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Of Mice and Men - Carlson

If Carlson came up on the exam on Monday as the character to analyse, what would you put?

So far all I can come up with is that he shows a lack of empathy when he shoots Candy's dog, and something about the social hierarchy because he is considered higher than Candy.

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Reply 1
Original post by CaptErin
If Carlson came up on the exam on Monday as the character to analyse, what would you put?

So far all I can come up with is that he shows a lack of empathy when he shoots Candy's dog, and something about the social hierarchy because he is considered higher than Candy.




I personally find Carlson a very hard character to write about as there isn't much to say, but apart from what you have already pointed out I would just say that:
-He foreshadows tha fate of Lennie
- George realises that it was a necessary evil, and persuades him to kill Lennie himself
- Then really I would just analyse his introduction and physical attributes

I know it's not much but I hope it helps.


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Reply 2
Original post by Hannxhq
I personally find Carlson a very hard character to write about as there isn't much to say, but apart from what you have already pointed out I would just say that:
-He foreshadows tha fate of Lennie
- George realises that it was a necessary evil, and persuades him to kill Lennie himself
- Then really I would just analyse his introduction and physical attributes

I know it's not much but I hope it helps.


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Thank you! That's really helpful :smile:
I'd completely forgotten about the foreshadowing with Candy's dog. Fingers crossed Carlson doesn't come up all the same, haha!
Reply 3
I dont think he'll come up theres legit nothing to write about him


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Original post by ksj.11
I dont think he'll come up theres legit nothing to write about him


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True, but they might decide to be really mean. :frown:
Reply 5
This quote is brilliant: 'Curley and Carlson looked after them. And Carlson said, "Now whatthe hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?"'. This is the final line said before the end of the book, if it does come up you could say that he didn't understand the connection between George and Lennie.
I don't think Carlson would come up.
But if you did, you could write he is a character who lacks empathy when he shoots the dog. He likes to be higher than the other characters, and intimidates those lower characters. He foreshadows Lennie's death.
Original post by CaptErin
If Carlson came up on the exam on Monday as the character to analyse, what would you put?

So far all I can come up with is that he shows a lack of empathy when he shoots Candy's dog, and something about the social hierarchy because he is considered higher than Candy.


I'd say that he represents the average 1930's American worker. “Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin’ them two guys?” is said by Carlson after George has killed Lennie and shows how Carlson finds it hard to understand that those two men were really friends. This is because in the 1930's close male friendship (like between George and Lennie) wasn't very common.
Carlson is used by Steinbeck to represent the stereotypical 1930s American; he's brutal and mean and shows no respect for sentiment.

Carlson is the character who suggests shooting Candy's dog and the one who, after seeking and securing Slim's permission, shoots the dog.

Carlson is a very minor character so he has no significance again until the final chapters; Carlson delivers the final, rhetorical line, "Now what the hell do you suppose is eatin' them two guys?", alongside another equally brutal character - Curley.

Steinbeck mostly uses Carlson to highlight the brutalities of ranch work. He also uses him to foreshadow the death of Lennie through the killing of Candy's dog, and it can be inferred that the process Carlson verbally goes through when reasoning the killing of Candy's dog is partially responsible for George ultimately deciding to shoot Lennie as he recognises it is the most loving thing to do.

I don't think it's likely Carlson will come up because there's so little to be said for his character, but if he does I'd comment on the significance of the final line, the way he represents brutality, and his impact on George through the killing of Candy's dog.
I did Of Mice and Men Last year, did pretty good I think since I got a good grade. I don't think Carlson would come up.
he epitomises the typical itinerant worker of the era
he shows no interest in the American dream perhaps due to his cynical attributes or maybe he has already achieved his dream , or even been unsuccessful as a result you could use this as an argument to explain different attributes of his persona , such as his lack of sympathy, when killing Candys dog etc..
Original post by AxSirlotl
I'd say that he represents the average 1930's American worker. “Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin’ them two guys?” is said by Carlson after George has killed Lennie and shows how Carlson finds it hard to understand that those two men were really friends. This is because in the 1930's close male friendship (like between George and Lennie) wasn't very common.


Could you then suggest that as Carlson has a significantly smaller role in the novella, he is representative of how the working class were kept grounded in 1930's America and were not very significant to society as individuals or a whole. His lack of empathy and cold heartedness could be supportive of how workers have been integrated into the cycle of depression and Carlson has adapted to it by becoming closed off. This could refer to people becoming detached and indifferent in order to make sure they survived in this cruel society unlike Lennie whose innocence and naivety led to his death.


