...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....
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...Steinbeck, George makes a heartbreaking decision by killing Lennie. George made the wrong choice in killing Lennie because if someone had to kill Lennie, it shouldn’t have been George since he had known him for a long time. George shouldn’t have to carry around the pain of knowing he killed his childhood best friend, he made the wrong choice by killing him because what Lennie did was an accident. One reason why George shouldn’t have killed Lennie is because he was Lennie’s childhood friend. One quote that backs up my reasoning is, “Well, I never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy” (page 22 Steinbeck). The other workers have never seen anyone come to this ranch and be responsible for another guy. The...
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...Even though Lennie does not have the mental capacity to understand it, he poses a danger to those around him. Lennie is unable to decipher right from wrong, hence why he doesn’t understand his own strength hurts others whether it may be an accident or not. One example being the puppy which Lennie cared for. To Lennie, the puppy was “soft and nice”, until the puppy showed aggression to Lennie and he hit it too hard causing it to die. Lennie often retaliates to “aggressive” behavior throughout the novel, such as the mice he tends to as a child. When they show aggression to Lennie, he “pinched their heads”. Lennie’s actions may be accidental, such as the murder of Curley’s wife. However, when he kills her, he notices he’s “done a real bad thing”. Lennie’s choice to hide her body is essential because if anybody found out that he killed Curley’s wife, the consequence would result in his own death. George prevents more trouble for other men on the farm by killing Lennie because he would have been killed anyways. After the fatal death of Curley’s wife, Lennie’s death and there were only 2 ways: the men’s way or George’s way. George and Lennie’s relationship shows a strong correlation to Candy and his dog’s relationship. Candy...
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...farm dream died, Lennie kills Curley’s wife, and lastly george kills Lennie and also how John Steinbeck uses foreshadowing i the story and movie, “Of mice and men.” One of the most major events that happen in the story and the movie is that the farm dream died. The reason why the farm dream died is because Lennie dead at the end and they can’t afford it without Lennie. Crooks said that it wouldn’t happen anyway since everyone that Crooks has met, had the same dream and it never came true for them. “An never a gosh dang one of ‘em gets it”. (Document C) (Chapter 4) That all explains that rarely anyone or no one has gotten what they dreamed for which George and Lennie dreamed of the same thing. Obviously the things the Lennie and George dreamed of was the farm with rabbits and other farm animals. The second most major event that happened was that Curley’s wife got killed. The reason why she died was because Lennie broke her neck and killed her completely. None of the other people...
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...two men have a dream. George and Lennie believe they have a future. They believe that they are special, they are different from the other men on the ranch. George describes a dream farm, which I believe is his and Lennie’s American dream. The dream farm symbolizes the quote “The best laid schemes Of Mice and Men often go wrong and leave us nought but grief and pain for promised joy.” As you can see the dream farm plays a major role in the story. In the story Of Mice and Men the dream farm is a huge symbol of the American dream during the great depression. Off of prior knowledge I know that the American dream during the great depression was to own land. George and Lennie’s American dream is to own their own ranch. The dream farm shows their American dream compared to others on the ranch. “Guys like us, that work on ranches, are the loneliest guys in the world. They got no family. They don’t belong no place. They come to a ranch an’ work up a stake and the first thing you know they’re poundin their tail on some other ranch. They ain’t got nothing to look ahead to.” (13) George...
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...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 complete accident. Because of his mental disability, Lennie has a tactile deficiency and likes to pet soft things to help calm himself down. In Chapter Five, Curley’s wife unknowingly tempts him to feel the softness of her hair, and this simple act results in Lennie accidentally breaking her neck. In committing this terrible mistake, Lennie shows his inability to distinguish...
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...Panic In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. George and Lennie are close friends, while George is not very big Lennie is the opposite. Steinbeck describes Lennie as a strong and powerful figure which results in Lennie having negative impacts. It is vital for readers to associate Lennie as an animal due to the actions he has committed. A reason one could consider Lennie as an animal is because he killed Curley’s wife in a state of panic and fear. For example, ”Lennie was in a panic. His face was contorted. She screamed then, and Lennie’s other hand closed over her mouth and nose”(Steinbeck 91). Lennie did this because he was stroking Curley’s wife’s hair and thought he was doing nothing wrong, but Curley’s wife thought he was being...
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...some trouble; they have killed someone. You have three choices: watch someone else kill them, let them die a slow painful death, or have them sent to an insane asylum in the 1920’s. What would you do? George, a character from the book Of Mice and Men, chose to kill his best friend Lennie in order to protect him from a terrible fate. In this scenario, George had the right to kill Lennie because there was not a better option for this situation. Some people would argue that there is a better way to avoid killing Lennie. One reason is that they could run away. They could do what they did back in Weed, run to a new farm and town. This would not work because there was a mob after them. Eventually they would all find Lennie and George and kill them both. They would both be killed because Curley would think George was in on the murder...
