portrayal of Curley's wife shows her to be a mean and seductive temptress. Look at Curly's wife's clothing, the red could impy seduction, in which red is associated with sexual desires. They do not want the bosses son, Curley, to get angry. She enters the action as a vulnerable young married woman and leaves the plot in a manner that does not befit her dreams and aspirations in this life. We develop an opening perception of Curley’s wife as being flirtatious. Steinbeck uses a variety of techniques to portray Curley’s Wife in different ways, including colour imagery, metaphors and similes; he also uses foreshadowing and prejudicing at the start of the novel to give an opinion of her before she is even introduced into the novel as a character. Perhaps, some more evidence: Curley's wife isn't portrayed as property in any way other than by the fact that she is not named (which is arguable at best). Curly is very rude to his wife, and is angry all the time so curley's wife who doesnt have a name doesnt talk to him Why did Curleys wife marry Curley? The curls, tiny little sausages, were spread on the hay behind her head, and her lips were parted. She speaks of a traveling actor who told her she could join their show, without gathering that this is a pretty standard pick-up line. Steinbeck's initial portrayal of Curley's wife shows her to be a mean and seductive temptress. Her death at Lennie's hands means the end of George and Lennie's companionship and their dream. Why do you think that she has "the eye" after only being married for a few weeks? from your Reading List will also remove any bookmarked pages associated with this title. ...What methods does Steinbeck use to present Curley’s wife and the attitudes of others to her? All of these appearances cause the reader to dislike her and see her as the downfall of the men in the story. For extra marks, put in a critic, Curley wife's behaviour is overally relaxing and emoitonally restrained - feminists would argue that this was the role of women in the Great Depression, to be an emotional bath for men, and to be restrained of their emotion to be relaxed and have a relaxed home for when the men come home. There's also a quote somewhere where she has leant against the door frame, introducing herself to Lennie and George, her leaning is conveyed as flirtatious and relaxing. Prejudice towards Crooks and Curley’s wife causes them to be very lonely. She says ‘you’re a nice guy’ – and what she means is that it’s not like Lennie is going to do anything to Curley’s Wife – or certainly not in the way she imagines – and she just can’t understand why she hasn’t got the right to talk to someone else. The men on the ranch fear Curley's wife. lly acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife. She is very flirtatious and she has the eye for the men, she spends much of her time looking for Curley although she … Copyright © 1999 - 2020 GradeSaver LLC. Are you sure you want to remove #bookConfirmation# Lennie is fascinated by her and cannot take his eyes off her. Maybe Curley did not let on her name to the men to insure no connection and conversations are made between Curley's wife and the men. At every opportunity, she talks about her lost opportunities. When Curley picks the fight with Lennie, he does not realize the danger he is in. George and Candy call her by other names such as "jailbait" or "tart." The man told Culey's wife he could get her on the show but her mother said no because she was too young. The man said he would write when he returned to Hollywood. Curleys wife is provocative with her body language as she is described to have “put her hands behind her back and leaned against the door frame so that her body was thrown forward” and “she looked at her fingernails”, she is very conscious of the affect she has on men and uses this to her advantage however her inappropriate clothes and her behavior I think are designed to provoke interest … There's also a quote somewhere where she has leant against the door frame, introducing herself to Lennie and George, her leaning is conveyed as flirtatious and relaxing. She is portrayed, like the girl in Weed, as a liar and manipulator of men. Later, Curley's wife met a man who said he was from Hollywood and could get her into pictures. Women were property and objects. In this passage, what methods does Steinbeck use to present Curley’s wife and the attitudes of others to her? Curley's wife knows her beauty is her power, and she uses it to flirt with the ranch hands and make her husband jealous. Why do you think Steinbeck never told the readers Curley's wife's name? When Lennie kills Curley's wife, Curley sees this as … Once George allows Lennie to fight back, Lennie smashes Curley's hand, breaking every bone. In the award winning book, John Steinbeck provides many different aspects to the world he was living in at the time he wrote the novel: dreams, hopes and loneliness to name a few, all channelled through one mentality - prejudice. Base your answer on what you know about her character. And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face. Curley;s wife symbolized the level of equality that women had in the time period that took place in the story. The possessive apostrophe in Curley’s wife’s name suggests that she is a property of Curley. Why does George say that Curley should watch out if he gets into a fight with Lennie? Asked by Wiki User. He keeps repeating "she's purty." How does this dream represent one of the central themes of the novel? She enters the chapter in a very similar way toher first entrance in the novel ‘She wore her bright cotton dress and the mules with the red ostrich feathers. Exemplar curley's wife essay 1. Refer closely to the passage in your answer. Is Curley's wife cruel and mean spirited or just misunderstood? Sure, there are indications of negligence and perhaps abuse, but she certainly does not act as property when she is on the ranch. How does Steinbeck Present Curley’s Wife Essay Sample. Unfortunately, while Candy and Crooks retreat and toleate her, Curley is enamored. He does this, so that we have an influenced opening impression of Curley’s wife and the way she acts. Refer closely to the passage in your answer. The role of Curley’s wife represents the loneliness of all the characters on the ranch. 4. Look at Curly's wife's clothing, the red could impy seduction, in which red is associated with sexual desires. Why does she act the way she does? Curley's wife behaves the way that she does because she is always limited to do anything because of Curley. Curley's wife's demeanor screams provocation. She is very materialistic as she wants “them nice clothes like they [movie stars] wear” instead of the actual fame. George, realizing Lennie's fascination, warns him to stay away from her. Why do you think her lack of a name is important? Steinbeck portrays Curley's wife as sexual, innocent, and dissatisfied, which often causes her to jeer at the ranch hands. Only a totally inexperienced young girl would behave the way Curley's wife does with Lennie when they are alone in the barn. In the barn scene, however, Steinbeck softens the reader's reaction to Curley's wife by exploring her dreams. Her dreams make her more human and vulnerable. Wiki User Answered . Curley controls her and everything she does Curley wants to know. 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