In “The Leader of the People,” the conflicts in the story relate to mice and Jody’s grandpa, Grandfather.

In the story, which is also the last section in John Steinbeck’s novella The Red Pony, Billy Buck, the ranch hand, declares that mice have overtaken the haystack. Jody relishes the chance to solve this conflict. “Those plump, sleek, arrogant mice were doomed,” says the narrator, providing a glimpse into Jody’s thinking. However, Jody doesn’t solve the mouse conflict due to a bigger conflict.

Indeed, the primary conflict in this story links to Jody’s grandpa. A while ago, Grandfather—the father of his mom, Mrs. Tiflin—“led a wagon train clear across the plains to the coast,” and now he can’t stop talking about it. He repeats his wagon stories, which irritates Jody’s dad Carl to no end. As Jody’s grandpa is on his way, Carl is upset, so Mrs. Tiflin is peevish since she doesn’t want her husband to start a conflict with her dad.

Unfortunately, Carl can’t suppress his irritation and makes remarks that let Grandfather know he doesn’t want to hear the tales again. This conflict is resolved in multiple ways. First, Carl apologizes. “I don’t know what got into me, sir," he says. "I didn’t mean it. I was just being funny.” Then Jody sees his grandpa on the porch “looking small and thin and black,” and the sight spoils the excitement of killing the mice. Instead, Jody sits with his grandpa and makes him lemonade—a gesture that further deescalates the conflict.