Part of The Student Room Group

  • Join over 1.2 million students every month
  • Accelerate your learning by 29%
  • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month

Discuss How Steinkbeck uses Two of his Characters to Explore the Role of Power in the Novel

Extracts from this document...

Introduction

Nicole Gooding 10e Discuss How Steinkbeck uses Two of his Characters to Explore the Role of Power in the Novel The two characters that I have chosen to examine for exploring the role of power in the novel are Slim and Curley. Slim is a highly skilled mule driver and the acknowledged "prince" of the ranch. Slim is both respected and admired by all of the men he works with. In the book it says that "Slim's opinion in law" and that "Slim don't need to wear no high-heeled boots" to say that he is superior over the others because that's how the men see him anyway. He is seen as the leader in the bunkhouse because his word is final, for example, Slim has the last word in the situation of whether to shoot Candy's dog or not. Unlike Curley, Slim is also kind and compassionate. He explains to Candy that it was cruel to keep his dog alive, suffering, and tries to console him by offering him a newborn puppy. ...read more.

Middle

The fact that Slim is very modest seems to make him even more powerful. The relationship between Slim and the men is symbiotic because he gives them as much respect as they give to him. "Carlson stepped back to let Slim precede him." This shows that the men are willing to let Slim go before them, because of the relationship that they have, and it appears to happen in a natural way. There is a big difference in the way that Slim and Curley use their power. Slim does not abuse the power he has, unlike Curley. Slim if fairly equal to the other men as he wears the same type of clothes, works hard and sleeps in the bunkhouse along with them. I think that this makes the men respect him more as he is one of them and does not see himself as superior to them. Curley wears boots to make himself stand out and does not work like the others do. ...read more.

Conclusion

We are told that Slim is a "hell of a nice fella" and the men feel that they can easily trust him. Slims trustworthiness in the eyes of the men can be seen in this quote:"You wouldn' tell? - no, course you wouldn'." In the novel I see Curley as a dictator figure because he is a bully who abuses the power that he is given. I think that Steinbeck is trying to say that if you abuse the power that you have, you will not be able to maintain it but you will end up loosing it all. This can be seen throughout the novel when Slim gives the men as much respect as they give him and therefore he is rewarded for the way he uses his power by maintaining his position of authority. However, Curley abuses his power and therefore he undermines the position he holds on the ranch. The novel hence presents itself as a moral tale that explores the uses and abuses of power and the effect that this has in society. ...read more.

The above preview is unformatted text

This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our AS and A Level John Steinbeck section.

Found what you're looking for?

  • Start learning 29% faster today
  • 150,000+ documents available
  • Just £6.99 a month

or


Not the one? Search for your essay title...
  • Join over 1.2 million students every month
  • Accelerate your learning by 29%
  • Unlimited access from just £6.99 per month

See related essaysSee related essays

Related AS and A Level John Steinbeck essays

  1. Of Mice and Men: Alternative ending for the final chapter.

    Back inside the office Slim noticed that the time had moved on quite considerably since he had last looked, it was now a quarter past six and the sun was beginning to poke it's proverbial yellow head over the horizon.

  2. Of Mice and Men - Full Summary and Analysis

    He asks where Slim is and how long he has been gone, then leaves once more. Lennie returns after Slim tells him not to play with the puppies anymore. George says that he prefers whores to other women, for with a whore he knows what to expect and doesn't have to risk anything.

  1. HOW DOES STEINBECK PRESENT RACE IN THE PEARL?

    The doctor announces that Coyotito is his patient and visits Kino. Steinbeck makes it clear that the doctor does not visit Kino to cure his son. He indicates that the doctor's treatment of Coyotito might even be unnecessary. When Kino tells the doctor that the baby "is nearly well now"

  2. of mice and men

    When the barrel snaps, Candy turns around, smarting at this insensitivity. Then Curley bursts in, asking again if anyone has seen his wife. Slim isn't around and Curley, instantly suspicious, thinks Slim is with his wife. Curley storms off to the barn.

  1. From your characters point of view, what do you think of the events which ...

    When I started on him I never thought about what he could do to my hand, he always was so quiet and looked like he could never hurt anything even though he was a big bastard. The look in his eyes when he just grabbed my hand, I had never

  2. Of Mice And Men

    Slim on the other hand, is one of the most respected workers in the novel and is Godlike to the other characters. An interesting thing about Slim is that everyone listens to him, unlike where Carlson and Curley bully others to get them listening.

  1. How far do the values of Kino and Juana represent the culture of the ...

    will help them where as compared to the whites they only thought of riches and themselves e.g. the doctor was fond of rich silk and expensive clothes compared to the fisher folks who just wore rags. Here a sense of irony is shown as the fisher folks are the white's

  2. Of Mice and men - Overall Plot.

    However, Candy warns that Curley is dangerous despite his size, because he knows how to box. Candy also remarks that Curley's behaviour seems to have worsened since his marriage. George is very worried by the encounter with Curley, and sees trouble ahead.

  • Over 160,000 pieces
    of student written work
  • Annotated by
    experienced teachers
  • Ideas and feedback to
    improve your own work