Key Quotations/ideas - Whit Flashcards
How is Whit described in the novel?
Whit is described as a “young labouring man”, with “sloping shoulders.”
When he first enters the scene Steinbeck describes him to be “walking heavily on heels.”
“what the hell’s takin’ him so long.”
(When it happened) Candy’s dog is taken outside so that Carlson can shoot him. The atmosphere is tense.
(Comment) This disruption conveys how tactless he is, especially in comparison to George and Slim who turn the attention elsewhere.
Whit is shown to read a “pulp magazine”, he plays “euchre” and he spends his money in cathouses.
Steinbeck uses Whit as a way to show how the typical worker spends his time outside of work. The dream dies with Lennie, and as this death stops George from stepping out of his typical role, George essentially becomes another Whit, another young man whose life will be spent working in various ranches.
POINT+EVIDENCE: Whit spends the majority of his appearance in the novel trying to impress George by acting more experienced, for example, when he laughs and tells George that he would know what he was talking about if he had “been around these big ranches much”
COMMENT: Whit’s manner is similar to that of all young men, which emphasises how Steinbeck intends for Whit to be the archetype of a young man. Doing this suggests that Steinbeck wants to politicise young itinerant workers who are like Whit using the novel.
“He walked heavily on his heels, as though he carried the invisible grain bag”
This shows that work is damaging, and harms your physique since manual labour has ruined Whit’s back.
Whit “excitedly” told Curly that he “ain’t got a gun.”
This shows how Whit does not understand how tragic this event is, what with the death of one person about to be followed by another, because his everyday lifestyle is so repetitive and monotonous, an incident like this excites him
Whit would not “surrender his hold on” the magazine and he made sure he was “careful.”
The magazine Whit shows Slim and George symbolises fame. Bill Tenner’s letter is the closest someone from their class and background can get towards leaving ranch life. To have a letter published is the closest they can get to escaping their predetermined role which is why Whit finds is hard to let go of the magazine
