Theme Of Powerlessness In The Grapes Of Wrath

Power is so ingrained into our society it's almost second nature to rely on it. We use power to further ourselves by using the connections we form. Not everyone posses power, but they do try to display it on those who have even less than they do. The abundance or the insufficiency of power has been the main problem with the world since the beginning of time. Power imbalances the norms of the human race, it tips the odds in the favor of the endowed; in the process taking it away from those who aren’t. It’s the reason the rich are getting richer and the poor, poorer. It corrupts those who seek it, and destroys those who lack it. Driving us towards a destination that isn’t always good for the human race: once they have a taste, they hunger for
Both books highlighted the struggles that actually took place in the Depression Era. The hopelessness of those who were suffering societally and economically bleed through the pages of the award winning novel. The struggle to find jobs and provide for themselves and their loved ones became a hardship in the lives of the many characters. Powerlessness is a huge role in Steinbeck’s novels. In both The Grapes Of Wrath and Of Mice And Men, Steinbeck portrays economical issues faced by many workers during the Depression Era. In Of Mice And Men, Steinbeck illustrates role of power in Lennie and George’s friendship.George’s powerlessness is his responsibility of taking care of Lennie; making sure he doesn't get into trouble, make sure he doesn't hurt anyone. “God, you’re a lot of trouble,” said George. “I could get along so easy and so nice if i didn't have you on my tail. I could live so easy and maybe have a girl” (Steinbeck,15). Lennie’s powerlessness is the emotions he feels, the sense of loneliness that's always getting him into trouble. Steinbeck personifies the powerlessness in the form of Lennie. Power and powerlessness are two sides of the same coin. Though Lennie is mentally powerless, he is physically powerful, a heart and brain of a child, and the strength of a hundred men; ”you’ve broke it” pettin
In 1937, John Steinbeck explained in a letter to his godmother that “For too long the language of books was different from the language of men. To the men I write about profanity is adornment and ornament and is never vulgar and I try to write it so” (Examiner,Steinbeck's Controversial). Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, created the controversy of the language used in the book. Steinbeck wrote the novel in the language of those who experienced the struggles.“Mr. Steinbeck, almost always in his fiction, is dealing either with the lower animals or with human beings so rudimentary that they are almost on the animal level.” said Edmund Wilson, lion of the fashionably radical literary elite, in the New Yorker in 1936 (Johnson,