Everyone in The Homecoming thinks they have “the power”. But who has it? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay It’s clear that no one in the house has “the power.” The rivalry caused by the absence of a dominant force is the only reason the “family” is able to function. Max sees himself as the dominant member of the family at the beginning of the play. At the beginning of the first act, he accuses Lenny of having the scissors, "what did you do with the scissors?" in a very predatory and offensive way. He wears a cap and a staff to signal to others in the house that he claims his position in the family as a physically powerful man. However, Max is clearly unsure of his power as he speaks to Lenny, rather than with him, continuing with his next sentence before Lenny decides to respond. He also later has to remind Lenny and himself that "I could have taken care of you twice. I'm still strong", strengthening himself and trying to persuade Lenny that he is the strongest physical force in the house. On the other hand, in this confrontation, Lenny believes that he is the dominant force, as he considers himself powerful because his pimping business makes him the main breadwinner of the house. This is supported by his insistence on wearing a suit in his own living room and his later stories to Ruth, where he makes a point of mentioning that he was not "financially embarrassed". Max and Lenny's insistence on proving how powerful they are undermines their credibility. Max, in the first few minutes, almost makes the audience cringe with his exaggerated stories about "a man called McGregor" who he was "hitting" with, where McGregor is clearly the one who caused the "silence" in the rooms in which they came in and his insistence that he still has "the scars" even though he doesn't show them adds to the lack of credibility in Max's stories. Lenny, later, when threatened by Ruth's assertiveness, feels the need to tell stories from his past about old women he hit and prostitutes he considered killing, which threatens his credibility and instantly makes it clear to the audience that neither Max nor Lenny have “the power”. However, Max and Lenny both give the impression that they have the power in the house and until the threat of Teddy and Ruth appears, Lenny and Max appear to the audience as the two who have the power in the house . Unlike Max's physical attempts. the power to obtain overall "power" and Lenny's power gained through his business. Sam has a much more subtle, but unsuccessful, type of power to take control of his house. His secret: "McGregor had Jessie in the back of my taxi while I drove them." Gives him power over Teddy, Lenny and Joey and particularly Max. Max doesn't want the secret out in the open, as he refuses to speak with Sam when Sam repeatedly stops during his monologue about being Jessie's chauffeur in the West End. Even when Sam mentions that Max "wouldn't have trusted Mac", Max remains submissive because he doesn't want Sam to elaborate on the subject. This is further highlighted once the conversation shifts away from Jessie and Sam begins to subtly comment on Max's poor judge of character by stating that Mac, who was a "stinking big mouth" was "a good friend " by Max. Max immediately retorts by calling Sam an "old worm", showing that Sam's power over Max only lies in his knowledge of Mac and Jessie's affair. Although it seems to the publicthat Sam has some power due to his aloof nature and his "secret" throughout the play, we clearly realize that he has little power over the house once his secret is revealed. They leave Sam lying on the ground and pay him little attention, Teddy even complaining that he was going to ask Sam to take him to the airport and Max's indifference as to whether Sam is dead, shown by his jokes? manipulation ofThat Sam “has” or “has” a “sick imagination” proves how little power Sam has over the family unit. Max is keen to assert his physical power over Sam. He gets Sam to acknowledge that "I'm here too, you know" and the territorial nature of Max's attempt to take power is demonstrated by Max's annoyance at the idea. Sam do the dishes. Max, even after Sam offers to let Max finish the dishes, calls him a "tit", which is an attempt to feminize Sam in his mind and he calls Sam a "maggot" and a "worm", because the two have little physique. power Max clearly seeks to highlight Sam's physical weakness and therefore to dominate him physically. Lenny clearly feels threatened by Sam's title of "best pilot". When Sam shows Max his cigars, Lenny clearly feels threatened and although on the surface appears to be making general conversation about "Colonel, or something in the US Air Force", he is actually trying to downplay the Sam's success by showing him that "he knows the kind of man you're talking about", implying that he is one of them, not a servant to them like Sam. Once again, Lenny projects the image of a successful and therefore powerful person in the house. Because no one seriously threatens him in his position, the falsity of his stories does not appear. Teddy and Ruth clearly have great potential power as they can both escape the family and live a life outside of the claustrophobic environment the audience experiences. As an audience member, we know that they both realize their power to some extent because they both recognize, on different occasions, that they should go home. First Ruth at the start of the stay, then Teddy at the end of the stay. Teddy's power lies in his intellect and his life outside the family. He has already freed himself from the constraints of family and feels superior because he is outside of their insular world. His lack of dialogue when the other brothers discuss how they can turn Ruth into a whore suggests that he wants this to happen and that his journey home was simply to get rid of Ruth. He insists that he can “observe” what others do and that they are just objects. This gives the audience the impression that events are unfolding according to an agenda set by Teddy and almost, in his way of speaking, "you're just objects", gives him a God-like status above all other members of the family. The fact that he is not bound by their world also reinforces this feeling. Additionally, he recognizes his own intellectual superiority, "'you wouldn't understand my works, you wouldn't have the slightest idea what they're about' and he clearly treats Lenny like a child in their conversation at the start of the second act. When Lenny asks him about a table and tries to engage him in a philosophical discussion, Teddy simply sees it as a trivial conversation and he chooses to give Lenny the simplest answers, "a table". Teddy doesn't have the power in the house. Because he doesn't allow himself to be confined in the house, he can't take control of it and therefore doesn't get the status he deserves in the house. on the other hand “power” over himself and over all the other members of the.'