Of Mice and Men: Chapter 3, Pt. II

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Estimated reading time: 27 minutes for the text on this page.

Summary

In this segment, tension builds as the ranch workers discuss the arrival of Curley's new wife, who is causing a stir amongst them. Meanwhile, George and Lennie dream of owning their own piece of land, a vision they share with Candy, who wants to join them by contributing his savings. Curley's jealousy leads to a violent confrontation with Lennie, resulting in Curley's hand being crushed. To avoid trouble, Slim advises Curley to lie about the incident. The camaraderie amongst the men is evident, as well as their shared hopes and fears about the future.

Highlights

Curley's new wife is described as 'jailbait,' signaling trouble. 🚨
George, Lennie, and Candy discuss their dream of a small farm. 🏡
Lennie accidentally crushes Curley's hand in a fight. 🤕
Slim advises Curley to say his hand got caught in a machine to avoid trouble. 🤔
The camaraderie among the men is highlighted as they navigate ranch life. 💬

Key Takeaways

Curley's new wife is causing a stir on the ranch, sparking curiosity and potential trouble. 😲
George, Lennie, and Candy dream of owning a piece of land, representing their hope for freedom and stability. 🌱
Curley's jealousy leads to a physical confrontation, revealing the underlying tensions and volatility on the ranch. 🥊
Slim, a respected figure, helps manage the fallout after Lennie accidentally crushes Curley's hand. 🤝
The episode highlights the camaraderie among the men despite the tough environment they live in. 💪

Overview

The chapter unfolds with the workers on edge due to the arrival of Curley's new wife, whose flirtatious demeanor has everyone talking. George and Lennie remain focused on their dream of buying a piece of land, a plan they eagerly share with Candy, an older worker who offers to pitch in his savings, making the dream seem more attainable.

Tensions escalate when Curley, in his insecurity and jealousy, starts a fight with Lennie. In the heat of the moment, Lennie crushes Curley's hand, a situation that could spell trouble for the group if not handled delicately. Fortunately, Slim steps in to manage the situation, suggesting they cover it up to avoid further complications.

The camaraderie among the ranch workers is palpable, even in the face of adversity. Their collective hope for a better future and a sense of belonging, represented by their shared dream of a farm, provides a stark contrast to the harsh reality of their current lives. Each character's actions and dreams are intricately woven to reflect their desires and fears.

Chapters

00:00 - 23:30: Of Mice and Men: Chapter 3, Pt. II In this part of Chapter 3 of 'Of Mice and Men', George deals cards while conversing with Whit. They discuss the typical behaviors of ranch workers. Whit points out that George and others seem to come to the ranch just to work minimally before taking a break. He humorously notes that they arrived on a Friday, allowing them just two days of work before the Sunday break. Whit laughs, suggesting that a seasoned ranch worker would recognize this pattern – arriving late in the week to essentially benefit from a weekend stay, including meals.

