LENNIE AND GEORGE AS MANIFESTATIONS OF CATHEXIS AND ANTI-CATHEXIS IN OF MICE AND MEN

The ultimate goal of this paper is to unveil the unintentional depiction of two dominant psyche forces that have been coined by Sigmund Freud in his economic model as cathexis and anti-cathexis in the form of the characters Lennie and George in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Lennie is the manifestation of cathexis or the pleasure principle, while anti-cathexis or the reality principle has been manifested in George whose duty is to contain Lennie in order to keep him safe from any harm by stopping him from doing actions that violate the norms and codes of the external world or society. Unaware of the vitriolic penalties of violating social norms and codes, Lennie’s boldest desire is to break them. On the other hand, George is capable of recognizing the demands of the community and stands against Lennie in order to prevent the conflict of social norms and codes with Lennie’s desires. Moreover, keeping the balance between these two forces in order to maintain sanity and avoid eventual self-destruction is one of the most important reasons leading to Lennie’s unfortunate death. Balance must be held, otherwise the formed gap will eventuate the unmitigated dominance of one and the inevitable destruction of the other. The existence of each is the prerequisite for that of the other; Lennie, or the pleasure principle, is the driving force of their relationship, without whom George merely acts as a machine following the rules. This paper points out and discusses the textual proof of Steinbeck’s unwitting depiction of cathexis and anti-cathexis as Lennie and George in his Of Mice and Men.

کلیدواژه ها:

cathexis ، anti-cathexis ، Of Mice and Men ، Freud’s economic model ، John Steinbeck