Of Mice and Men is a short story written by John Steinbeck in the 1930s. It has many important themes that emerge throughout the book. A separate theme is loneliness. John Steinbeck uses many conventions to convey this theme to the reader, including characterization, context, foreshadowing, and resolution. Through the use of these conventions, readers have developed attitudes and opinions that change with modern society and the reader's context. The theme of loneliness is best represented through characterization and is evident in almost every character in the novel. The darkest examples are Crooks and Curley's wife. Cooks is forced to live in solitude because of the color of his skin and, being the only black man nearby, he has no company. He is not allowed into the bunkhouse and the other ranch hands are unwilling to associate with him, forcing him to spend his time alone. Crooks' only chance is to communicate with the other men during the day while they work, but because of his deformed back, he is confined to the stable all day, instead of cutting wheat with the other men . He fights his loneliness by consuming himself in books and work, but even he knows they are no substitute for human companionship. Scammers makes this clear through his dialogue during his conversation with Lennie. “Suppose you had no one. Suppose you can't go into the dorm and play rummy because you're black. How do you find that? Suppose you have to sit here and read books. . . Books are useless. A man needs someone – to be near him. » This quote proves that scammers are aware that his books are no substitute for human companionship. Curley's wife is an extremely sad example of loneliness characterized in the novel. T...... middle of paper ... however, as he shoots Lennie in the resolution, this could be interpreted as George deliberately exposing his solitary plan and choosing to be alone. The arrangement of Georges' solitary hand foreshadows his decision to travel and work alone. A reader in 2014 is able to feel sympathy for the characters. We can all relate to this theme, as loneliness is something everyone will experience at some point in their lives. However, readers' reaction might be different if they lived in a different time and place. A reader in the 1930s might pity these men, but generally accept their loneliness as a normal part of migrant workers' lives, whereas a reader today might feel terrible empathy for them, because the conditions work and life are different in modern society, and we are not used to loneliness being a part of daily life.