Why is Curly's wife a key character in 'Of Mice and Men'?

curly's wife is pivotal in teh novel of miceand men as steinbeck uses her to  highlight the key themes of  the novella. 

misognyny was key during the 1930s, key to the novel is teh context of the great depression hich is explored through curlys wife. her dream of becoming an actresswas thwarted by marriage to curly where she is effectively trapped in an unescapable life, and it is interesting that the only way she can escape is through death- echoing the theme that the american dream is unnattaible and a fantasy

misogny and sexism is further explored through curlys wife, referring to her hair as 'like sausages' - she is effectively portrayed as prey, this forshadows her weakness within the ranch, acting as a microsom for women in society.  

loneliness