In ‘Of Mice and Men’, how does Steinbeck present women?

Steinbeck presents women very negatively within his novella ‘Of Mice and Men’ through his usage of his only female protagonist, Curly’s wife. She isn’t even given a name and the only title she has indicates that she is her husbband, Curly’s property. This adheres to the contemparory view of women - during the Dust Bowl period of American history, men were seen as the breadwinners, as migrant workers, and were given priority over women, who stayed at home to raise children. The other characters on the ranch do nothing to subvert the misogynistic viewpoint that Steinbeck creates. George and Lennie refer to Curly’s wife as a “tramp” and as being “purty”, which highlights her appearance over her actual personality. The negative lexical field and terminology that Steinbeck uses within the microcosm of ‘Of Mice and Men’ proves that women are presented very poorly in the text.