^^^^^ I have no idea what nonsense I wrote above :frown::colonhash:
You could mention how he embodies masculinity - 'Carlson's luger' becomes a symbol of male violence and is used to kill both Candy's dog in Chapter 3, and of course Lennie in Chapter 6.

You could also link Carlson's lack of sentimentality to his survival in the conclusion of the novel. Characters who dare to dream of a better future, like Lennie, Candy, George and Curley's wife, end up either dead or brokenhearted by the end of chapter 6, while those who lack emotional depth and the ability to dream, like Carlson, escape the tragedy relatively unscathed. Overall, perhaps Steinbeck uses Carlson to suggest that in the novel's bleak 1930s setting you have to be ruthless and emotionless in order to survive.
Original post by Banana00
True, but they might decide to be really mean. :frown:

But then with Edxecel you get two questions to choose from
Original post by sophie-xx
You could mention how he embodies masculinity - 'Carlson's luger' becomes a symbol of male violence and is used to kill both Candy's dog in Chapter 3, and of course Lennie in Chapter 6.

You could also link Carlson's lack of sentimentality to his survival in the conclusion of the novel. Characters who dare to dream of a better future, like Lennie, Candy, George and Curley's wife, end up either dead or brokenhearted by the end of chapter 6, while those who lack emotional depth and the ability to dream, like Carlson, escape the tragedy relatively unscathed. Overall, perhaps Steinbeck uses Carlson to suggest that in the novel's bleak 1930s setting you have to be ruthless and emotionless in order to survive.


Original post by MeerabBieber
Could you then suggest that as Carlson has a significantly smaller role in the novella, he is representative of how the working class were kept grounded in 1930's America and were not very significant to society as individuals or a whole. His lack of empathy and cold heartedness could be supportive of how workers have been integrated into the cycle of depression and Carlson has adapted to it by becoming closed off. This could refer to people becoming detached and indifferent in order to make sure they survived in this cruel society unlike Lennie whose innocence and naivety led to his death.


^^^^^ I have no idea what nonsense I wrote above :frown::colonhash:


Original post by SabithaK
I did Of Mice and Men Last year, did pretty good I think since I got a good grade. I don't think Carlson would come up.


Original post by salty670
he epitomises the typical itinerant worker of the era
he shows no interest in the American dream perhaps due to his cynical attributes or maybe he has already achieved his dream , or even been unsuccessful as a result you could use this as an argument to explain different attributes of his persona , such as his lack of sympathy, when killing Candys dog etc..


Original post by Emily_Lynch
Carlson is used by Steinbeck to represent the stereotypical 1930s American; he's brutal and mean and shows no respect for sentiment.

Carlson is the character who suggests shooting Candy's dog and the one who, after seeking and securing Slim's permission, shoots the dog.

Carlson is a very minor character so he has no significance again until the final chapters; Carlson delivers the final, rhetorical line, "Now what the hell do you suppose is eatin' them two guys?", alongside another equally brutal character - Curley.

Steinbeck mostly uses Carlson to highlight the brutalities of ranch work. He also uses him to foreshadow the death of Lennie through the killing of Candy's dog, and it can be inferred that the process Carlson verbally goes through when reasoning the killing of Candy's dog is partially responsible for George ultimately deciding to shoot Lennie as he recognises it is the most loving thing to do.

I don't think it's likely Carlson will come up because there's so little to be said for his character, but if he does I'd comment on the significance of the final line, the way he represents brutality, and his impact on George through the killing of Candy's dog.


Original post by AxSirlotl
I'd say that he represents the average 1930's American worker. “Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin’ them two guys?” is said by Carlson after George has killed Lennie and shows how Carlson finds it hard to understand that those two men were really friends. This is because in the 1930's close male friendship (like between George and Lennie) wasn't very common.


Original post by SabithaK
I don't think Carlson would come up.
But if you did, you could write he is a character who lacks empathy when he shoots the dog. He likes to be higher than the other characters, and intimidates those lower characters. He foreshadows Lennie's death.


Original post by SamSp123
This quote is brilliant: 'Curley and Carlson looked after them. And Carlson said, "Now whatthe hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?"'. This is the final line said before the end of the book, if it does come up you could say that he didn't understand the connection between George and Lennie.


