The strength of the women in the play comes from their absence. It is a powerful statement how women can have that much influence without being a part of the action. The men in the play are concerned with male power. They frequently refer to their male organs as a source of their strength. Women are portrayed as weak by the men. They are seen as easy to scam and it is a sign of weakness in the work place to spend time with the family. Women are at home making food for the men who are out working hard all day. Levene says "I talked to your wife..." frequently in his selling tactics. Women are viewed in misogynistic terms as a threat to male power. They get in the way of this world of men. This view is justified because the women do stand in the way of the men getting what they want. Women in the play are a threat to male power. The men try to scam and deceive the women, but in the end it is a woman who scams and deceives Levene. She makes him believe that she has the ability to buy the property he is selling.  The store-bought crumb cake is symbolic of Harriet and her deception. She is not at home doing what the men expect her to be doing (cooking and cleaning). The cake makes her seem like a sweet sincere woman when indeed she is not, it is store bought-not the real thing,  as she is not genuine herself. The play ends with Levene loosing his deal to a woman, and Roma's deal being ruined by a woman (Lingk's wife). Lingk's wife is able to put a stop to the deal without being present. I think the women in the play are shown to have an underlying strength that is the determining factor. The men may think it is up to them to make the sale, but it is dependent on the women. While these woman defeat the plans of men, it is a woman who is a motivating factor in the form of Levene's daughter who is in the hospital. It is her presence in his life that pushes him to work hard, even if that work is not honest. Women wield power in this male dominated play to help, to hurt and even deceive.