The first to face discrimination was Crooks, an African American stable buck working on the farm. Blacks were never treated fairly back in the old days, so when whites talked to them, it was always with hatred and racial slurs. So in chapter four, Curley’s Wife says to Crooks, “ Listen N…You know what I can do to you if you open your trap again.” This quote shows blacks had no rights/say in things. It shows how little they were treated by the white community, even when acting like regular human beings.
This closely relates to the theme of discrimination by racial slurs alone. To add onto Crooks discrimination of having no power is shown again by Curley’s Wife. She enters herself into Crooks’ room, with Lennie and Candy already inside, starting her racist ways.
She says to him again,” Well you keep your place, N… I could get you strung on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.
” This quote means Crooks could die from a lie Curley’s Wife said. It shows Crooks has no power over anything in his life. This clearly relates to the theme of how Crooks has no power because of the discrimination he faces. To conclude, Crooks deals with discrimination in his job, leaving him hopeless. The second to face discrimination is Lennie, a man who got kicked in the head while he was younger, and is now mentally challenged. So when Lennie and George are trying to get their job on the farm, Lennie isn’t allowed to speak.
So George says to Lennie,” If he finds out what a crazy bastard you are, we won’t get the job.” This quote shows Lennie is judged by even his voice, sounding like he’s mentally challenged.
This helps the theme as it leaves him powerless of people judging his disabilities. The next time discrimination is shown is when they’re meeting their boss and Lennie isn’t allowed to talk, which makes him suspicious of Lennie and George. Then George tells him,” He got kicked in the head by a horse when he was a kid…Just ain’t bright,”. Lennie is talked down upon with his disability. It shows that he doesn’t control his own voice and who he can talk to because of it. So as you can see, Lennie is yet another example of discrimination, leaving him powerless just like Crooks. All in all, by these two characters you can see they face discrimination in many instances. They have no power and have to deal with rude people with their racial slurs or just mean comments about Lennie and George. People can make these lives better by just being nice and just not discriminate. There is many things to do to help these people and make their lives better.
The Discrimination Crookes Faced. (2022, Nov 14). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/the-discrimination-crookes-faced/