Get special student pricing before you graduate. And fast, free shipping.
Of Mice and Men Prejudice Quotes Page 1
Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph) Though Steinbeck did not originally include chapter numbers with the text, most editions are broken into six sections, based on day and time of day: Thursday evening = Chapter 1; Friday day = Chapter 2; Friday evening = Chapter 3; Saturday night = Chapter 4; Sunday afternoon = Chapter 5; Sunday evening = Chapter 6.
| Quote #1 GEORGE "That ranch we’re goin’ to is right down there about a quarter mile. We’re gonna go in an’ see the boss. Now, look—I’ll give him the work tickets, but you ain’t gonna say a word. You jus’ stand there and don’t say nothing. If he finds out what a crazy bastard you are, we won’t get no job, but if he sees ya work before he hears ya talk, we’re set." (1.44) |
George is sure that if the boss realizes Lennie is mentally disabled, they’ll be discriminated against and not hired. To George, Lennie’s mental disability is something that isn’t really that important – as long as he plays it down to others, it shouldn’t hinder them too much.
| Quote #2 George patted a wrinkle out of his bed, and sat down. "[The boss gave] the stable buck hell?" he asked. |
This is an interesting insight into how race is treated on the ranch. The old man showing George and Lennie around takes it for granted that the stable buck should be treated badly because he’s black, but the old man is also full of compliments for the man. He’s a class apart because he’s black, but he also reads, which seems to distinguish him in a positive sense from his fellow ranchers. It seems to suggest that, at least on the ranch, the stable buck’s race is a separate issue (though still a big one) from his actual character.
| Quote #3 OLD MAN [CANDY] "Yes sir. Jesus, we had fun. They let the nigger come in that night. Little skinner name of Smitty took after the nigger. Done pretty good, too. The guys wouldn’t let him use his feet, so the nigger got him. If he coulda used his feet, Smitty says he woulda killed the nigger. The guys said on account of the nigger’s got a crooked back, Smitty can’t use his feet." He paused in relish of the memory. (2.22) |
Candy is recounting a Christmas night where the boss brought in a gallon of whiskey to the bunkhouse. The black stable buck was let into the festivities, but it seems he was still the center of some degradation, getting dragged into a fighting match with one of the ranch men. There’s a strange code that seems to exist around the ranch’s prejudice. We see an odd give-and-take that seems to exist as the men realize, despite their prejudice, that this man is very much a real person.
