.... her strength permeates to the rest of the family, infusing them with her mightiness. Also, when the Wilsons' car breaks down and Pa proposes splitting up just for a short time until the car is repaired she threatens him with a jack handle. She knows that all they have in the world is each other and without that themselves to hold on to the have nothing. There is a saying "one finds comfort in numbers" however in this case it is "comfort" is replaced with survival. In addition, near the end of the book, when the boxcars have flooded and it seems all hope has been lost Ma leads the family to higher ground. Despite the despair she feels she overcomes it to do what must ....

.... But still Lennie's mind is as a closed book to us, and only in the final chapter Steinbeck attempts to describe Lennie and his hallucinations, but the result is very poor. Theme: Without a doubt it is companionship. The friendship between George and Lennie is so close that George takes it up for his feeble-minded friend and protects him above all, even his own interests. It is like a sacred bond, and this makes them different from people who are just on their own. Seeking friendship is also to be seen in Candy, Curley's wife and Crooks. Characteristics: The story is set in California, and that is what Steinbeck is good at, he loves it and knows it very well. The constructio ....

.... He was upset one day at how his wife had treated him so decided to get even. He told her that he would take the family to the circus, then left them waiting while he drank gin and lounged around a pool hall. Another time he sent Paul, who was slow witted, to fetch a left-handed monkey wrench from the garage when he knew well that a left-handed monkey wrench did not exist. He also took pleasure in humiliating Julie Gregg for being interested in Doc Stair and even went so far as to imitate Stair's voice on the phone and set up a phony meeting with Julie then chased her down the street when she showed up. The fact that Whitey narrates these stories in first person doesn't ....

.... and a twig. I reached land in about a day. When I reached shore I looked up upon this small island, it looked beautiful. I just wanted to sit on the beach and look up at the desolate trees that were swaying. I could not handle all of this beauty; it knocked me out, literally. When I awoke I noticed that some of my things had been moved about. Each item was placed in a navigational direction: north, east, west, and south. I also was aware that my hands were placed in the direction, northeast. I collected my things and began walking, I must have walked for quite awhile because when I left, the sun was just overhead and when I thought to check again, the sun was alread ....

.... racial discrimination, for in Africa they would be "black like the Africans themselves" (143), but also gender discrimination. Before meeting Samuel and Corrine, Nettie was under the impression that all colored people [men] wanted to keep women from learning. Upon meeting Samuel, Nettie realized that "they are not all mean like Pa and Albert, or beaten down like Ma was." (138-139) The only man Nettie had ever had contact with were Pa and Albert; so she perceived that all men treated their wives and the women in the family like possessions to be sold to the highest bidder. For the first time in her life, Nettie met a man who, not only wanted her to learn, but also had the ....

.... the most involving form of relationship--sex. In a society where human relationships are affected by marketplace values, like status and appearance, which commodify people, rather than accepting them. Holden is seeking a deeper, more real relationship with someone, probably anyone, who understands him, and will accept him. Holden doesn't like to see people hurting. He explains when he says that he would like to be "a catcher in the rye", someone who protects children from the pitfalls of hypocrisy and lies, that Holden seems to think infect the adult world. As a result, Holden is very careful not to use other characters as a means for his own ends. In many ways he is unable ....

.... Throughout the story, the hermit complains about the "awful monster" and regards her as the "personification of evil." This is not the root of the problem however. The hermit's preoccupation with the prostitute served to destroy him, but unfortunately for him, the blame cannot be aimed at her. Throughout the middle of the passage, the hermit described the features of the prostitute with a particular contempt, yet he continued to look, even leer at her. He continued to think about what went on behind the closed doors, the men that waited around outside the house "smoking, chewing tobacco and spitting into the gutter - committing all the sins of the world according to the hermi ....

.... passed by, Boo drove the scissors into his parent's leg, pulled them out, wiped them on his pants, and resumed his activities." (Chapter 1, page 11) I don't see how you can't expect to have prejudice in a small town like that, after all isolation is a major factor in why prejudice and racism arise. "Men hate each other because they fear each other, and they fear each other because they don't know each other, and they don't know each other because they are often separated from each other. " -Martin Luther King The ....