1. Of Mice and Men
Crooks

2. Aim: To analyse and understand Crooks’ isolation and loneliness.
Presentation of character:
Appearance;
Behaviour;
Possessions;
Speech/Language use;
Relationship with others;
Setting (Stable & isolation from bunkhouse).

3. How were black people treated in 1930s America?

7. Description of Crooks’ Character:
Crooks is a lively, sharp-witted, black stable-hand, who takes his name from his crooked back. Like most of the characters in the story, he admits that he is extremely lonely. When Lennie visits him in his room, his reaction reveals this fact. At first, he turns Lennie away, hoping to prove a point that if he, as a black man, is not allowed in white men’s houses, then whites are not allowed in his, but his desire for company ultimately wins out and he invites Lennie to sit with him. Like Curley’s wife, Crooks is a disempowered character who turns his vulnerability into a weapon to attack those who are even weaker. He plays a cruel game with Lennie, suggesting to him that George is gone for good. Only when Lennie threatens him with physical violence does he relent. Crooks exhibits the corrosive effects that loneliness can have on a person; his character evokes sympathy as the origins of his cruel behavior are made evident. Perhaps what Crooks wants more than anything else is a sense of belonging—to enjoy simple pleasures such as the right to enter the bunkhouse or to play cards with the other men. This desire would explain why, even though he has reason to doubt George and Lennie’s talk about the farm that they want to own, Crooks cannot help but ask if there might be room for him to come along and hoe in the garden.

8. Question to discuss: Is Crooks lucky to have his very own living quarters?
“Crooks, the negro stable buck, had his bunk in the harness room; a little shed that leaned off the wall of the barn. “ p 98

9. Chapter 4: Guiding Questions
How is Crooks treated by the other migrant workers?
What evidence is there to show that Crooks is segregated (treated differently/separated) from the other migrant workers?
How is Crooks different from the stereotype of the black man in 1930s America? P98-99.
Why do you think Lennie, Curley’s wife and Candy are the ones that talk to Crooks in this chapter?

10. Key Quotes “where the hell is that god damn nigger”
“you got no right to come in my room”
“A guy needs somebody-to be near him.:”
“ A guy goes nuts if he ain't got nobody.”
“ Don't make no difference who the guy is, long's he's with you.”
“ Maybe you guys better go. I ain't sure I want you in here no more.”
“ A colored man got to have some rights even if he don't like 'em"
“ ‘ Well you keep your place then, nigger. I could get you strung up on a tree so easy it ain’t even funny.” (Curley wife to Crooks- shows attitude of society to blacks, threat black community faced)
'Long as you won't get out and leave me alone, you might as well set down.“

11. Crooks Key Points to Discuss:
Racism in 1930s America;
Crooks position on the ranch;
Physical and social weaknesses;
Crooks lack of identity/no name/the way others refer to him;
Crooks living conditions;
Crooks possessions (chapter 4);
Crooks relationship with the other migrant workers.