Curley's wife has had this dream since she was young. She laments that she “could have acted in movies and had nice clothes – all those nice clothes like they wear… because this guy said I was natural” (Steinbeck 89). Curley's wife was very happy with this statement and thought she was special, but the guy who told her this never contacted her again. He most likely saw that she was very absorbed in the dream and told her this out of pity. Since she never got any such information, she decided that "[she] wasn't going to stay in a place where [she] couldn't go anywhere or do anything on my own...[and] ] marry Curley” (88). Curley's wife immediately marries Curley after making her decision and sealing her fate. Attell believes that "the actions of Curley's wife and the resulting events are [the results of] specific norms and practices that govern contemporary society and life" (n.pag.). Thus, Curely's wife did not want a regular woman's life at the time and wanted to stand out. But since she was a woman and had nothing special, she had to marry like other women did at the time. Bound by her marriage against her will, she is incapable of carrying out her practically impossible project.