...In the novella Of Mice And Men George was justified in killing Lennie because Lennie was justified in killing Lennie because Lennie was dangerous and a burden To begin Lennie was harmful to others and his surroundings. In chapter 1 in the book, Lennie kills a mouse from the very start. This introduces from the beginning that Lennie is harmful. As the story progresses Lennie goes on to kill a puppy (Steinbeck 85) and most importantly Curley's wife. (Steinbeck 93) These actions show that Lennie was detrimental to his his peers and surroundings. In addition, Lennie was a burden upon George. In the novella, George can not keep a steady job because of Lennie. In chapter 4 George says “course Lennie's a god damn nuisance most of the time.”...
Words: 254 - Pages: 2
...My opinions regarding George’s are that he was justified in executing Lennie because it’s the most humane way as well as the one which saves the most lives. George shot Lennie humanely, letting Lennie died in his happy place at peace with the world. If George did not make the shot it would’ve been Curly who shot Lennie and he would’ve cruelly killed Lennie resulting in him to die in shock and terror. Therefore George is justified in executing Lennie because it’d be better for Lennie to die peacefully rather than in shock and terror. Lennie’s strength and low intellect make for a dangerous combination, there are various instances where due to his uncontrollable strength Lennie kills someone/thing, instances such as the pup or Curly’s wife, just...
Words: 320 - Pages: 2
...it’s hard, but for George it didn’t seem that hard. Was it justified when George killed Lennie. No it was not, “If I was alone I could live so easy. I could get a job an’ not have no mess” (Steinbeck 103). George told Lennie, face to face, that he didn’t want him anymore. A lot of people might think that George killing Lennie was justified, but when you look at all the quotes and all that George says to Lennie, George was being selfish. He wanted to have a life of his own without Lennie dragging behind him. This was just a selfish act of killing, George killing Lennie was not justified. One reason I believe that George killed Lennie for his own selfish reasons because he had to take care of Lennie. “ I told his old lady I’d take care of him” (22). “My life would be so much easier if i didn’t have to deal with you” (10). It was George’s responsibility to take care of Lennie. He got so tired of it, and trying to make him smarter and into a George 2.0. He...
Words: 573 - Pages: 3
...Is Killing a loved one ever justified? How would it be decided when to kill them? Yes killing another person can be at times. Like when George thought about killing Lennie it was not in hate, it was in Lennie’s best interest. These questions are fought in John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men. George was justified in killing Lennie since the other men would have tortured Lennie, he also saved Lennie from himself, and George vowed he would take care of Lennie and George thought this was Lennie’s best option. First of all George saved Lennie from being tortured by the other men especially Curley. George was justified since he gave Lennie mercy and made his death instantaneous. He prevented Lennie from a long and painful death. For example...
Words: 550 - Pages: 3
...Justification for Mercy Killings The jurors for the trial of Dr. Jack Kevorkian, the physician convicted of second-degree murder for helping 130 terminally-ill patients commit suicide, had to decide whether or not he was justified in assisting the death of these patients. After reading Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, the readers have a chance to take a side on relatively the same issue of whether or not mercy killings are justified. The novel is about Lennie Small, a huge, mentally impaired man, and George Milton, a friend that looks after Lennie, searching for work in California during the Great Depression. Towards the end of the novel, Lennie enrages Curley by accidentally killing his wife, and George is left with the decision of whether or not to kill Lennie himself. George decides to shoot him solely out of love for his friend, but this killing initiates a debate in which the readers can take sides about his righteousness. Some people believe that George is justified in killing Lennie and should have done it, while others would argue that George should not have done it and should be held accountable for murder. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, George Milton should have shot Lennie Small because George is his friend and knows what is best for Lennie, and he knows that if Lennie lives, he will suffer. Other people may believe that George should not have shot Lennie and should therefore be punished because Lennie has mental issues and his killing of Curley’s wife is a...
