A Short Essay on John Stienbeck's "Of Mice And Men" -- Is Crooks a Survior?

"A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody." (pg.72) In John Stienback's Of Mice And Men, Crooks was able to live a life filled with loneliness and persecution. He was shoved aside on the farm, ignored and alone. He endured the persecution against him because he was an African-American. Because Crooks existed in conditions that could drive one insane, he is a survivor. Crooks did not live in the bunkhouse with the other men, …

…as inferiors by the whites. "You keep your place then, Nigger." (pg.81) Curley's wife says to him, which showed that he was expected to be respectful toward her simply because she was white. Because Crooks tolerated the unfair persecution against him, he is a survivor. Crooks lived a life of loneliness and unjust racism, but he never allowed these things to crush him. He stood through both, and for this he is a true survivor. ¤