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Theme of Power in Of Mice and Men' I have been asked to write an essay on the theme of Power in John Steinbecks Of Mice and Men, yet I am struggling to know where to begin. If anyone could offer any advice on a possible essay stucture, or main events I could talk about I would be most grateful. Power is one of the MAIN themes of the story. It begins with who has it and who doesn't. Then it's about why' One of Steinbeck's motifs is the pairing of characters and this ties to the theme of power. I would suggest using the pairs to explore the power. For example: Candy and his dog = pair. What does Candy signify' Why and how' How and why is he connected to his dog' What does that mean in the time/setting that Steinbeck has them in' Candy has a crippled hand and is no longer able to be a laborer, so he must rely on people's kindness, yet this world of ranchers during the depression is NOT a very kind place. What happens to Candy after the dog is killed' Does power shift at all' I would suggest picking another pair, or even two pairs, and show how the power changes and shifts as the events unfold. If you don't like the idea of working the pairs, then find another thing within the story that illustrates the power theme. The geography would be another motif you could look at. Steinbeck uses his settings to foreshadow, support, illustrate, move forward, and enhance his themes. So you could take three specific scenes that focus on the geography and show how Steinbeck is using the geography to demonstrate the power structure of the novel. Finally, you could use the title of the story to connect to some of the actual story events, all tying to power, the struggle and structure of it. Find the original poem that the title references, use the stanza from the poem in your paper, that'll really impress your teacher. THAT STANZA foreshadows the entire story, you know! Power is one of the MAIN themes of the story It begins with who has it and who doesn't. Then it's about why' One of Steinbeck's motifs is the pairing of characters and this ties to the theme of power. I would suggest using the pairs to explore the power. For example: Candy and his dog = pair. What does Candy signify' Why and how' How and why is he connected to his dog' What does that mean in the time/setting that Steinbeck has them in' Candy has a crippled hand and is no longer able to be a laborer, so he must rely on people's kindness, yet this world of ranchers during the depression is NOT a very kind place. What happens to Candy after the dog is killed' Does power shift at all' I would suggest picking another pair, or even two pairs, and show how the power changes and shifts as the events unfold. If you don't like the idea of working the pairs, then find another thing within the story that illustrates the power theme. The geography would be another motif you could look at. Steinbeck uses his settings to foreshadow, support, illustrate, move forward, and enhance his themes. So you could take three specific scenes that focus on the geography and show how Steinbeck is using the geography to demonstrate the power structure of the novel. Finally, you could use the title of the story to connect to some of the actual story events, all tying to power, the struggle and structure of it. Find the original poem that the title references, use the stanza from the poem in your paper, that'll really impress your teacher. THAT STANZA foreshadows the entire story, you know! Friendship Friendship plays a major role in the novel. The farm hands all seem to be sympathetic to one another's situations and predicaments. Of course, George and Lennie form the centerpiece of the importance of friendship in the story. Around this center revolve the lives of the other characters. Each of the characters lends another support during the hardships faced throughout the story. The difficulties that the characters face, for example, the abuse that Lenny takes from Curly, the death of Candy's dog, the plight of the Negro farm hand, Crooks, are made less tragic at different points in the book because of the friendship that they feel for one another. A kind word and a sympathetic ear go a long way to help these downtrodden characters to face their difficulties. Power The theme of power and control over others provides the main impetus to move the story along. Curley symbolizes the aggressive, violent nature of abusive bosses. The pathetic situations of the farm hands offer perfect opportunities to make them objects of ridicule. Curley takes full advantage of these opportunities. This is especially apparent in his dealings with Lennie. His verbal and physical abuse of Lennie are relentless. Ironically, Steinbeck makes sure to show us that Curley's toughness is only a cover-up for his own weaknesses. Loneliness Every character in the story exhibits loneliness. Curley's wife seeks the attention of the farm hands as a substitute for the lack of attention from the abusive Curley. Crooks keeps to himself because he believes that the white people want nothing to do with a Negro. Candy's only friend is his dog, and when his dog dies, he despairs. Each of the characters in the story is attracted to the plans of Lennie and George. As they fantasize about a future together, their loneliness subsides momentarily. Loyalty and Sacrifice The issue of loyalty is embodied in the character of George. He is a bright man who could possibly make a successful life for himself on his own. He chooses instead to stay beside his friend Lennie. The dim-witted Lennie needs George for survival. It is this need which propels George to make the great sacrifice he does. He truly loves Lennie through thick and thin. He protects him, he guides him, and ultimately saves him from misery. George has sacrificed a better life for himself in the name of loyalty for a friend. Dreams The only outlet for the characters in this book to rise above their troubles is a shared dream of a better place. From the beginning of the story Lennie and George ride high on the thought of someday owning a farm. For George, it is the expectation of being his own boss and taking care of his own place. For Lennie, it is the expectation of simply being able to pet animals all day long. When this dream is shared with others, it becomes contagious. Candy and Crooks sign on to this fantasy, which helps them also to transcend their circumstances. Without dreams these characters would have nothing. Of mice and Men' power and powerlessness' What are the connections between the techniques that john steinbeck uses to construct the novel - the characters he writes about, the language (Quotes, metaphorical and symbolic language) he uses the setting ( both time and place), Key events, the use of motifs (repeated images ideas, words, etc, structure f the novel etc - and the theme of power and powerlessness. I am meant to design a mind map exploring power and powerlessness connecting the characters. and i really don't know how to get started! some ideas would be great. thanks so much Crooks is representative of racism and isolation, as he is disrespected and treated as sub human because he is black, so you could start by saying that racism is a big part of Crooks being powerless and 'mean' because of the way society has treated him. Slim is portrayed as quite a powerful character because religious imagery is used ("ageless face", like God, perhaps) as well as light imagery whenever he comes into a room it is sometimes described as lighting up. He wears a Stetson hat, showing authority and power. There's loads of quotes from various characters showing how Slim has authority, for example a character says "Noone knows what Slim can do", or something along those lines. Lennie is powerless in a sense that he can't control how he reacts (his fight with Curley) and has to turn to George to know what to do. He is also described in a sort of subhuman way, using animal imagery at the beginning of the novel with "bear paws" etc. The novel has a circular structure, beginning and ending with descriptions of 'paradise', but at the end because Lennie is dead, it shows the brutality of life in the depression that however much you try, dreams can fail and you can end up worse off than when you started to show that there isn't a way of getting out of it.