Crooks Essay – of mice and men
In Steinbeck's novella, set in the Great Depression era of 1930's America, the themes of prejudice
and loneliness are central to the narrative structure. Crooks is the only black person on the ranch
and so he is at the bottom of the social hierarchy but Steinbeck helps us feel sympathetic towards
how unfairly he is treated and the injustice of racism at the time.
Steinbeck describes the loneliness of Crooks' life. For example, he lives 'in the harness room' next to
the animals barn, suggesting that he is treated like an animal because of his skin colour. Nobody
comes into his room 'but Slim and the Boss' showing not only that Slim is kind and unbiased but also
that he is fairly isolated. When Lennie comes in Crooks is cross at first 'you got no right to come in
my room' but then relaxes 'his tone was a little more friendly' and he enjoys having some company.
He tells Lennie how cruelly he is treated 'this is jus a busted back n***** talking so it don’t mean
nothing' and 'a guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody showing how having no friends effects his mental
health. When Candy comes in he admits 'I been here a long time and Crooks been here a long time
this is the first time I ever been in his room', revealing that people who could have got to know him
didn’t bother because of his race. Crook's isolation is emphasised by his location and how the other
men ignore him.
Steinbeck represents Crooks as a very sympathetic character. For example, although he is a 'stable
buck and a cripple', he has many talents, 'broken harness in process of being mended;' showing that
he can fix essential equipment around the ranch. We learn that he also has 'Medicine bottles both
for himself and the horses.', adding to his many talents implying he is almost like a vet who can help
look after the horses health. However other items in his harness room include 'several pairs of
shoes, a pair of rubber boots, a big alarm clock and a single barrelled shotgun', where the list ends
on the noun gun which emphasises its importance and implies the he needs to protect himself from
other workers who might hurt him on account of his race. He also has a 'mauled copy of the
California civil code', revealing not only that he must be an educated man but also that he needs to
be able to know how to defend himself if he gets accused of some crime. Steinbeck's sympathetic
portrayal of Crooks helps the reader understand how cruel and unjust Crook' treatment is and that
in many ways, he is probably a more impressive man than most of the other ranch workers despite
his skin colour.
Steinbeck describes interactions Cooks has with the other men as mostly unpleasant. For example,
'the boss gives him hell when he's mad' showing how Crooks is used as a punchbag by someone who
should have more respect. The boss being a role model to the other men they copy his actions, like
at Christmas when they had been drinking 'they let the n***** come in Smitty took after him…
woulda killed him', revealing that Crooks is used as entertainment even at a time of year when
everyone should be having fun. The fact that they don’t care if he could have been killed reinforces
the impression that black lives didn’t matter at the time in which the novella was written. Curleys
wife is low on the ranch hierarchy too but even she has more power than Crooks because she is
white 'I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny' which is a reference to illegal
lynching of black men at the time by racists in the south of America. Steinbeck creates a sense of
threat of violence and death that Crooks has to live with everyday and that crushes his spirit 'Crooks
had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego', conveying the negative impact of
racism to the audience.
In conclusion, Steinbeck's representation of Crooks is sympathetic and detailed. He describes not
only the disgusting conditions he lives in but also the cruel violence he suffers at the hands of the
other men, as well as the racist, disrespectful language that is used against him. All of these points
create a character who is likeable and as a reader you can sympathise with so we are appalled by his
In Steinbeck's novella, set in the Great Depression era of 1930's America, the themes of prejudice
and loneliness are central to the narrative structure. Crooks is the only black person on the ranch
and so he is at the bottom of the social hierarchy but Steinbeck helps us feel sympathetic towards
how unfairly he is treated and the injustice of racism at the time.
Steinbeck describes the loneliness of Crooks' life. For example, he lives 'in the harness room' next to
the animals barn, suggesting that he is treated like an animal because of his skin colour. Nobody
comes into his room 'but Slim and the Boss' showing not only that Slim is kind and unbiased but also
that he is fairly isolated. When Lennie comes in Crooks is cross at first 'you got no right to come in
my room' but then relaxes 'his tone was a little more friendly' and he enjoys having some company.
He tells Lennie how cruelly he is treated 'this is jus a busted back n***** talking so it don’t mean
nothing' and 'a guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody showing how having no friends effects his mental
health. When Candy comes in he admits 'I been here a long time and Crooks been here a long time
this is the first time I ever been in his room', revealing that people who could have got to know him
didn’t bother because of his race. Crook's isolation is emphasised by his location and how the other
men ignore him.
Steinbeck represents Crooks as a very sympathetic character. For example, although he is a 'stable
buck and a cripple', he has many talents, 'broken harness in process of being mended;' showing that
he can fix essential equipment around the ranch. We learn that he also has 'Medicine bottles both
for himself and the horses.', adding to his many talents implying he is almost like a vet who can help
look after the horses health. However other items in his harness room include 'several pairs of
shoes, a pair of rubber boots, a big alarm clock and a single barrelled shotgun', where the list ends
on the noun gun which emphasises its importance and implies the he needs to protect himself from
other workers who might hurt him on account of his race. He also has a 'mauled copy of the
California civil code', revealing not only that he must be an educated man but also that he needs to
be able to know how to defend himself if he gets accused of some crime. Steinbeck's sympathetic
portrayal of Crooks helps the reader understand how cruel and unjust Crook' treatment is and that
in many ways, he is probably a more impressive man than most of the other ranch workers despite
his skin colour.
Steinbeck describes interactions Cooks has with the other men as mostly unpleasant. For example,
'the boss gives him hell when he's mad' showing how Crooks is used as a punchbag by someone who
should have more respect. The boss being a role model to the other men they copy his actions, like
at Christmas when they had been drinking 'they let the n***** come in Smitty took after him…
woulda killed him', revealing that Crooks is used as entertainment even at a time of year when
everyone should be having fun. The fact that they don’t care if he could have been killed reinforces
the impression that black lives didn’t matter at the time in which the novella was written. Curleys
wife is low on the ranch hierarchy too but even she has more power than Crooks because she is
white 'I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny' which is a reference to illegal
lynching of black men at the time by racists in the south of America. Steinbeck creates a sense of
threat of violence and death that Crooks has to live with everyday and that crushes his spirit 'Crooks
had reduced himself to nothing. There was no personality, no ego', conveying the negative impact of
racism to the audience.
In conclusion, Steinbeck's representation of Crooks is sympathetic and detailed. He describes not
only the disgusting conditions he lives in but also the cruel violence he suffers at the hands of the
other men, as well as the racist, disrespectful language that is used against him. All of these points
create a character who is likeable and as a reader you can sympathise with so we are appalled by his
