This is reinforced by the fact that she does not have a name in ‘Yeah, and she’s sure hidin’ it. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. The conclusion’s heavy foreshadowing suggests that heartbreak is the inescapable consequence of trying to maintain a lasting friendship in the isolating world of the migrant worker. When he enters the ranch-hand bunkhouse, Curley immediately intimidates and sizes Lennie up. Lennie's puppy is one of several symbols that represent the victory of the strong over the weak. From Lennie stroking his dead puppy in the barn to Curley leading a mob of men to find and kill Lennie Summary. In Section 3, Carlson and Slim force Candy to let them shoot his dog, which has grown old and weak. Use up and down arrows to review and enter to select. Curley wears a glove to keep his hand soft, foreshadowing how his hand will not remain intact around Lennie, who has a history of accidentally crushing soft things (like the dead mice). By the time he kills Curley’s wife, the reader knows that Lennie loves to pet soft things and that he tends to accidentally kill the things he pets. Although Lennie is the one who physically kills Curley’s wife, Of Mice and Men consistently shows that Lennie is not to blame for her death. Curly's reaction to seeing his wife dead he went mute, them found the words to say he new who killed his wife. In Of Mice and Men, how does Lennie react to killing Curley's wife? ‘Jesus, what a tramp,’ he said. George steals Carlson's gun to shoot Lennie after Curley's wife is murdered. In the world of the ranch, one must not be the most vulnerable person in the room. Lennie’s death at George’s hand is a heartbreaking moment for George and for the reader. From the opening section, when George explains that Lennie has a habit of accidentally killing mice while petting them, the novella prepares the reader to view the death of Curley’s wife as an accident; Lennie simply cannot help himself. In the first section, George scolds Lennie for petting mice until they die. The reader is manipulated to like, and dislike her at the same time. His only concern is rounding up the men to hunt down Lennie and see that he is punished. Ask Question + 100. how do george and lennie react to seeing curley's wife for the first time? Ironically he doesn't seem to be too sad over the death of his wife. He doesnt understand the finality of death. 0 0. This instance of foreshadowing reveals that the antagonism between Curley and Lennie comprises their relationship from the beginning. Of Mice and Men and the Social Protest Novel. In the first section, George scolds Lennie for petting mice until they die. When Carlson kills the dog, Candy confides to George that he wishes he’d done it himself instead of letting Carlson do it. Curley’s wife is lonely, but the ranch-hands are scared Curley will catch them speaking to her, which further isolates her. The death of Candy's dog and the crushing of Curley's hand are situations that have repercussions later. Near the start of the story, she has a fairly minor role in the story, but Steinbeck slowly increases her importance till she is the cause of Lennie’s death. This deadly combination will soon lead to the death of Curley's Wife. Click card to see definition 👆 Curley's wire is described in death as "her reddened lips had made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly". Toward the end of the novella, Lennie’s destruction peaks as his failure to control his own strength results in the death of his puppy and Curley’s wife. ‘So that’s what Curley picks for a wife.’ ‘She’s purty,’ said Lennie defensively. Both he and Curley’s wife seek comfort for their problems in each other, but it leads to an unseemly end. Curley doesn't understand how someone so stupid like Lennie can be so liked. Bet she’d clear out for twenty bucks.’ Lennie still stared … Asked by jacqueline b #193215 on 8/9/2011 3:47 PM Last updated by tracey l #96417 on 8/10/2011 2:45 AM Answers 1 Add Yours. George looked around at Lennie. The boss’s son, Curley, embodies the cruelty of ranch life and creates the conditions that bring about the death of his own wife. When Curley's wife died, they both had the same reaction. All occur because of the meeting in the barn between Lennie and Curley's wife, a meeting that seals forever the fates of all involved. From the beginning of the novella, Steinbeck foreshadows that Lennie will accidentally kill Curley’s wife while trying to stroke her hair. Lennie fails to understand her at all, however, as he continues to return to the dilemma of the dead puppy and his anxiety over being denied the right to tend the rabbits. When Curley’s wife visits Crooks’s stable, she admits in a moment of loneliness that she once dreamed of starring in movies, then quickly attacks each man with derogatory remarks. Essentially, Lennie and Curley’s wife come together in the barn because both characters have been victimized by Curley. She is clearly starved for conversation and launches into a reprise of her discontented story of what might have been. How might Curley's wife be responsible for her death? Lennie kills Curley’s wife because he ‘likes to pet soft things’.He is mourning the death of his puppy – also by his own hand – when Curley’s wife enters the … When she starts to yell, Lennie think George will hear and will be mad that he is communicating with the woman, so he covers her mouth. Curley’s wife’s loneliness and hatred of her husband cause her to seek out Lennie’s company; she respects Lennie for crushing Curley’s hand after Curley bullied him. In addition to creating the sense that Lennie’s fate is inevitable, these instances of foreshadowing prepare the reader to understand Lennie’s innocence. Answered by tracey l #96417 on 8/10/2011 2:45 AM Who is to blame for the death of Curley’s wife? Lennie 's world