Power
is expressed in some fashion by nearly all the characters in , although
some characters have more and others have less. However, perhaps the most fruitful example is
the power differential that is displayed betweenand .
George's power comes
from his intelligence and ability to read social situations. George is, of course, of sound mind
and is really Lennie's caretaker as much as he is his friend.
Lennie, on the
other hand, is mentally disabled but has extreme physical strength, a trait that ultimately gets
him in trouble when he accidentally kills Curly's wife. (Women, by the way, are given no power
in the novel, a fact that is made obvious by Curly's wife not being given her own
name.)
Seemingly, Steinbeck sets George and Lennie up as foils for one
another; they are two people who demonstrate different types of power. Ultimately, it is
George's power of the intellect that wins out, as he is the one who ends Lennie's
life.
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