Comparing The Abuse Of Power In Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

The abuse of power is the root of all evil. In the novel, Of Mice and Men, written by John Steinbeck and the short story, The Use of Force by William Carlos William, integrate powerful themes and characters whose lives were dictated by the social hierarchy. Both explore the nature of social power and the power of femininity, and the power of imbalance. Curley’s wife, the only women in Of Mice and Men, exemplifies the corrupt power of women in the time of the Great Depression. The daughter and father in The Use of Force both demonstrate the destructive nature of humans as a result of their lack of social power. George in Of Mice and Men and the doctor in the Use of Force both face the issue of being a caring and hurtful individual as a result …show more content…
Williams uses the adjectives ‘cold, steady eyes’ and was ‘as strong as a heifer in appearance,’ to show that she was a child with no hierarchical power. Since she was a child and lacked any sort of social power. She is forced to open her mouth against her own will and the two men had to force her to open her mouth by using their social power. The blood pouring down her mouth is symbol of evil because of the abuse of social power. When the daughter was being reviewed by the doctor she lacked any sort of social power which allowed her destructive side to emerge, “she came down again and gripping the wooden blade between her molars she reduced it to splinters.” The abuse of power due to the lack of any hierarchical power is again demonstrated with the doctor. The doctor possessed a higher status over all characters in the short story. He instructs the father to “put her in front of you on your lap and hold both her wrists.” The father is weakened by the idea of hurting his child however since the doctor had hierarchical power over the father, he had to go through with causing his daughter pain. Thus, the idea that the abuse of power leads to evil is made evident within the short story ‘The Use of