Original post by Banana00
True, but they might decide to be really mean. :frown:


Original post by ksj.11
I dont think he'll come up theres legit nothing to write about him


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Original post by CaptErin
Thank you! That's really helpful :smile:
I'd completely forgotten about the foreshadowing with Candy's dog. Fingers crossed Carlson doesn't come up all the same, haha!


Original post by Hannxhq
I personally find Carlson a very hard character to write about as there isn't much to say, but apart from what you have already pointed out I would just say that:
-He foreshadows tha fate of Lennie
- George realises that it was a necessary evil, and persuades him to kill Lennie himself
- Then really I would just analyse his introduction and physical attributes

I know it's not much but I hope it helps.


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Original post by CaptErin
If Carlson came up on the exam on Monday as the character to analyse, what would you put?

So far all I can come up with is that he shows a lack of empathy when he shoots Candy's dog, and something about the social hierarchy because he is considered higher than Candy.


Is this for Edexcel? I'm trying to come up with some points for every character to cover my back for the exam, but I'm really worried Edexcel may throw in some random character (Carlson or Aunt Clara for instance lol) or something :s-smilie: What character is likely to come up?
Original post by romansholiday
Is this for Edexcel? I'm trying to come up with some points for every character to cover my back for the exam, but I'm really worried Edexcel may throw in some random character (Carlson or Aunt Clara for instance lol) or something :s-smilie: What character is likely to come up?

carlson, candy or curley
This isn't for Carlson, but if Crooks comes up you could say that he is almost self aware - He knows that their dreams are going to fail.
Reply 17
Original post by romansholiday
Is this for Edexcel? I'm trying to come up with some points for every character to cover my back for the exam, but I'm really worried Edexcel may throw in some random character (Carlson or Aunt Clara for instance lol) or something :s-smilie: What character is likely to come up?


I started it for AQA but I guess the facts apply to the character regardless of the exam board :smile:
Original post by CaptErin
If Carlson came up on the exam on Monday as the character to analyse, what would you put?

So far all I can come up with is that he shows a lack of empathy when he shoots Candy's dog, and something about the social hierarchy because he is considered higher than Candy.

I have the Of Mice and Men Text Guide by CGP (which btw is brilliant) so I'll just use the stuff from there.
Ok so you can write about ...
- His aggression when Curley gets laughed at by the other guys (page 70) "You come for me, an' I'll kick your God damn head off" He's quick to pick a fight with Curley. He calls him a "God damn punk" and "yella as a frog belly?"
- He's insensitive/thoughtless "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" (page 121, last page in the book) He doesn't understand why George and Slim are upset at the end of the novel. He sees Lennie's death as practical and he doesn't show any emotions about it.

By the way, are you doing Edexcel or AQA? I'm doing Edexcel so I don't know if the work I'm doing will be a lot different to yours?
Anyway, good luck in your exam, and remember don't panic if you don't know how to answer a question! Just relax, take a deep breath and go through all the quotes, themes, events and characters and try to link certain keywords together. And try to revise English lit as much as you can between today and Monday! The exams will be ending in 5 weeks or so but your future is just beginning (sounds cheesy I know, but yeah) :smile:
Reply 19
Original post by dangerouswoman
I have the Of Mice and Men Text Guide by CGP (which btw is brilliant) so I'll just use the stuff from there.
Ok so you can write about ...
- His aggression when Curley gets laughed at by the other guys (page 70) "You come for me, an' I'll kick your God damn head off" He's quick to pick a fight with Curley. He calls him a "God damn punk" and "yella as a frog belly?"
- He's insensitive/thoughtless "Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?" (page 121, last page in the book) He doesn't understand why George and Slim are upset at the end of the novel. He sees Lennie's death as practical and he doesn't show any emotions about it.

By the way, are you doing Edexcel or AQA? I'm doing Edexcel so I don't know if the work I'm doing will be a lot different to yours?
Anyway, good luck in your exam, and remember don't panic if you don't know how to answer a question! Just relax, take a deep breath and go through all the quotes, themes, events and characters and try to link certain keywords together. And try to revise English lit as much as you can between today and Monday! The exams will be ending in 5 weeks or so but your future is just beginning (sounds cheesy I know, but yeah) :smile:


Thanks, that's really helpful! I'm doing AQA, but I think the points about each character remain the same :smile: I can't use the CGP guides because the font sends me loopy and I find the little joke notes distracting, but those are really good concise points :smile:

Good luck to you too! Thanks for the advice :smile:

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