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   dneshan Teacher
   High School - 11th Grade

   eNotes Editor

   Looking at it the novel as if Lennie is one of the two tragic heroes in the novel, Curley and his wife become the antagonists that bring Lennie to his tragic flaw -- his final demise or death. Curley has it out for Lennie as soon as he meets him because of his size and gives him a difficult time from that point on. It seems that although Lennie clearly has a mental disorder, Curley sees him as a threat because of his size and strength and because Curley is a much smaller man. Curley's wife can be seen as the direct reason for Lennie's death. While in the barn with the dog, she allows Lennie to touch her hair despite the fact that she knows how strong he is and the fact that he has a mental problem and an anger problem. Therefore, both characters are the antagonists to the character of Lennie in the novel.

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   Posted by dneshan on Friday January 23, 2009 at 3:05 PM