How does John Steinbeck use the character of Curley’s wife to highlight some aspects of American society in the
1930s?
Curley’s wife symbolises what it was like to be a woman during this dark period of the Great Depression (1930s). In
this patriarchal society isolation was ubiquitous and many suffered greatly because of discrimination. Loneliness
and discrimination are at the heart of this novel and Curley’s wife is symbolic of the women of her era. The
woman’s place was in the home as Carlson says to Curley “ Why’n’t you tell her to stay the hell home where she
belongs?” She is isolated and marginalised throughout the novel. Steinbeck writes: "A girl was standing there
looking in" thereby illustrating how Curley’s wife seems to never quite fit in and this description implies that she is
always on the sidelines; she states “Ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody?” The generic noun ‘girl’ accentuates her
insignificance and this is further emphasised by the use of the indefinite article ‘a’; she is not even afforded the
significance of being ‘the girl’. .Curley’s wife wears shoes trimmed with ostrich feathers. An ostrich unlike other
birds is a flightless bird which cannot have the freedom to control many aspects of its life. Her shattered dreams of
being a film star -“a guy tol’ me he could put me in pitchers”- makes her isolation all the more poignant.
Curley’s wife obsesses about her appearance despite living on a dirty ranch. Steinbeck writes: “She has fully rouged
lips… Her fingernails were red”. The overuse and repetition of the colour red foreshadows her untimely and tragic
death at the hands of Lennie. The colour red has many connotations, namely, prostitution, love, danger, anger and
blood. The symbolism of the colour red is also reinforced by the girl in Weed wearing red ; the colour redd is thus
equated with catastrophe, danger and death.
The mistreatment of Curley’s wife by society and her own husband causes her to seek the attention of the men on
the ranch thereby putting them in danger of suffering the wrath of Curley. George is aware of the danger she poses
as he harshly rebukes Lennie and warns him “Don’t you even take a look at that bitch…I seen ‘em poison before,
but I never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her.” And when Crooks infers to her that she is trouble she retorts
by referring to her loneliness “Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever’ once in a while?” thereby reinforcing
that her loneliness is a catalyst for her attention-seeking behaviour. Steinbeck foreshadows her tragic and untimely
death through the words of Carlson as he states “You let her hang around bunk houses and pretty soon you’re
gonna have som’pin on your hands and you won’t be able to do nothing about it.”
Curley’s wife’s lack of control and inferiority to the other men on the ranch is reflected through Steinbeck’s use of
the apostrophe to symbolise that Curley’s wife is a possession of her husband; simply a sex object meant for
Curley’s own impure desires and intentions. She is simply a trophy wife. Steinbeck does not even afford her status
as a ‘wife’ the prestige of a capitalisation as she is referred to throughout as ‘Curley’s wife’. By not giving her a
name Steinbeck shows how women of the 1930’s were not deemed equal to men. As a consequence of the
constant neglect, bullying and harassment of Curley’s wife including her being called names such as a ‘tart’,
‘whore’ and ‘jail bait’, Curley’s wife is driven to inflict hurt upon and to break the only person on the ranch who
ranks beneath her on the social hierarchy; Crooks. She tells him “I could get you strung up on a tree so easy, it
ain’t even funny.” The fact that Curley’s wife ultimately resorts to using racism to bully Crooks that he is the only
person whom she can wield a degree of power over. She is treating him as she has been treated by others; just as
she is isolated on the ranch, her cruel words accentuate Crook’s isolation as he “stared hopelessly at her, and then
he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself”.
It is only in death that Steinbeck affords Curley’s Wife with an escape from this lack of regard and esteem that is
surrounds her; as she lays dead Steinbeck writes “And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and
the ache for attention were all gone from her face. “ The fact that Curley’s wife’s innate innocence shines through
when she is dead, with her face “sweet and young” shows how society had damaged her. Despite this aura of
innocence in death she is still subjected to callousness, this time from the mouth of Candy, who, devastated at the
1930s?