Of Mice and Men: Chapter 3, Pt. II Transcription

00:00 - 00:30 george shuffled the cards noisily and dealt them with you a scoring board to him and set the pegs to start witt said i guess you guys really come here to work how do you mean your desk wit left well you come on a friday you got two days to work till sunday i don't see how you figure said george bit laughed again you do if you've been around these big ranches much guy that wants to look over a ranch comes in saturday afternoon he gets saturday night supper and three
00:30 - 01:00 meals on sunday and he can quit monday morning after breakfast without turning his hand but you come to work friday noon gotta put in a day and a half no matter how you figure george looked at him lovely we're gonna stick around a while he said me and lenny's gonna roll up steak the door opened quietly and the stable buck put in his head a lean negro head lined with pain the eyes patient mr slim slim took his eyes from old kfd
01:00 - 01:30 huh oh hello crook so what's the matter you told me to warm up tar for that mule's foot um i got it warm oh sure crooks i'll come right out and put it on i can do it if you want mr slim now i'll come do it myself he stood up crook said mr slim yeah that big new guy's messing around your pups out in the barn well he ain't doing no harm i i give him one of them pups just thought i'd tell you said crux taking them out's the nest and handling
01:30 - 02:00 them that won't do them no good well you won't hurt him said slim i'll come along with you now george looked up the crazy bastards pulling around two months just to kick him out slim slim followed the stable buck out of the room george delt and wit picked up his cards and examined them seen the new kid yet he asked what kid why curly's new wife yeah i've seen her well ain't she lulu i ain't seen that
02:00 - 02:30 much of her said george whit laid down his cards impressively well stick around and keep your eyes open you'll see plenty she ain't concealing nothing i've never seen nobody like her she got the agmo in all the time on everybody i bet she even gives a stable buck the eye i don't know what the hell she wants george asked casually been any trouble since she got here it was obvious that whit was not interested in his cards he laid his hand down and george scooped it in george laid out his deliberate solitaire
02:30 - 03:00 hand seven cards and six on top and five on top of those whit said i see what you mean but no there ain't been nothing yet curly's got yellow jackets in his drawers but that's all so far every time the guys is around she shows up she's looking for curly or she thought she left something laying around and she's looking for it seems like she can't keep away from guys curly's pants is just crawling with ants but they ain't nothing come of it yet george said she's gonna make a mess there's gonna be a bad mess about her
03:00 - 03:30 she's a jailbait all set on the trigger that currently got his work cut out for him ranch with a bunch of guys on it ain't no place for a girl especially like her whit said if you got ideas you ought to come in town with us to guys tomorrow night wow what's doing oh just the usual thing we go into old susie's place hell of a nice place old susie's a laugh always cracking jokes like she says when we come up on the front porch last saturday night susie opens the door and then she yells over her shoulder it votes on girls here
03:30 - 04:00 comes the sheriff she never talks dirty neither got five girls there what's it set you back george asked two and a half you can get a shot for two hits susie got nice chairs to set in too if i don't want to fly but he can just sit in the chairs and have a couple or three shots and pass the time of day and susie don't give a damn she ain't rushing guys through and kicking them out if they don't want to flop i might go in and look the joint over said george sure come along it's a hell of a lot of fun her cracking jokes all the time
04:00 - 04:30 like she says one time she says i've new people that if they got a rag rug on the floor and a cupie doll lamp on phonograph they think they're running a parlor house at clara's house she's talking about and susie says i know what you boys want she says my girls is clean she says and there ain't no water in my whiskey she says if any of you guys want to look at a cupie doll lamb but take your own chance getting burned then why you know where to go she says there's guys around here walking bull legged because they like to look at a cupie doll lamp george asked clara runs the other house
04:30 - 05:00 huh yeah said whit we don't ever go there clara gets three bucks cracking 35 cents a shot and she don't crack no jokes but susie's place is clean she got nice chairs don't let no goo goose in neither well me and lenny's rolling up a steak said george i might go in and sit and have a shot but i ain't putting out no two and a half well a guy gotta have fun sometimes said whit the door opened and letty and carlson came in together lenny crept to his bunk and sat down
05:00 - 05:30 trying not to attract attention carlson reached under his bunk and brought out his bag he didn't look at old candy who still faced the wall carlson found a little cleaning rod in the bag and a can of oil he laid them on his bed and then brought out the pistol took out the magazine and snapped the loaded shell from the chamber then he fell to cleaning the barrel with a little rod when the ejector snapped candy turned over and looked for a moment of the gun before he turned back to the wall again carlson said casually really been in yet
