Lisa Tran

Jimenez
CP English 1
08 November, 2013

The Dominant

Bullying comes in many forms, from physical bullying to cyberbullying. The

award-winning novel, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck portrays the predatory nature of the

world. People bully others because they are insecure and their hurtful actions make them feel

powerful. Bullies prey on those who they think are weak in physical appearance, easily intimate,

and discriminated against.

The spectacular novel, Of Mice and Men, depicts those who are strong will attack the

weak, but the weak will attack the weaker. For example, Curley attacks Lennie because he is

envious of Lennies strength and believes it will make up for his shortness. He picks a fight with

the strongest man in the bunkhouse to prove that he is not a yella as a frog belly. Withal,

Candys dog represents the fate awaiting for those who are weak and unavailing. You seen

what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasn't no good to himself nor nobody else.

When they can me here I wisht somebody'd shoot me. But they won't do nothing like that,

quoted Candy. This exemplifies that Candy realizes he is weak and has no more power than his

dog. Candy fears that when he is no longer useful at the ranch, he is no longer welcome. People

who are mentally or physically disabled are either forgotten about or punished by society. Like

the characters in the novel, the strong will dispose or attack the weak.

Steinbeck illustrates that rather than forming an alliance, the weak retaliate against one

another. For instance, Crooks is a disempowered character who turns his vulnerability into a
weapon to attack Lennie. Just like heaven. Everbody wants a little piece of lan... Nobody

never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land, quoted Crooks. He denies Lennies aspiration

for the farm and criticizes his dependence on George. In the novel, it is ironic how Curleys wife

refers Candy, Lennie, and Crooks the weak ones because she is included in the group. She

confess her unhappy marriage and isolation yet seek to destroy those who are even weaker. I

could get you strung up a tree so easily it aint even funny, quoted the wife threatening Crooks.

This demonstrates how the weak ones are ostracized and abuse their power by attacking those

who are incapacitated. Like the wife, bullies attract the attention of others in a negative manner.

In retaliation many bullies hurt others because of what theyve been through.

People can inflict pain unintentionally. Like Lennie, who is unaware of his strengths, kills

the puppy. "Why do you got to get killed? You ain't so little as mice. I didn't bounce you hard,"

quoted Lennie. George explains that he does many bad things but never act out of

meanness, only out his inability to understand the world or control himself. Moreover, Curley's

wife finds Lennie in the barn and tries to start a conversation with him. She invites Lennie to feel

how soft her hair is and jerks telling Lennie not to mess it up. Lennie panics, not wanting George

to hear her scream, grabs and shakes her violently. He grows angry and accidentally breaks her

neck. The climax of the novel proves that people can inflict pain unintentionally. People with

mental disabilities can not understand the frailty of others. In times of panic and confusion,

people act before they think. When you fail to think before you act, it leads to consequences.

John Steinbecks award-winning novel, Of Mice and Men, conveys the predatory nature

of the world. The strong will prey on the weak. Curley attacks Lennie because he conjectured

that Lennie was laughing at him. Many of the characters, admit to having a profound sense of
isolation and loneliness, yet instead of making amends seek to destroy others. Lennie

unintentionally kills the puppy and Curleys wife. He does not have the fundamental inability to

understand the weakness of others. Today, the predatory nature of the world includes bullying

and it is atrocity.