Of Mice and Men is a short story written by John Steinbeck in the 1930s. It has many important themes that are evident throughout the book. A distinct theme is loneliness. John Steinbeck uses many conventions to convey this theme to the reader, including characterization, context, foreshadowing, and resolution. Through the use of these conventions, readers have developed attitudes and opinions, which change with modern society and the reader's context. The theme of loneliness is best portrayed through characterization and is evident in almost every character in the novel. The darkest examples are Crooks and Curley's wife. Cooks is forced to live in solitude due to the color of his skin, and being the only black on the range he has no company. He is not allowed in the dormitory and the other ranch hands do not want to associate with him, forcing him to spend time alone. Crooks' only option is to connect with the other men during the day as they work, but due to his deformed back, he is confined to the barn all day, instead of harvesting grain with the other men. He fights his loneliness by consuming himself in books and work, but even he knows that they cannot replace human company. The scammers make this evident through his dialogue during the conversation with Lennie. “Suppose you have no one. Suppose you couldn't go to the dorm and play rummy because you were black. Did you like it? Suppose you have to sit here and read books. . . The books are no good. A boy needs someone to be close to him. This quote shows that scammers are aware that his books are no substitute for human companionship. Curley's wife is an extremely sad example of the loneliness characterized in the novel. T... middle of the paper... although, as he shoots Lennie in the resolution, it could be interpreted as George deliberately laying out his solitary plan and choosing to be alone. George's solitary hand setting foreshadows his decision to travel and work alone. A reader in 2014 is in a position to feel connected to the characters. We can all identify with the theme, as loneliness is something we will all experience at some point in our lives. However, readers' reaction might be different if they lived in a different time and place. A reader in the 1930s might feel pity towards the men, but generally accepted their loneliness as a normal component in the lives of migrant workers, while a reader today might feel terribly empathetic towards them as the working and living conditions are different in modern society, and we are not used to considering loneliness as a usual part of daily life.