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...in your own words or attach a good summary from the internet (mentioning your source)..... The book Of Mice and Men is about two poor guys, George and Lennie, who travel together to find work. Lennie is a big, clumsy man, who doesn’t know his own strength and he is also childlike, simple and easily forgetful. Lennie goes through life with his fellow George, a smart guy and hard worker who takes care of Lennie. The book starts with them walking down a road, they ran away from their job in Weed because the stupid, innocent Lennie touched a ladie’s dress (because Lennie likes soft things). Lennie and George have a shared dream: having their own farm, where they can keep all kinds of animals, and can live from their harvest when they have saved enough money. When they on their way to a ranch, hoping to find work, they sleep in the clearing (a place near a river) for one night. The next day they come to the bunkhouse and they get a job. Soon they meet the other workers on the ranch, including Curley, the son of the boss. Curley is mean, aggressive and a lightweight-boxer. Because he is so small he doesn’t like big guys, he feels threatened by them. So an aggressive look and a rude attitude is his first reaction when he sees big Lennie. The next day when Curley comes into the room, Lennie is attacked by Curley. But strong Lennie defends himself and crushes (accidentally) the hand of Curley, because he tried to stop him. When Curley goes to the doctor, he said that his...
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...Lennie’s in Of Mice and Men. Like Pamela, Lennie was suffering greatly and was relieved of this suffering by their death. There was a plethora of hurt that lied ahead of Lennie. In Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George killing Lennie was a euthanasia act that was an attempt to protect him from...
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...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....
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...George killing lennie was a Euthanasia. This is because it was a benefit to not only lennie but george too. Lennie would no longer have to suffer through his disability anymore. It would also not only save animals lives but peoples too. First lennie is has a desire to pet soft things and he gets really aggressive and keeps killing or harming animals and people. He would never understand what he was doing is wrong and lastly he will always be disabled and he can't help it. Ultimately george kills lennie is an active Euthanasia. Additionally lennie is disabled and doesn't really understand. In the text it states “Shapeless of face, with large pale.(2)”. From this we can automatically assume he has a disability just by his entire appearance. He clearly suffers everyday from a disability. So therefore by george killing lennie it takes away all his pain and suffering he goes through....
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...just killed someone and ran away, you take the gun from his pocket. You know they are coming to get him and kill him, what do you do? For over the past years people in America have struggled getting their mind around the idea of euthanasia because of the implications of mercifully letting someone’s life go. The general argument is that people don’t see it as the right way for someone to die. They should die naturally rather than choosing when they are going too. “Stephen Hawking has described keeping someone alive against his wishes as the “‘ultimate indignity’”..” (The Right to Die). Take this from the smartest man in the world, he even has his own point of view on this topic. Euthanasia has affected America the...
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...were more normal to destroy than to build. In most ways, violence is a normal way for others to relieve the feeling of despair and limited possibilities that all go along with working on the ranch. For example, Lennie tends to be very violent when it comes to people making him angry. This tendency; however is watched over by George, who is supposed to make sure that he is safe and doesn’t get himself into trouble, but at the same time George is physically violent towards lennie because of his mental handicap. Curley, who is the husband of the only woman that lives on the ranch, tends to be very violent toward anyone that he sees as a threat to himself or his power, most of his rage however, is directed to Lennie because of his size. Curley's Wife is also the target of violence because she is seen as the tramp of the ranch for her flirtatious acts with the majority of the ranch men. With all these events in mind, we can paint a pretty clear picture of how violence was an everyday thing for the ranchers. With lennie suffering from a mental illness he is unable to make normal decisions like someone else would be able to. Therefore, he is forced to be under the protection of George, who was asked to look out for him and make sure he doesn’t get himself into trouble. Lennie; however, has a problem with touching things...
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...inevitability. Techniques such as foreshadowing, symbolism, repetition and allusion help readers make a connection with the characters in the novel. Foreshadowing was used in the novel to show how Lennie would kill Curley’s wife and interfere with achieving the dream that George and Lennie had. Lennie accidentally killing the mice and dog as he patted them showed the strength he has which he is unable to control. This lead readers to predict that when Curley’s wife told him to pat her hair Lennie wouldn’t be able to control himself and would end up ruining the chance of having their dream. Lennie lifting up a girl’s skirt up in Weed foreshadowed that when Lennie met Curley’s wife there would be trouble which George also had doubts about hence why he was trying to protect Lennie whenever Curley’s wife said something to Lennie. The allusion of the poem, To a Mouse by...
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