In Of Mice and Men, Lennie and Curley acts as character foils to each other. In the beginning Curley’s impatience foils to Lennie’s soft tones, “‘We jus’ come in,’ said Lennie softly. Curley stared levelly at him ‘Well nex’ time you answer when you’re spoke to’” (26). The impatience of Curley’s help show how soft spoken Lennie from the authority of a stranger. This is important because it also brings out the rudeness of Curley, showing a large contrast between their attitudes. Later, Steinbeck emphasizes Lennie’s larger size by introducing Curley, “He done quite a bit in the ring. He’s a lightweight, and he’s handy…Curley’s like a lot of little guys. He hates big guys” (26). By using Curley, Steinbeck can focus on their size difference and
