How do you respond to Curley? Why is he the way he is, and what role does he have in the novel? Where might he fit in within Steinbeck’s view of the "American Dream"?

Curley in Of Mice and Men is the boss's son and is always trying to prove himself and his masculinity to everyone else. Even from the first time he sees George and Lennie, he challenges them and is ready to fight. As he looks them over for the first time "His arms gradually bent at the elbows and his hands closed into fists. He stiffened and went into a slight crouch. His glance was at once calculating and pugnacious" (Steinbeck, 13).
When George asks why Curley is so argumentative, Candy explains that "Curley’s like alot of little guys. He hates big guys. He’s alla time picking scraps with big guys. Kind of like he’s mad at ‘em because he ain’t a big guy" (Steinbeck, 14). Throughout the text, Curley seems nervous that someone else is going to challenge him, and he is always concerned that someone is a threat to his masculinity and especially that someone else might attract the attention of his wife. Curley has been married for two weeks at the start of the story, but his wife has "got the eye" (Steinbeck, 15). In other words, Curley's wife is always flirting with other men, and Candy thinks this is perhaps one reason that "Curley’s pants is full of ants" (Steinbeck, 15).
Overall, Curley is the main opposition to George and Lennie throughout the book. In terms of the vision of the American Dream, Curley is an ordinary person who is intensely aware of the competition aspect of the American Dream and who is always scared that what he has accomplished for himself might be taken away by someone else.