Carlson

Question 1

What does Carlson represent in OMAM?

Answer 1

1. He is a microcosm for cruelty and the rise in Social Darwinism.

Question 2

“Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin’ them two guys?”

Answer 2

1. “Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin’ them two guys?”
   - Carlson’s final line, spoken after George kills Lennie. Even though we witness moments of tenderness and empathy in the novella, the final line callously reminds us that the dominant societal forces, represented by characters like Carlson, are still rooted in emotional detachment and apathy.
   - Steinbeck seems to suggest that no matter how much individuals may grow or show empathy, the broader systems and social norms remane largely unchanged.
   - His confusion reveals his complete emotional detachment, with Carlson serving as a metaphor for the emotional numbness in the harsh, survival driven world of migrant workers.

Question 3

“The way I’d shoot him, he wouldn’t feel nothing.”

Answer 3

1. Carlson’s casual attitude toward death reflects his inability to understand emotional bonds. This demonstrated how people on the ranch have grown callous, seeing mercy killing as simply practical.