A Multimodal Framework for Computer Mediated Learning: The Reshaping of Curriculum Knowledge and Learning

and the pace significantly slowed, when the narrator reads the description of Crooks.
His voice is deep, full, and ‘church-like’. He reads the description of Crooks in a
slow voice indicative of gravity and respect. Through the use of image and voice, the
character Crooks is removed from the racist animalistic textual context of ‘nigger’
and ‘stable-buck’ of the original novel.

While all of the character files include a spoken description of them, not all characters
are given their own ‘voice’ in the dossier files. The dossier files of the characters
George, Lennie, and Curly’s wife include audio clips. The characters George and
Curly’s wife sing about their feelings. The words of the two songs, the character’s
voice quality, rhythm, tone, pitch, and pitch range and music focus on the emotions
and private thoughts of the character, and tell of their dreams and hopes. Each
character speaks directly to the ViewerZaudience in these songs. George’s voice is
strong but mournful, a steady bass tone. First accompanied by a ‘dinky’ music hall
style piano, and later a strong bass and saxophone blues rhythm. Curly’s wife sings
in a deep pleading tone, accompanied by a similar style piano.

George sings mournfully:

A guy sick of the life he has known

He hopes some day to meet a girl

A girl who will be his own

A girl, a girl

Almost as if in response Curly’s wife sings:

I got a man who ain’t never home

Got no one to be with me

I got no women folk livin’ near by

Γm too much a lone

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