Curley’s wife symbolises what it was like to be a woman during this dark period of the Great Depression (1930s). In
this patriarchal society isolation was ubiquitous and many suffered greatly because of discrimination. Loneliness
and discrimination are at the heart of this novel and Curley’s wife is symbolic of the women of her era. The
woman’s place was in the home as Carlson says to Curley “ Why’n’t you tell her to stay the hell home where she
belongs?” She is isolated and marginalised throughout the novel. Steinbeck writes: "A girl was standing there
looking in" thereby illustrating how Curley’s wife seems to never quite fit in and this description implies that she is
always on the sidelines; she states “Ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody?” The generic noun ‘girl’ accentuates her
insignificance and this is further emphasised by the use of the indefinite article ‘a’; she is not even afforded the
significance of being ‘the girl’. .Curley’s wife wears shoes trimmed with ostrich feathers. An ostrich unlike other
birds is a flightless bird which cannot have the freedom to control many aspects of its life. Her shattered dreams of
being a film star -“a guy tol’ me he could put me in pitchers”- makes her isolation all the more poignant.
Curley’s wife obsesses about her appearance despite living on a dirty ranch. Steinbeck writes: “She has fully rouged
lips… Her fingernails were red”. The overuse and repetition of the colour red foreshadows her untimely and tragic
death at the hands of Lennie. The colour red has many connotations, namely, prostitution, love, danger, anger and
blood. The symbolism of the colour red is also reinforced by the girl in Weed wearing red ; the colour redd is thus
equated with catastrophe, danger and death.
The mistreatment of Curley’s wife by society and her own husband causes her to seek the attention of the men on
the ranch thereby putting them in danger of suffering the wrath of Curley. George is aware of the danger she poses
as he harshly rebukes Lennie and warns him “Don’t you even take a look at that bitch…I seen ‘em poison before,
but I never seen no piece of jail bait worse than her.” And when Crooks infers to her that she is trouble she retorts
by referring to her loneliness “Think I don’t like to talk to somebody ever’ once in a while?” thereby reinforcing
that her loneliness is a catalyst for her attention-seeking behaviour. Steinbeck foreshadows her tragic and untimely
death through the words of Carlson as he states “You let her hang around bunk houses and pretty soon you’re
gonna have som’pin on your hands and you won’t be able to do nothing about it.”
Curley’s wife’s lack of control and inferiority to the other men on the ranch is reflected through Steinbeck’s use of
the apostrophe to symbolise that Curley’s wife is a possession of her husband; simply a sex object meant for
Curley’s own impure desires and intentions. She is simply a trophy wife. Steinbeck does not even afford her status
as a ‘wife’ the prestige of a capitalisation as she is referred to throughout as ‘Curley’s wife’. By not giving her a
name Steinbeck shows how women of the 1930’s were not deemed equal to men. As a consequence of the
constant neglect, bullying and harassment of Curley’s wife including her being called names such as a ‘tart’,
‘whore’ and ‘jail bait’, Curley’s wife is driven to inflict hurt upon and to break the only person on the ranch who
ranks beneath her on the social hierarchy; Crooks. She tells him “I could get you strung up on a tree so easy, it
ain’t even funny.” The fact that Curley’s wife ultimately resorts to using racism to bully Crooks that he is the only
person whom she can wield a degree of power over. She is treating him as she has been treated by others; just as
she is isolated on the ranch, her cruel words accentuate Crook’s isolation as he “stared hopelessly at her, and then
he sat down on his bunk and drew into himself”.
It is only in death that Steinbeck affords Curley’s Wife with an escape from this lack of regard and esteem that is
surrounds her; as she lays dead Steinbeck writes “And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and
the ache for attention were all gone from her face. “ The fact that Curley’s wife’s innate innocence shines through
when she is dead, with her face “sweet and young” shows how society had damaged her. Despite this aura of
innocence in death she is still subjected to callousness, this time from the mouth of Candy, who, devastated at the
