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Analysis of Curley

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Of Mice and Men - Curley Essay
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In the Novel of mice and men, Steinbeck presents Curley as the evil character due to the fact he tries to live up to his father’s legacy, of being the boss, by making everyone fear him. Does Curley try to prove his masculinity through his actions? Does this make him seem aggressive or vulnerable?

Curley picks fights with bigger, tougher men to show that size doesn’t matter and to make people obey him. Curley fights with Lennie unaware of his capabilities. He stepped over to Lennie ‘like a terrier’. The simile links Curley’s size to a small terrier dog but could also suggest vulnerability and an inferior status. Curley threatens Lennie by saying, ‘Come on, ya big bastard’. The ‘ya’ colloquialism shows the slang language was picked up in an uneducated society. Moreover, ‘Come on’ shows how he challenges Lennie which portrays him as aggressive and strong. Furthermore, the consonance ‘big bastard’ is cleverly used and spoken with a plosive sound. This means to say this, the airflow needs to stop which joins in with the fight of Curley and Lennie getting punched which cuff of their wind. In addition the adjective ‘big’ shows how Curley could be jealous of how tall Lennie is as opposed to his short height. Did Steinbeck purposely say this to make Curley seem weak? Therefore, Curley Standing up to Lennie shows his desire to have a higher status than him even though he is much smaller.

Curley married an attractive woman as another tactic used to prove himself. Throughout the novel, we never find out her name but by calling her ‘Curley’s wife’ or ‘Curley’s girl’, Steinbeck indicates that she is his possession. Curley is overprotective of her and refuses to let her talk with anyone on the ranch, isolating her from everyone. He knows that his wife is very important to him

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