3.1.7
Curley's Wife - Lonely & Heartbroken
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Curley's Wife's Loneliness
As the plot develops, we learn that Curley's wife is lonely and isolated on the ranch.
Lonely on the ranch
- Curley’s wife is clearly bored and lonely on the ranch, and she is always looking for someone to talk to.
- Unfortunately for her, most of the men want nothing to do with her for fear of getting into trouble with Curley: “I never get to talk to nobody. I get awful lonely.” (Curley’s wife, Section 5).
Why do we not know Curley's wife's name?
- Steinbeck has decided not to reveal Curley’s wife’s name.
- This is an important feature of her character because it suggests that she is not considered important enough to have a name.
- By using her husband’s name to identify her, it creates the sense that she is a possession of Curley.
- Steinbeck could be using her character to make a point about unfair attitudes towards women at the time.
Attitude to her husband
- Curley pays his wife very little attention, and she is unimpressed by how much he likes to talk about fighting: “Think I’m gonna stay in that two-by-four house and listen to how Curley’s gonna lead with his left twice, and then bring in the ol’ right cross?” (Curley’s wife, Section 4).
Confiding in Lennie
- Curley’s wife confesses to Lennie that she is in an unhappy marriage and she doesn't love her husband: “I don't like Curley. He ain't a nice fella.” (Curley’s wife, Section 5).
Curley's Wife's Broken Dreams
We learn that Curley's wife wanted to be a Hollywood film star. She mourns her broken dream.
Hollywood
- Curley’s wife’s life has not turned out how she dreamed it would, and she reveals that her childhood ambition was to become a Hollywood film star: "Coulda been in the movies” (Curley’s wife, Section 5).
Fantasising on the ranch
- While she is stuck on the ranch, a dusty, dry and bleak environment, she really longs for the glamour that comes with a film star lifestyle: “I coulda sat in them big hotels, an' had pitchers took of me.” (Curley’s wife, Section 5).
Her mother's betrayal
- She laments the fact that, because of her mother supposedly stealing her letters from a film producer, she was unable to fulfill her dream and instead ended up married to Curley: “I ast her if she stole it, too, an' she says no. So I married Curley. Met him out to the Riverside Dance Palace that same night.” (Curley’s wife, Section 5).
An unrealistic dream?
- Curley’s wife’s dream of being a star seems somewhat unrealistic, and it is debatable how close she ever came to achieving it.
- Perhaps it is really just a fantasy to escape the misery of her life with Curley.
Curley's Wife's Cruelty
During Of Mice and Men, we see Curley's wife behave cruelly towards other characters.
Insulting those who she considers weak
- Though there are many reasons to feel sorry for Curley’s wife, there are also a number of times when she is rude and insulting to people who she considers to be weak.
- For example, she refers to Crooks, Lennie and Candy as “the weak ones.” (Curley’s wife, Section 4).
Racial abuse towards Crooks
- She is particularly cruel to Crooks.
- As a white person, Curley’s wife has certain privileges that Crooks does not, and she uses this power to humiliate and dehumanise him: “I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain't even funny.” (Curley’s wife, Section 4).
Why is she cruel?
- While Curley’s wife’s treatment of some people on the ranch, particularly Crooks, is inexcusable, Steinbeck seems to be suggesting that her cruelty is coming from a place of pain: her dreams to be a star didn’t work out, and she has ended up in an unhappy marriage.
1Context & Overview
1.1Context & Overview
2Plot
2.1Section 1 - Analysis
2.2Section 2 - Analysis
2.3Section 3 - Analysis
2.4Section 4 - Analysis
2.5Section 5 - Analysis
2.6Section 6 - Analysis
3Key Characters
3.1Main Characters
3.2Minor Characters
4Themes
5Authorial Method
6Recap: Main Quotes
6.1Quotes per Section
6.2Text Structure - Quotes
Jump to other topics
1Context & Overview
1.1Context & Overview
2Plot
2.1Section 1 - Analysis
2.2Section 2 - Analysis
2.3Section 3 - Analysis
2.4Section 4 - Analysis
2.5Section 5 - Analysis
2.6Section 6 - Analysis
3Key Characters
3.1Main Characters
3.2Minor Characters
4Themes
5Authorial Method
6Recap: Main Quotes
6.1Quotes per Section
6.2Text Structure - Quotes
Practice questions on Curley's Wife - Lonely & Heartbroken
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