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The only female character in the story, Curley’s wife is never given a name and is only mentioned in reference to her husband. The men on the farm refer to her as a “tramp,” a “tart,” and a “looloo.”
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- Of Mice and Men
Although Steinbeck’s insistent repetition of these...
- Section 1
A summary of Section 1 in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and...
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John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. New York: Chelsea House...
- Analysis of Major Characters
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Of Mice and Men belongs to the social realism genre because...
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Take a study break. A summary of Section 3 in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. Learn exactly what happened in this chapter, scene, or section of Of Mice and Men and what it means. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans.
Curley's wife, like the other players in the drama, is simply a character type and the only woman in the plot. She is defined by her role: Curley's wife or possession. George and Candy call her by other names such as "jailbait" or "tart." She wears too much makeup and dresses like a "whore" with red fingernails and red shoes with ostrich feathers.
Aside from wearisome wives, Of Mice and Men offers limited, rather misogynistic, descriptions of women who are either dead maternal figures or prostitutes. Despite Steinbeck’s rendering, Curley's wife emerges as a relatively complex and interesting character.
Get everything you need to know about Curley’s Wife in Of Mice and Men. Analysis, related quotes, timeline.
The only good women, George suggests (61), are those whose sexual motives one knows - either because they are totally desexualized, like Lennie's Aunt Clara, or completely sexualized, like the whores at Susy's and Clara's.
How does Steinbeck explore attitudes toward women in Of Mice and Men? There are three females depicted in the text; two of them are characters and one is just mentioned.
