The Leader of the People

John Steinbeck's "The Leader of the People" is a sentimental and symbolic story that expresses a longing for America's past. It is the final part of The Red Pony story cycle, a collection of tales that all center on the character of Jody Tiflin, a young boy who comes of age during the course of the stories. "The Leader of the People" stands as a complete story on its own, as it details a day that Jody's grandfather visits the family farm. The old man proceeds to tell a story from his past, and Steinbeck implies that perhaps the nation's best times are in the past.

Indeed, the idea of a troubled future is introduced early in the story, as Steinbeck describes Jody's conversation with Billy Buck, a ranch-hand, about the mice that have infested the haystacks. Jody tells Billy that he will use the dogs to hunt the mice after Billy has finished his work in the haystack. Jody realizes that:

Those plump, sleek, arrogant mice were doomed. For eight months they had lived and multiplied in the haystack. They had been immune from cats, from taps, from poison and from Jody. They had grown smug in their security, overbearing and fat. Now the time of disaster had come; they would not survive another day (Steinbeck 1726).

Indeed, Steinbeck describes a very bleak future for the mice, and a mood and tone is immediately established for the story and its characters (Gullason 225). There is a strong sense that the best of times has already past.

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se hunt, Jody?' Grandfather chuckled. 'Have the people of this generation come down to hunting mice? They aren't very strong, the new people, but I hardly thought mice would be game for them'" (Steinbeck 1730). Furthermore, Grandfather's preferred topic of conversation is his past exploits, solidifying his preference for the past. At dinner, he immediately begins a story about his wagon train days, despite the fact that Carl does not particularly enjoy these sorts of tales from him. In many ways, Steinbeck uses this clash between Carl and Grandfather to represent the clash between past and present (Gullason 226). When telling his story about his wagon train days, Grandfather uses the term 'Westering' to describe the lifestyle. It represents more than just the experience of leading the wagon trains across the plains, fighting with Indians, or pushing on toward the west coast. Instead, "It was his dream, and its fulfillment was his life. When he got the coast it was all over. All he has been able to do since is tell the story" (Gilmore 82). Grandfather is regretful that not only his Westering experience is over, but that the new generation is uninterested in such adventures. He tells Jody: a No place to go, Jody.

Category: Literature - T