Loneliness

The name of the town close to the ranch where the novel is set is Soledad, which translates from Spanish to ‘solitude’, so loneliness is immediately established as an important theme in Of Mice and Men.

Most of the characters on the ranch are lonely. George and Lennie stand out because their friendship means that they are not isolated and this is very unusual, making some others (like the Boss) suspicious of them. Steinbeck shows how the lifestyle that the men lead is very damaging to their relationships, making them lack compassion for others.

The loneliest characters in the book are Candy, Crooks and Curley’s wife. All of these characters are different to the others on the ranch: Candy is older than the others; Crooks is the only black man; and Curley’s wife is the only woman. These factors make the characters isolated and the men on the ranch show no empathy towards them, instead making them more isolated by treating them badly.

(AO1)  

• there are many lonely characters on the ranch, such as: Curley’s wife, George, Candy, Crooks and other ranch hands. Some of these characters are lonely due to the nature of their job as itinerant farm labourers; some are lonely as they have lost everyone who is close to them and others are lonely due to circumstances they find themselves in, such as Curley’s wife  

• George can be considered a lonely character, even though he has Lennie as a companion. He often gets frustrated with having to care for Lennie and this also prevents him from living a normal life; he joins with the other men when they go to ‘old Susy’s place’  

• Candy is both disabled and old, which prevents him from working on the land; he is left alone to do the ‘swamping’ and only has his dog for company. The shooting of Candy’s dog takes away his only companion 

•  loneliness has made characters like Crooks bitter and cynical; Crooks’ segregation, owing to the colour of his skin, has made him suspect anyone who shows him the hand of friendship, such as when Lennie visits his room  

• Curley’s wife is the only female mentioned on the ranch and her position on the ranch is simply as one of Curley’s possessions as she is not given a name. Curley’s wife’s loneliness leads her to seek company from the ranch hands which ultimately leads to her death. 

(AO4)  

• the ranch is located near Soledad, which means ‘loneliness’ in Spanish  characters are often lonely due to discrimination: racism, sexism and disability; there is no social care for the old and vulnerable members of society  

• the nature of the life of itinerant ranch-hands leads them to have no stability, home, possessions, friendships or relationships due to their constantly moving in search of work. There was a high level of unemployment during the Great Depression  

• even those higher in the social structure on the ranch suffer from loneliness: Curley is often looking for his wife and the men on the ranch keep their distance from him. Slim does not suggest that he is lonely, but goes with the others into town on a Saturday night. 

In addition to dreams, humans crave contact with others to give life meaning. Loneliness is present throughout this novel. On the most obvious level, we see this isolation when the ranch hands go into town on Saturday night to ease their loneliness with alcohol and women. Similarly, Lennie goes into Crook's room to find someone with whom to talk, and later Curley's wife comes for the same reason. Crooks says, "A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody. Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you." Even Slim mentions, "I seen the guys that go around on the ranches alone. That ain't no good. They don't have no fun. After a long time they get mean."

George's taking care of Lennie and the dream of the farm are attempts to break the pattern of loneliness that is part of the human condition. Similarly, Lennie's desire to pet soft things comes from his need to feel safe and secure, to touch something that gives him that feeling of not being alone in the world. For Lennie, the dream of the farm parallels that security.

George and Lennie, however, are not the only characters who struggle against loneliness. Although present in all the characters to some degree, the theme of loneliness is most notably present in Candy, Crooks, and Curley's wife. They all fight against their isolation in whatever way they can. Until its death, Candy's dog stopped Candy from being alone in the world. After its death, Candy struggles against loneliness by sharing in George and Lennie's dream. Curley's wife is also lonely; she is the only female on the ranch, and her husband has forbidden anyone to talk with her. She combats her loneliness by flirting with the ranch hands. Crooks is isolated because of his skin color. As the only black man on the ranch, he is not allowed into the bunkhouse with the others, and he does not associate with them. He combats his loneliness with books and his work, but even he realizes that these things are no substitute for human companionship.

Steinbeck reinforces the theme of loneliness in subtle and not so subtle ways. In the vicinity of the ranch, for example, is the town of Soledad. The town's name, not accidentally, means "solitude" or "alone." Also, the others' reactions to George and Lennie traveling together reinforces that, in Steinbeck's world, traveling with someone else is unusual. When George and Lennie arrive at the ranch, four other characters — the boss, Candy, Crooks, and Slim — all comment on the suspicious nature of two guys traveling together. This companionship seems strange and, according to at least the boss and Curley, the relationship is sexual or exploitative financially.