Words: 1647 - Pages: 7
...Is killing someone who’s very close to you okay? How do you know it’s the right time to do so? In the novella, Of Mice and Men( By John Steinbeck) George and lennie have this problem. At first i thought what the heck why did George kill lennie, but then after going over the book i realized that it was for his own good. George killing lennie is justified because if he didn’t do it lennie would’ve been killed by the other men out of hate and vengeance,George was saving lennie and not hurting him, plus Lennie was never going to get better and George knew that. One reason is George would’ve felt bad not killing lennie himself because the other men would have only been killing lennie out of hate and vengeance. “Look candy. This ol’ dog jus’ suffers...
Words: 572 - Pages: 3
...for killing another person? Do they truly have the ability to understand the consequences of their actions? In the story “of mice and men” by John Steinbeck, George has the option to kill lennie or let Curley kill Lennie, because Lennie accidentally killed the wife of his enemy and is now on the run not completely realizing the impact of what he did. George can not find any other option but to kill Lennie. George feels like here is no other option but this one,and that it is the best choose for Lennie. George shooting Lennie is justified because George will not have to take care of two people, Curley will not kill Lennie with hate, and George would feel bad for Lennie if he was not the one that killed him because him and George have been through alot together lately. First of all,George was justified because Lennie does not know right from wrong....
Words: 594 - Pages: 3
...Can killing a person be justified? In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George Milton is faced with an ethical dilemma which is a situation that has no clear right or wrong answer. George’s decision can affect the life of his friend Lennie forever. George Milton and Lennie Smalls, who is mentally disabled, are friends who travel together in search of work. Many times they have had to flee a city because of Lennie’s inappropriate behavior towards women.Lennie’s unethical behavior had caused George to make a distressing decision. At the ranch that George and Lennie were working, Lennie had strangled and killed Curley’s wife. George had made the decision to end Lennie’s life in a peaceful manner. Many may say that what George did was unethical and morally wrong because Lennie had no say so in his death and did not have a fair trial. However, George was justified in killing Lennie and there are many reasons why....
Words: 535 - Pages: 3
...Bouvier, a justifiable homicide is, “a killing without evil or criminal intent, for which there can be no blame.” Without out a doubt whether it may be justified or not the act of murder is messy. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, almost concludes when Lennie Small, a guy who had a mental illness accidentally kills Curley’s wife. Unfortunately, the book tragically ended with George Milton, another struggling migrant worker and Lennie’s friend, murdering Lennie. On the contrary, many people see how George can be justified for this action for having Lennie's best interest in mind and for saving him from a path of destruction in the future. However, George’s decision in ending Lennie’s life can not be justified because George did it for his own selfish needs, Lennie could have escaped like he did in Weed, and even though he was mentally ill, he still had the right to live. For example, George can’t be justified for killing Lennie because he killed Lennie...
Words: 700 - Pages: 3
...Is it acceptable for people to kill? Is it EVER justified, even if the person committing the crime thinks it is satisfactory? In John Steinbeck’s novella, Of Mice and Men , George Milton is confronted with these questions, which have major consequences, with little time to think of the possible outcomes. Even though George may be able to keep his crime hidden, the law is the law. If a person disobeys it they pay. Ignorance of the law is no excuse and Lennie would have been better off in prison serving out a sentence for the crime he committed. Thus, George should be punished for killing Lennie because he is supposed to take care of Lennie, George wanted to be by himself, and he stole a gun and used it when it was not permitted to him. One of the many reasons the killing should not be justified is because George Milton made a promise to take care of Lennie, and murdering Lennie did not fulfill that promise. In fact, it was the exact opposite. In chapter 2 when George was speaking to the boss about...
Words: 845 - Pages: 4
...large role is in the area of mercy killing, which affects the main characters as well as the supporting ones. The two major mercy killings that occur in the book are those of Carlson's killing of Candy's old dog, and of George's killing of Lennie. In both of these examples, the killer kills the other out of mercy and love, not for the usual motives of hatred, rage, anger, etc. The killing of Candy's dog is an excellent example of mercy killing in the aforesaid novella. Candy's dog was in terrible condition, and it could barely be said that the ratty old thing was even alive. It stunk like a dozen skunks, was nearly blind, could barely hear, had arthritis that was so bad, the old mutt couldn't sit down, had no quality of life, and probably had urinary and bowel problems, a miserable condition that is almost assured in old dogs. This instance of mercy killing, however, was more driven by peer pressure than the typical case of mercy killing. When someone kills another loved one out of mercy, it is normally done to put the afflicted one out of their misery, torment, anguish, distress, etc. The other ranch hands thought that the dog reeked more than any of its other conditions, which was the only one that they, too, could experience. Candy's dog loved its master, as the two had been working together for a myriad number of years. After all of the time spent together, the two had developed a strong bond for each other, and so the dog, in its old age, was constantly following Candy around...
