How Does Steinbeck Show The Power In Of Mice And Men

In the novel Of Mice And Men by John Stienbeck, the hierarchy of the characters in Crooks’ room is Curley’s wife, Candy, Lennie, and Crooks. This is shown by the way each of these characters interact with each other. Crooks is shown to have the least power because he lost his battle with Lennie. Crooks tried to get into Lennie’s head, which worked, until Lennie became violent. Crooks, seeing that he couldn’t compete, backed off, showing that Lennie had power over him. In the story, it says “He edged back on his bunk to get out of the way,“ Lennie responds with anger, leading to Crooks taking his glasses off. Glasses are a sign of intelligence, something Lennie doesn’t inherently have. The removal of crook’s glasses symbolizes Crooks’ defeat in his battle with Lennie .

In the story, when Curley’s wife confronts the three men, Lennie gets upset, saying that he wishes George was here. Candy, trying to calm Lennie, responds by saying “Don’t you worry none, I jus’ heard the guys comin’ in. George’ll be in the bunkhouse right now, I bet.” This calms lennie down, showing Candy’s power over him. Curley’s wife is shown to have the most power because of her ability to frame the three men and get away with it. In the story, Candy stands up for Crooks and Lennie, saying that they’d tell the others if she framed them. Curley’s wife responded to this by saying “Tell an’ be damned, nobody’d listen to you, an’ you know it.” to which Candy replied “No… Nobody’d listen to us.” To summarize, the hierarchy in chapter four depicts Curley’s wife having the most power, followed by Candy, Lennie, and Crooks. This is shown by their actions towards each