Of Mice and Men

In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, the lead character, George, and his companion, Lennie, spend the majority of the novel working on a ranch. Lennie, who is quite slow, carries out several actions that go against George’s mind-set. Lennie’s continuous uncouth behavior eventually places him in a dangerous dilemma. After Lennie commits a crime, George has to make a decision that could end in the death of his friend. Many factors contribute to George’s final decision to kill Lennie; George knew that the men would kill Lennie if he did not, and he felt that he should do it as quickly and painlessly as possible. He also did not want the men to think that he was part of the crime that Lennie committed, and did not want to have to deal with Lennie for the rest of his life if he had helped Lennie escape.
George’s first reasoning for killing Lennie was that he knew that the men on the ranch would kill Lennie if they found him alive. Lennie committed a horrendous c...