The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration states that during the Great Depression era, "...the federal government prohibited a married couple from holding both positions governments, and as late as 1939, legislatures in 26 states were considering laws that restricted married women's work. Both men and women believed that married women had to give up work if their husbands wanted them to. those wives who worked outside the home were seen as selfish, greedy women who took work away from male breadwinners (Grice) Historians have documented that women's role as a minority in 1930s America was largely to remain inferior. to the man and serve as servants in the home as they were shamed if they chose to get a job Strict gender roles, portrayals as flirtatious “temptres” and being forced to give up any dreams of a successful future are just a few. of the inequalities that women face in this era. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is a short story set during this time in Salinas, California, following the lives of migrant farmers and one woman in particular known simply as Curley's Wife. Steinbeck is aware of this disenfranchisement of women in 1930s America and uses Of Mice and Men as a vehicle to comment on the struggles that women, like his character's wife Curley, face as victims of a time-filled prejudices. Shortly before her death, Curley's wife shares her life story with Lennie and reveals how she is forced to marry a man she doesn't like and abandon any hope of achieving her dreams. All this because in the past she was cheated by a boyfriend and now she has to get married to survive. Throughout the tale, she is known only as Curley's wife and we never learn what her name is as she is mentioned... halfway through the paper... and a foreshadowing throughout the tale showing that men only see her as a sexual being. The workers assume that everything she does is cause trouble and she is held responsible for her own murder and the situation that forces George to kill Lennie. It is evident that Steinbeck uses Curley's wife as a means to bring to light the excessive sexism that women faced during the Great Depression. Works CitedGrice, Gary. "Women in the Weather Bureau during World War II." History of NOAA. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Network. May 22, 2014. .Protas, Allison. "Online Dictionary of Symbolism." Dictionary of Symbolism Online. University of Michigan. Network. May 20, 2014. .Steinbeck, John. Of mice and men. New York: Penguin, 1993. Print.