Words: 1065 - Pages: 5
...large role is in the area of mercy killing, which affects the main characters as well as the supporting ones. The two major mercy killings that occur in the book are those of Carlson's killing of Candy's old dog, and of George's killing of Lennie. In both of these examples, the killer kills the other out of mercy and love, not for the usual motives of hatred, rage, anger, etc. The killing of Candy's dog is an excellent example of mercy killing in the aforesaid novella. Candy's dog was in terrible condition, and it could barely be said that the ratty old thing was even alive. It stunk like a dozen skunks, was nearly blind, could barely hear, had arthritis that was so bad, the old mutt couldn't sit down, had no quality of life, and probably had urinary and bowel problems, a miserable condition that is almost assured in old dogs. This instance of mercy killing, however, was more driven by peer pressure than the typical case of mercy killing. When someone kills another loved one out of mercy, it is normally done to put the afflicted one out of their misery, torment, anguish, distress, etc. The other ranch hands thought that the dog reeked more than any of its other conditions, which was the only one that they, too, could experience. Candy's dog loved its master, as the two had been working together for a myriad number of years. After all of the time spent together, the two had developed a strong bond for each other, and so the dog, in its old age, was constantly following Candy around...
Words: 1065 - Pages: 5
...George killed Lennie for the right reasons and protected him from worse things happening. Lennie was causing harm to other people and animals. He felt no remorse in doing so, and will continue this behavior until death. Therefore George putting him out of his misery was the right thing to do. Lennie was a threat to society and George had tried every way possible to help Lennie. There is only so much you can do for someone and at this point Lennie had killed an innocent person and was not stable. George then shot him in the back of the head to put him out of his misery and so he wouldn’t have to face torture, or even worse be locked in a cage with other mentally unstable people. Lennie was causing other people and animals harm, he had killed...
Words: 471 - Pages: 2
...a trial. No laws are taken into consideration, but instead an angry mob of men with guns is present. Mobs react with violence for real or imagined crimes at their own discretion, not waiting for legal justice to take course. Steinbeck expresses the idea that when justice fails people take matters into their own hands through George’s decision to kill Lennie. On the surface, the answer seems obvious to most people. Of course George should not have killed Lennie; murder, after all, is wrong no matter what the circumstances. Yet it is not as simple as that. Throughout the book, Lennie seems to be unaware of what is right and wrong, and this makes him a burden to George. Every time Lenny did something bad, they had to quit their jobs and start somewhere else. If George had let Lennie live, Lennie would not have been able to look after himself properly. Lennie couldn’t look after a puppy – let alone himself. Lennie was bound to hurt someone after the Weeds incident. No one could control Lennie from doing all the “bad things” he does. Even George does not know how to stop him because in the end Lennie kills Curley’s wife. George provides justice for Curley’s wife and stopped it from ever happening again. Carlson insists on shooting the Candy’s dog because he claims it is too old and ill to be of...
Words: 853 - Pages: 4
...Persuasive I think that George should have killed Lennie because it was the right thing to do. Lennie was getting out of hand so someone had to put a stop to it. Curly was going to kill Lennie anyway and Lennie would have known it was coming, but with George killing Lennie and halving Lennie think about the new place and tending rabbits Lennie never saw it coming. It was better this way because Lennie wouldn’t have seen it coming and George would not have been sad that Lennie was dead. Although the ranch hands could have locked Lennie up instead of killing Lennie he would have suffered by not halving enough food in the room/jail. George shouldn’t have killed his best friend, but “Lennie done another bad thing”. Lennie was not George’s best...
Words: 302 - Pages: 2
