Of Mice and Men Steaminess Rating

PG

Of Mice and Men presents a frightening picture of sexuality, and one in direct contrast to the modern notions of love. The characters in the novella have attitudes toward sex that are much closer to those of animals than those of thinking and caring individuals. The men on the ranch need female companionship, but are forced to get it in the form of weekly visits to a whorehouse, rather than from girlfriends or wives.

Whether this is a complete social necessity (because these men are essentially living in isolation) or whether it is a deliberate choice is difficult to gauge. George says that he prefers whorehouses to women like Curley’s wife because with a whorehouse you know what you are getting up front and exactly how much it will cost you. So for George, at least, sexuality is not a form of companionship; it’s a business transaction. Whit ranks the two local whorehouses based on their cleanliness and cheapness – two very practical and non-romantic considerations. Sex on the ranch is perfunctory and necessary, much like it is for dogs and other animals. It is probably no accident that Slim’s "bitch" has just given birth, and that Slim has no idea which of many dogs is the puppies’ father.

Curley’s wife is portrayed as the most dangerous person on the ranch. The only names she has are ones that refer to her sexuality in a decidedly unflattering way. She is the recipient of this name-calling merely because she gives the men on the ranch "the eye." The men are apparently attracted to and repelled by her in equal measure. This notion of sex as deadly is an old idea, and one that makes sense here considering the possible repercussions of having sex with either Curley’s wife (blackmail, jail time, death), or with a prostitute (disease, loss of money).

Curley’s wife is also seen as threatening in her supposedly insatiable appetite for sex, as represented by Curley’s glove wearing and by her own flirtatious attitude. Women and sex are seen as the causes of fighting, violence, disease, and loss of that most valuable and scarce commodity: money.

Lennie’s interaction with Curley’s wife takes place because he is ignorant of the threat she presents. He thinks it is safe to pet her hair, but though this gesture is not literally sexual, it is as close as Lennie gets to any woman – and it results in both of their deaths. The "sex equals death" equation is as old as the Garden of Eden, and it has nearly as many repercussions here.