05:30 - 06:00 no said wid what's eating on curly carlson squinted down the barrel of his gun looking for his old lady i seen him going round and round outside whit said sarcastically he spends half his time looking for her and the rest of the time she's looking for him pearly burst into the room excitedly any of you guys seen my wife he demanded she ain't been here said whit really looked threateningly about the room where the hell slim went out in the barn
06:00 - 06:30 said george he was going to put some tar on a split hoof curly shoulders dropped and squared how long ago would he go five ten minutes curly jumped out the door and banged it after him wit stood up i guess maybe i'd like to see this he said curly's just spoiling her he wouldn't start for slim and curly's handy goddamn handy got in the finals for the golden gloves he got newspaper clippings about it he considered but just the same you better leave slim alone nobody don't know what slim can do
06:30 - 07:00 thinks slims with his wife don't he said george looks like it whit said of course slim ain't least i don't think slim is but i like to see the fuss if it comes off come on let's go george said i'm staying right here i don't want to get mixed up and nothing money and me gotta make steak carlson finished the cleaning of the gun and put it in the bag and pushed the bag under his bunk i guess i'll go out and look her over he said old candy lay still and lenny
07:00 - 07:30 from his bunk watched george cautiously when whit and carlson were gone and the door closed after them george turned to lenny what you got on your mind i ain't done nothing george slim says i better not pet them pups so much for a while some says it ain't good for them so i come right in i've been good george i could have told you that said george well i wasn't hurting him none i just had mine in my lap petting it george asked did you see slim mad in the barn sure he
07:30 - 08:00 did he told me i better not pet that pup no more did you see that girl you mean carly's girl yeah did she come in the barn no anyways i never seen her you never seen slim talking to her uh uh she ain't been in the barn okay said george i guess them guys ain't gonna see no fight if there's any fighting money you keep out of it i don't want no fights said lenny he got up from his bunk and sat down at the table across from george
08:00 - 08:30 almost automatically george shuffled the cards and laid out his solitary hand he used a deliberate thoughtful slowness lenny reached for a face card and studied it and turned it upside down and studied it both ends the same he said george why is both ends the same i don't know said george that's just the way they make them what was slim doing in the barn when you seen him slim sure you seen him in the barn and he told you not to pet the pup so much
08:30 - 09:00 oh yeah uh he had a can of tart a paint brush i don't know what for you sure that girl didn't come in like she come in here today nor she never come george side you give me a good whorehouse every time he said god can go in and get drunk and get everything out of his system all at once no messes and he knows how much it's going to set him back these here jailbaits has just said on the trigger of the who's gow lenny followed his words admiringly and moved to his lips a little to keep up
09:00 - 09:30 george continued you remember andy cushman lenny went to grammar school the one that his old lady used to make hot cakes for the kids lenny asked yeah that's the one you can remember anything there's anything to eat in it the word looked carefully at the solitaire hand he put an ace up on his scoring rack and piled two three and four of diamonds on it landy's in san quentin right now on count of tart said george lenny drummed on the table with his fingers george huh well george how long is it
09:30 - 10:00 going to be till we get that little place and live on the fat of the land and rabbits i don't know said george we gotta get a big steak together i know a little place we can get cheap but they ain't giving it away cold candy turned slowly over his eyes were wide open he watched george carefully lenny said oh tell about that place george i just told you last night go on till again george well it's 10
10:00 - 10:30 acres said george got a little windmill got a little shack on it a chicken run got a kitchen orchard cherries apples peaches pots nuts got a few berries there's a place for alfalfa plenty water to flood it there's a pig pen and rabbits george well no place for rabbits now but i could easily build a few hutches you could feed alfalfa to the rabbits damn right i could said buddy you goddamn right i could george's hand stopped working with the cards
10:30 - 11:00 his voice was growing warmer and we could have a few pigs i could build a smokehouse like the one grandpa had and when we kill a pig we can smoke the bacon and the hams and make sausage and all like that and when the salmon run upriver we could catch a hundred of them salt them down or smoke them we'd have them for breakfast nothing so nice as smoked salmon when fruit come in we can can it and tomatoes they're easy to can every sunday we'd kill a chicken or a rabbit maybe we'd have a cow or go to
11:00 - 11:30 the cream so goddamn thick you gotta cut it with a knife and take it out with a spoon lenny watched him with wide eyes and old candy watched him too lenny said softly he live off the fat of the land sure said george all kinds of vegetables in the garden if we want a little whiskey we can sell a few eggs or something or some milk we just live there we belong there there wouldn't be no more running around the country and getting fed by a japka no sir we'd have our own place where we belonged and not sleeping no
