An interesting question. In both books, working men come to grief, even death, due to the sexual politics of the communities. In both cases, the men are innocent to one degree or another. In both cases, there is a fatalism about the men and their defenders. Both books might be considered regional American works; both comment on specific periods.
However, the differences are striking. Tom is killed due to race; Lenny is not. Tom is killed by those who hate him (or by impersonal forces driven by hate behind); Lenny is killed by someone who loves him. Lenny did kill the woman (though he didn't mean to); Tom is completely innocent.
No comments:
Post a Comment