The scene opens quietly:
‘Only Lennie was in the barn’ with ‘a little dead puppy’.
Lennie says: “This ain’t no bad thing like I got to go hide in the brush.” “George ain’t gonna let me tend no rabbits.” He goes between the ideas that George will and won’t care, will and won’t find out.
Curley’s wife enters in her ‘bright cotton dress’ and ‘mules with the red ostrich feathers’
Lennie “George says I ain’t to have nothing to do with you.”
CW: “if Curley gets tough, you can break his other han’” “I get awful lonely”, repeats “I get lonely” “I can’t talk to nobody but Curley. Else he gets mad.”
She says about the dog “He was jus’ a mutt.” “The whole country is fulla mutts.”
“Ain’t I got a right to talk to nobody? Whatta they think I am, anyways?” “I could made somethin’ of myself,” she said darkly. “Maybe I will yet.” ‘her words tumbled out in a passion of communication’ “If I went” “Hollywood” “I don’t like Curley. He ain’t a nice fella”
“I coulda”
“see how soft it is”
‘Lennie’s other hand closed over her mouth and nose’ “Please don’t do that. George’ll be mad.”
‘muffled screaming’ ‘her eyes were wild with terror’
“I done another bad thing”
‘the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face’ ‘very pretty and simple’ ‘sweet and young’
Candy: Curly will ‘get ‘im lynched’
George: “I think I knowed from the very start”
“Then it’s all off -” Candy asked sulkily.
George: “All the time he done bad things but he never done one of ‘em mean”
Candy “You god damn tramp” ‘viciously’ “You done it” “You ain’t no good now you lousy tart” ‘his eyes blinded with tears’
Curley “That big son of a bitch done it”
Slim Curley will want to “shoot ‘im” suppose they “put ‘im in a cage”
Curley “Don’t give ‘im no chance. Shoot for his guts.”