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Characters
| “ | I was a bindlestiff myself for quite a spell. I worked in the same country that the story is laid in. The characters are composites to a certain extent. Lennie was a real person. He's in an insane asylum in California right now. I worked alongside him for many weeks. He didn't kill a girl. He killed a ranch foreman. Got sore because the boss had fired his pal and stuck a pitchfork right through his stomach. I hate to tell you how many times I saw him do it. We couldn't stop him until it was too late. | ” |
—John Steinbeck, interview by The New York Times, 1937[1][2] | ||
- George Milton: A quick-witted man who is friends with Lennie. He looks after Lennie and dreams of a better life.
- Lennie Small: A mentally disabled, but strong man who travels with George.[2] He dreams of "living off the fatta' the lan'" and being able to tend to rabbits.
- Candy: A ranch worker (described as a "swamper") who lost a hand in an accident and is near the end of his useful life on the ranch. He wishes to join Lennie and George in their "dream" of a homestead.
- Candy's dog: is described as "old" and "crippled", and is killed by Carlson. The death of Candy's dog foreshadows Lennie's fate.
- Curley: The boss' son, a young, pugnacious character, once a semi-professional boxer. He is described by others, with some irony, as "handy". He is very jealous and protective of his wife and immediately develops a dislike toward Lennie.
- Curley's wife: A young, pretty woman, who is mistrusted by her husband, Curley. The other characters refer to her only as "Curley's wife," which makes her the only significant character in the novella without a name. This lack of personal definition underscores this character's purpose in the story: Steinbeck explained that she is "not a person, she's a symbol. She has no function, except to be a foil – and a danger to Lennie."[2]
- Slim: A "jerkline skinner," the main driver of a mule team. Slim is greatly respected by many of the characters and is the only character that Curley treats with respect.
- Crooks: The only black ranch-hand. Like Candy, he is crippled. His nickname refers to a crooked back resulting from being kicked by a horse. He sleeps segregated from the other workers and is embittered from discrimination. He is frequently seen rubbing liniment into his spine.
- Carlson: A "thick bodied" ranch-hand, he kills Candy's dog with little sympathy.
- Whit: A ranch-hand.
- The Boss: Curley's father, the owner of the ranch.
- Aunt Clara: Lennie's Aunt, only mentioned in references to the past.
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