11:30 - 12:00 bunk house hell about the house george winnipeg sure we'd have a little house and a room to ourselves little fat iron stove and in the winter we'd keep a fire going in it i made enough land so we'd have to work too hard maybe six seven hours a day we wouldn't have to buck no partly eleven hours a day and when we put a crop why we'd be there to take the crop up we'd know what coming of our plan and rabbits lenny said eagerly and i take care of them tell how i do that george
12:00 - 12:30 sure well you'd go out in the alfalfa patch and you'd have a sack and you'd fill up the sack and bring it in and put it in the rabbit cages a nibble and they nibble said lighting the way they do i seen them every six weeks or so george continued them does would throw a litter so we'd have plenty rabbits to eat and to sell we'd keep a few pigeons to go flying around the windmill like they'd done when i was a kid he looked raptly at the wall over lenny's head and it'd be our own nobody could can us if we don't like a
12:30 - 13:00 guy we can say get the hell out by god he's got to do it and if a friend come along why we'd have an extra bunk and we'd say why don't you spend the night by god he would we'd have said her dog and a couple of striped cats but you got to watch out them cats don't get the little rabbits lenny breathed hard you just let them try and get the rabbits i'll break the goddamn necks i'll i'll smash him with a stick he subsided grumbling to himself threatening the future cats which might dare to disturb the future rabbits
13:00 - 13:30 george sat entranced with his own picture when candy spoke they both jumped as though they had been caught doing something reprehensible candy said you know where's the place like that george was on guard immediately suppose i do said what's that to you oh you don't need to tell me where it's at uh might be any place sure said george that's right you couldn't find it in a hundred years andy went on excitedly how much they want for a place like that
13:30 - 14:00 george watched him suspiciously well i could get it for 600 bucks the old people that owns it is flat bust and the old lady needs an operation say what's it to you you got nothing to do with us candy said i ain't much good with only one hand i lost my hand right here on this ranch that's why they give me a job swamping they give me 250 because i lost my hand i got more saved up right in the bank right now that's 300 and i got 50 more coming at the end of the month
14:00 - 14:30 tell you what he leaned forward eagerly suppose i went in with you guys that's 350 bucks i'd put in i ain't much good but i could cook and tend the chickens and hoe the garden some and how'd that be george half closed his eyes i gotta think about that and he was always gonna do it by ourselves kenny interrupted him i'll make a will and leave my share to you guys in case i kick off cause i ain't got no relatives or nothing you guys got any money maybe we could do it right now
14:30 - 15:00 george spat on the floor disgustedly i got 10 bucks between us then he said thoughtfully look uh if me and lenny work a month and don't spend nothing we'll have a hundred bucks that'd be 450. i bet we'd swing her for that then you and lenny could go get her started and i'd get a job and make up the rest you could sell eggs and stuff like that they fell into his silence they looked at one another amazed this thing they had never really believed in was coming true george said reverently jesus christ i
15:00 - 15:30 bet we can swing her his eyes were full of wonder a bit we could swing her he repeated softly andy sat on the edge of his bunk he scratched the stump of his wrist nervously i got hurt four years ago he said hand me pretty soon just as soon as i can't swamp out no bunk houses they'll put me on the county maybe if i give you guys my money you'll let me hoe in the garden even after i ain't no good at it and i'll wash dishes and little chicken stuff like that but
15:30 - 16:00 i'll be on our own place and i'll be let to work on our own place he said miserably you see what they done to my dog tonight he says he wasn't no good to himself nor nobody else when they can me here i wish somebody shoot me they won't do nothing like that i won't have no place to go and i can't get no more jobs i'll i'll have thirty dollars more coming time you guys is ready to quit george stood up we'll do her he said fix up that little old place and we'll
16:00 - 16:30 go live there he sat down again they all sat still all bemused by the beauty of the thing each mind was popped into the future when this lovely thing should come about george said wonderingly suppose there was a carnival or circus come to town or a ball game or any damn thing old candy nodded an appreciation of the idea we just go to her george said we wouldn't ask nobody if we could just say we'll go to her and we would just milk the cow and sling some grain to the chickens and go to her
16:30 - 17:00 and put some grass to the rabbits when he broke in i would never forget to feed them when we gonna do it george in one month ride squat in one month know what i'm gonna do i'm gonna write to them old people that owns the place that will take her and candy will send a hundred dollars to binder i sure will said candy they got a good stove there sure got a nice stove burns coal or wood i'm gonna take my pup said lenny i bet by christ he likes it there by jesus voices were approaching from outside
17:00 - 17:30 george said quickly tell nobody about it just this three and nobody else they're liable to can us so we can't make no stake just go on like we was gonna buck barley the rest of our lives then all of a sudden someday we'll get our pay and scram out of here lenny and candy nodded and they were grinning with delight oh hell nobody lenny said to himself and he said george huh i ought to have shot that dog myself
