How Does Steinbeck Present Stereotypes In Of Mice And Men

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Due in part to the length of the novel Of Mice and Men no characters are developed as much as one would have thought, nonetheless the characters used are ones that represent the stereotyped community at the time, and many still haven't changed. Steinbeck uses emotive language and description to create a sense of sympathy or lack of sympathy in the novel, these contrasting emotions are used to symbolize the stereotypes at the time the novel was set. Due to a variety of social and economic problems at the time that the novel was set, including the dust bowl, the great depression and the struggle for work; stereotyping occurred regularly and was seen as normal. Steinbeck uses language and imagery in the novel to explore how this was seen as the norm for people of the time. One of the main characters that explore stereotypes is Crooks this is because he is the only African-American on the ranch; Steinbeck uses derogatory terms for black people to emulate the way that people spoke at the time. This illustrates how, because of something different about a person at that time they were singled-out and attacked specially. Crooks is separated from the main members of the ranch, this makes him …show more content…
Lennie is mentally disabled and because of this his life prospects are ruined. He has dreams like most American citizens at the time had however these are far from reality. Lennie, at heart is the kindest person on the ranch however due to his mental condition he becomes confused, ‘I don’t want no harm’ shows that he doesn’t want anything bad to happen to anyone. Steinbeck uses Lennie as a character to explore how despite any positivity eventually the harshness of the economic and social situation at the time prospects are ultimately lost with finally his