Minor Characters
English Lit: Edexcel IGCSE Of Mice & Men, topic 3.2.1
Minor Characters in Of Mice and Men
Minor characters in the novel include the Boss, Carlson and Whit.
The Boss
- The Boss is “a little stocky man” (Section 2) who is generally considered to be a “nice fella” (Section 2).
- An example of his generosity is when he gave the men a “whole gallon” (Section 2) of whiskey at Christmas. Initially, the Boss is suspicious of George, and is worried he is taking advantage of Lennie’s mental weakness: "I said what stake you got in this guy? You takin' his pay away from him?” (The Boss, Section 2).
Carlson
- Carlson is one of the ranch workers and is described as a “powerful, big-stomached man” (Section 2).
- His main involvement in the plot is when he kills Candy’s dog, something he almost seems to enjoy doing, showing him to be a tough and insensitive man. It is Carlson’s gun, his “luger”, which George uses to kill Lennie in the final section of the novel.
Whit
- Whit is a young ranch worker. He has little involvement in the plot of the story, although he is sent to fetch the deputy sheriff when Curley’s wife’s body is found: “You go in Soledad an' get a cop. Get Al Wilts, he's deputy sheriff.” (Curley, Section 5)
Test yourself on Minor Characters
A “powerful, big-stomached man”, who does this quote describe?