Character Analysis: Candy When you break up, your whole identity is shattered. It's like death.

Dennis Quaid When people have dreams they latch on to, and it shatters, due to hardships from the past and present, they tend to break up, even if they knew it was coming. This, in general, is the reality of life. Not all lives have happy endings, as not all dreams are fulfilled. Big losses are common, and people discriminate you if you are different. In other words, people unintentionally segregate others if they are considered different from the mob. In John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men, many themes related to life are represented, some of the strongest being shown in Candys character. Candy, an individual who is trying to find his place in the world because of how others treat him, represents the theme of how loss and the reality of life are entwined. Candy is introduced as a tall, stoop shouldered old man who has a round sticklike wrist, but no hand (20). John Steinbeck himself calls Candy the old swamper (20). His physical disability, along with his age and isolation from the rest of the ranch members, account for his desperation to find a place in the world for himself before its too late. This is one of the reasons why Candy needed a dream to keep him going. Having dreams sometimes have consequences. Candys dreams of a better life lead him to be very dependent on others and decrease his self-confidence. These qualities are also based on the amount of prejudice done against Candy. Instead of speaking up for himself, he learned to live with criticism, creating a false impression that he was coping with his rather harsh life. Instead, on the inside, he was on the verge of losing all hope. To help the readers understand Candys feelings, Steinbeck introduces Candys dog. Candys dog, portrayed as having pale, blind old eyes and being dragfooted

(26), has a direct correlation to Candys physical being. The disabilities in both man and animal lead to their closeness. Candy loves his dog as he had [the dog] since [the dog] was a pup (44), and was deeply hurt when his dog was shot. This loss contributes to Candys thoughts about the future of his life. Due to the fact that his dog was murdered just because of its smell and old age, Candys doubts about his own life strengthen. He believes that once a person become useless, nobody will even bother to care for them. Before Candys dog was killed, Slim had said that I wisht somebodyd shoot me if I got old an cripple (45). Candy is old and crippled, and because of this, he worried that his dogs fate would eventually match his own. Once he was unable to perform the mundane jobs given to him, he knew he would be kicked out of the ranch. And he hated that. While talking to George, Candy mentions his fears by comparing himself to his dog, saying that You see what they done to my dog tonight? They say he wasnt no good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here, I wisht somebodyd shoot me (60). Candy already knew that [He] aint much good with ony one hand (59). This shows that he thinks of himself as an unstable person. His hand, which he lost on the ranch (59) shows that he wanted to begin his life anew because of the bad things that have happened to him on the ranch and have rendered him useless. This in itself is part of the reality of life theme. People tend to discard others when they are no longer needed. They play upon each other for their own purposes. Due to the Candys fear of getting fired, he immediately offered to give Lenny and George the money needed for them to buy their own land. In return, he just wanted to [go] in with [Lennie and George] (59) and do simple chores on that land for no pay.

In other words, not only was he trying to become dependent on others for his own wellbeing, but he turned Lennie and Georges dream into a future reality, or the thing they had never fty believed in (60) into something that could be achieved in a few months time. Or so he believed. When Lennie was killed, Candy panics, thinking that the dream that he thought they would easily accomplish and would end his life sufferings, was about to be broken, which would mean he would have to continue to livewith the hardships of his real life. In a moment of panic he pours his emotion out to George, saying that You an me can get that little place, cant we George? You an me can go there an live nice, cant we George? Cant we? (94). Later, after George declines because of his own loss, Candy, almost in desperation says Then its all off? (94). This loss directly relates to the reality of life theme. Dreams can be easily broken, even when theyre just about to come true, and when they are, the reaction is hopelessness. To some readers, it may seem as if Candy is a weakling. In other words, he might act as someone who is always dependent on others. However, his dependency is brought about by the way others treat him. He is treated as the old man who is about to be sacked. This realization is strengthened by his dogs death. As a result, he doesnt believe in himself and tries to find ways to rely on others so that his life can become more meaningful. So, of course, as any other person would do, Candy creates dreams for himself and starts believing them. And once it was broken Candy finds himself in a hole of self-pity. Along with the loss of his dog and his dream, Candy comes, once again, face to face with the bitter reality of his own life, showing him and the reader that life never goes the way you want it to.