17:30 - 18:00 george i should not ought no let no stranger shoot my dog the door opened slam came in followed by curly and carlson and wit slim's hands were black with tar and he was scowling curly hung close to his elbow curly said well i didn't mean nothing slim i just asked you slim said well you've been asking me too often and i'm getting goddamn sick of it you can look after your own goddamn wife what you expect me to do about it you lay off of me i'm just trying to
18:00 - 18:30 tell you i didn't mean nothing said curly i just thought you might have saw her why don't you tell her to stay the hill home where she belongs at carlson you let her hang around bunk houses and pretty soon you're gonna have something on your hands and you won't be able to do nothing about it girly world on carlson you keep out of this unless you want to step outside carlson laughed you goddamn funk he said you tried to throw a scare into slim you couldn't make it stick slim throws scare into you your yell as a frog belly i don't care if you're the best welter
18:30 - 19:00 in the country you come from me and i'll kick your goddamn head off candy joined the attack with joy oh full of vaseline he said disgustedly curly glared at him his eyes slipped on past and lighted on lenny and lenny was still smiling with delight at the memory of the ranch burley stepped over to lenny like a terrier what the hell you laughing at lenny looked blankly at him huh then curly's rage exploded come on you big bastard get up on your feet no big son of a [ __ ] is gonna laugh at me i'll show you who's yelling
19:00 - 19:30 when he looked helplessly at george and then he got up and tried to retreat curly was balanced and poised he slashed at lenny with his left and then smashed down his nose with the right lenny gave a cry of terror blood welled up in his nose george he cried make him let me alone george he backed until he was against the wall and clearly followed slugging him in the face lenny's hands remained at his sides he was too frightened to defend himself george was on his feet going get him lenny don't let him do it
19:30 - 20:00 when he covered his face with this huge pause bleeded with terror he cried make him stop george then curly attacked his stomach and cut off his wind slim jumped up the dirty little rat he cried i'll get on myself george put out his hand and grabbed slim wait a minute he shouted he popped his hands around his mouth and yelled get him lenny when he took his hands away from his face and looked about for george and currently slashed at his eyes the big face was covered with blood george yelled again
20:00 - 20:30 i said get him girly's fist was swinging when lenny reached for it the next minute curly was flopping like a fish in a line and his closed fist was lost in lenny's big hand george ran down the room let go of him lenny let go the lenny watched in terror the flopping little man whom he held blood ran down lenny's face one of his eyes was cut and closed george slapped him in the face again and again and still lenny held on to the closed fist pearly was white and shrunken by now and his
20:30 - 21:00 struggling had become weak he stood crying his fist lost in lenny's paw george shouted over and over i go his hand money let go slim come help me with the guy got any come help me while the guy got any hand left suddenly lenny let go this hold his crouch cowering against the wall you told me to george you said miserably early sat down on the floor looking in wonder at his crushed hand slim and carlson bent over him then slim
21:00 - 21:30 straightened up and regarded lenny with horror we gotta get him to a doctor he said looks to me like every bone in his hand is bust i didn't want to when he cried i didn't want to hurt him slim said carlson you get the candy wagon hitched up and we'll take him into soledad and get him fixed up carlson hurried out slim turned to the whimpering lenny it ate your fault he said this puncture had it coming to him but jesus he ain't hardly got no hand left slim hurried out
21:30 - 22:00 and in a moment returned the tin cup of water he held it to curly's lips george said slim will we get canned now we need the steak will curly's old man candace now slim smiled riley you knelt down beside curly you've got your senses in hand enough to listen he asked curly knotted well then listen slim went on i think you've got your hand called in a machine if you don't tell nobody what happened we ain't going to will you just yell and try to get this
22:00 - 22:30 guy canned and we'll tell everybody and then we'll get you to laugh i won't tell said curly he avoided looking at lenny buggy wheels sounded outside slim helped curly up come on now carlson's going to take you to a doctor he helped curly out the door the sound of wheels drew away in a moment slim came back into the bunk house he looked at lenny still crouched fearfully against the wall let's see your hands he asked lenny
22:30 - 23:00 stuck out his hands i said almighty i hate to have you mad at me slim said george broke in lenny was just scared he explained he didn't know what to do i told you nobody ought never to fight him no i guess it was candy i told candy nodded solemnly that's just what she done he said right this morning when curly first lit into your friend you says he better not pull with lenny if he knows what's good for him that's just what she says to me george turned to lenny it ain't your fault he said you don't need to be scared no more you've done just what i told you to
23:00 - 23:30 maybe you better go in the washroom and clean up your face you look like hell lenny smiled with his bruised mouth i didn't want no trouble he said he walked toward the door but just before he came to it he turned back george what do you want i can still tend the rabbits george sure you ain't done nothing wrong i didn't mean no harm george well get the hell out and wash your face