basically revolves around George. Of Mice and Men and the Social Protest Novel. Curleys' Wife Essay 614 Words | 3 Pages. Curley's wife begins to struggle, which sends Lennie into a panic. When Slim saw Curley's wife dead he first went over to her … Her death also is a reminder of the incredible strength Lennie held and how incapable he was at managing it. George tells Slim that in their last town, Lennie got in trouble after touching a girl’s dress and was falsely accused of raping her. He fights Lennie and George tells Lennie to fight back. Immediately after accidentally killing Curley's wife, he thinks about George and he remembers his friend's instructions about going back … She is portrayed, like the girl in Weed, as a liar and manipulator of men. Lennie crushes Curley's hand with his herculean strength. Anonymous. In response, Slim—who is presented as a “godlike” source of moral authority—decrees that Lennie “ain’t mean,” solidifying Lennie’s innocence. He wants violent revenge. Lennie gets more and more confused as to what do to (thinking that between the puppy’s death and his talking to Curley’s wife, George is going to be furious.) Now Curley gets to dish out some small-guy complex justice! This comment foreshadows George’s decision to shoot Lennie himself, as he is Lennie’s closest companion. Chapter 5 is filled with characters whose thoughts can be described very precisely: Lennie's fear, Curley wife's musings and then her terror, George's stoic acceptance, Curley's meanness, and Candy's despondency. George also mentions that they got chased out of their last town because Lennie “wanted to feel that girl’s dress” and stroked the soft fabric, giving the impression that he raped her. He grabs a hold of her hair and muffles her screams. Her death at Lennie's hands means the end of George and Lennie's companionship and their dream. He treats his wife like a possession. When Curley’s wife dies, the lack of compassion Curley shows justifies her frustration in life, particularly when her innocence is shown in death. They freaked out and they both wanted to kill Lennie. 7 Answers. The reason George has warned Lennie against speaking to Curley’s wife is because Curley is jealous and cruel, so once again, Curley is the one ultimately responsible for the circumstances that bring about his wife’s death. Because Curley is the boss’s son, the power dynamic suggests that aggression and cruelty are how employers relate to their workers, and workers—who are helpless and vulnerable like Lennie—cannot be blamed for acting out when frightened. On the other hand, Of Mice and Men argues that it is not a specific person who is to blame for Curley’s wife’s death, but the isolation and fear imposed by the harsh conditions of migrant working. And, indeed it suggests that Curley’s reaction to the loss of his wife is connected only to Lennie’s embarrassment of him. Lennie whispers I done a bad thing. Lennie’s character • Chapter 1- introduction- p18 and establishing relationship with George over the rest of the chapter • Chapter 2- p53-55- Lennie’s reaction to Curley’s Wife • Chapter 3- p90-94- the fight with Curley • Chapter 4- p104-105- Crooks provokes him • Chapter 5- p120-128- Lennie kills Curley’s Wife He is also afraid that George will not let him tend the rabbits due to him killing another small, soft animal. He talks to himself, asking the animal why it died: “You ain’t so little as mice. The weakest will not survive and that is also the fate of Lennie. 13. Later, Curley’s wife lets down her guard alone with Lennie in the barn, talking to him about her broken dreams, eventually trusting Lennie to touch her hair and dying tragically in her moment of vulnerability. Who is to blame for the death of Curley’s wife? George does not want Curley to shoot him. Slim: The jerkline skinner at the ranch, Slim is a seemingly ageless man who carries himself with great gravity. Join Yahoo Answers and get 100 points today. To the puppy’s death Lennie is mad and sad that puppy died and comes to the conclusion that he has to throw the pup away. There is an anxious atmosphere in this extract as a result of the death of Curley’s wife and Lennie’s reaction to this. Curley is mad at Lennie. I didn’t bounce you hard.” While the initial reaction to her death is a manhunt led by Curley, her death eventually leads to Lennie's death at the hands of George. Relevance. The bruises on Lennie's face. C Curley got his work ahead of him. Why or why not? Curley’s wife explains that she hates Curley because he “spends all his time sayin’ what he’s gonna do to guys he don’t like,” and her marital dissatisfaction manifests as flirtatiousness with the other men on the ranch. Lennie gets more and more confused as to what do to (thinking that between the puppy's death and his talking to Curley's wife, George is going to be furious.) George warns that “this Curley punk is gonna get hurt if he messes around with Lennie,” commenting on the disparity between Curley’s small frame and Lennie’s huge body. What happens in the end also refers back to what Candy said about his dog " I ought to have killed him myself". Immediately after he kills Curley’s wife, Lennie says “I don’t want ta hurt you,” making it clear that Lennie does not know he has killed her and therefore could not have intended to. Finally, he shakes her and her neck snaps. Cite and example of personification and explain the … I done another bad thing. In Chapter 2, Lennie sensed that the ranch is not a safe place for them. What about Curley? Following his comment, Curley's wife chatters on, explaining more about her lost chance to become an actress and how she met Curley. In this chapter, Lennie deals with the death of the puppy in the barn. Before curleys wife leave what does she notice about Lennie? 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