 But when she questions why he wants to hold her hand—holding her hand being the first step

away from the ordinary—he launches into a story in which he beats up a woman. His message is
that she should hold his hand because he is a violent man and it is in her best interest to keep
him happy. The threat of violence is thinly veiled. Ruth refuses to react in the way he expects,
asking a perceptive question about the story instead. He gives a nonsensical yet macho answer:
he knew the woman was diseased because he decided she was. He seems disconcerted because
she hasn't shown any sign of feeling threatened, and so he dives straight into another story in
which he beats up an old woman. Again Ruth is unflustered. Lenny then tries to assert his
dominance by micromanaging the placement of items next to her, including her glass of water.
Her response is to assert herself forcefully, even threatening him with physical dominance of her
own. Her threats—"I'll take you" and "Lie on the floor ... I'll pour it down your throat"—are both
aggressive and sexually suggestive. As Ruth laughs, drinks, and then leaves, Lenny fumes and
yells after her, but it is clear to them that Ruth is the winner of this power struggle.
 When Ruth enters, Max's first thought is that she is a prostitute. This assumption gives the
audience a glimpse into the way women are viewed in this household. It is more likely to Max
that Ruth is a whore than a girlfriend or wife.
 In this he is not unlike Lenny, who in Act 1 told Ruth the prostitute in his story was diseased
because he "decided" she was. Both Max and Lenny want to control others by controlling
knowledge and meaning.
 Even after the strange situation of the first section of this act, in which Ruth kisses and
embraces Lenny and Joey while Teddy watches, apparently unmoved, this section escalates the
absurdity. Max, Lenny, and Joey plan to keep Ruth with them to attend to all their needs. They
want her to assume the archetypal feminine roles in the family—mother, wife, whore.
 The situation has become stranger, but Ruth's strategy for outmanoeuvring the men is
remarkably similar throughout the play. She remains emotionally detached while they fall prey
to their own emotions and impulses. They need and want her, and she characterizes the plan as
an "attractive" arrangement dreamed up by "nice" and "sweet" people.
 She spends two hours with Joey in "love play," but he seems not to have managed to have sex
with her. She ends the play in a physical position of power—enthroned—with two men in the
kneeling posture of supplicants. She is setting the terms of the relationships to which they must
adapt.
