Curley's Wife and Crook's Loneliness

In part four, we get to know Crooks, an African American stable buck. Back in the 1930's, many people believed in Jim Crow Laws, which were laws that segregated African Americans from Whites. Crooks has to live in a little stable room all by himself because back then it was unheard of that black people would sleep with whites. Most people would probably say that he is lucky because he gets a whole room to himself, but I don't think they realize how lonely it is. When Crooks talks to Lennie he says "S'pose you couldn't go into the bunkhouse and play rummy 'cause you was black... A guy needs somebody--to be near him" (72). Crooks has no one to talk to or hang out with. His situation is almost the same as Curley's Wife's except for the reasons they are isolated. Curley's Wife is a woman. Women were not very respected in the 1930's and were thought of as lesser than men. Curley's Wife doesn't even have a name for pete's sake! Back then, women were expected to keep to the house and do the chores. Curley's Wife is the only woman on the ranch, so while the men go to work, she is left alone in the house. She wants to talk to the workers but either her husbands beats them up because he gets jealous, or she gets them angry because she flirts with them. When she goes to Crook's quarters and talks to the boys, Crooks says, "Maybe you better go along to your own house now. We don't want no trouble" (77). They are all worried and angry at her because she is sweet-talking them and Curley could hear and get mad. But Curley's Wife does not want to go back to her house. She replies to Crooks's statement and says, "Think I don't like to talk to somebody ever' once in a while? Think I like to stick in that house alla time?" (77). This shows how both Crooks and Curley's Wife are figuratively shackled 😉 by segregation and are tired of being stuck all alone in their houses.