How Does Steinbeck Create Powerlessness In Of Mice And Men

In the book,”Of Mice and Men” by John Steinbeck the theme power and powerlessness can drive people to do desperate and sometimes cruel things is portrayed throughout the book. More explicitly seen with George. The text reveals George being powerless by stating, “And George raised the gun and steadied it...He pulled the trigger.” This is a strong example of powerlessness because Lennie’s Childlike demeanor and behavior has caused many problems in a brief period of time and now George must pull the trigger before somebody else does. Therefore, making him powerless because he cares for Lennie, but can't keep him from such behaviors so doing the cruel action of killing him is the only way to solve the problems and prevent future ones. Steinbeck supports powerlessness when he also states, “Lennie said, “I did another bad thing.” “It don’t make no difference” George said, and he fell silent.” This develops the idea that George can be powerless over Lennie because although he looks after Lennie, he can only do so much, and some of the outcomes of Lennie’s actions are not fixable.

Undoubtedly, George possess power over Lennie. This is evident when the author states, “No

George is described as a physically short person who is rational and short tempered. Due to this,George is not able to gain power to influence many people. George is more intelligent over Lennie. Therefore, Lennie listens and relies on George’s commands. Power also build Geroge as a character because he uses it to consider how their goals of owning a ranch will be reached. George commands Lennie while he plans the details including where they will get the ranch, how long they must work to pay for it, and how they will have to keep a low profile in order to work for the next month. More importantly, Lennie and George rely on each other to maintain their companionship. WIthout Lennie, George maintains no power and is left all