The classic book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck one each of the characters must battle with their own personal conflicts. For Lennie the conflict he must face is his own mental health. Lennie is constantly fighting with himself over his own actions and how he affects the others even when he couldn’t control what he did. Lennie may have had to fight against himself mentally, however cause of Lennie's death was not his mental health, but the actions of the others around him. Many would say that the Lennie’s inability took seek help with his mental problems led to his death, but Lennie found his help in his best friend, George. Lennie looking to George for help may be seen as not enough due to George not being a professional when it comes to the mental health of others, but in the 1960s medical aid given to those with mental issues was highly dangerous, shock therapy was seen as an acceptable treatment for those with mental health issues. …show more content…
In George's time of helping Lennie he was one of the only people who tried to care for him properly. Others often saw Lennie as too stupid to function or believed he wasn't worth helping. “I ain't saying he's bright. He ain't.” People choosing not to help Lennie led to his death because George cannot be there to help Lennie at every moment and George's inability to always be with him created a sense of loneliness in Lennie. The loneliness that Lennie felt caused him to turn to Curley’s wife as a friend rather then keeping away from her as George told had told
George and Lennie were lifelong friends and had varying personalities even from the start. Lennie thought about how his Aunt Clara said he should have been more like George. At the time when the story took place, the two men were travelling together, and had been for some time, working and then moving on to search for the next job they could find. They were like many other men in search for work, except it was rare for men to travel together. George felt a need to take care of Lennie because he was somewhat slow. George was an average man of the time. He was a good size, nice, but firm, and he had aspirations to be more than just a nomadic laborer. Lennie, on the other hand, had always been a little different. He was big, goofy, clumsy, but sweet. They were also both good workers. George was concerned with working and getting his money before they got into trouble and had to leave camp. Lennie was the one who normally started the trouble. He was a hard worker and lived to appease George, but he got distracted easily which angered George. George told about how they would own a house and a farm together and work for themselves. Lennie loved to hear the story and think about the possibilities, even though nobody knew if any of it was a possibility. George and Lennie's differences in part led to George's inclination to kill Lennie. Despite their dissimilarity, the two men needed each other probably more than they realized.
Lennie's stupidity and carelessness constantly causes him to unintentionally harm people and animals. When he gets into sticky situations, George is there to help him get out of them. Ever since Lennie's Aunt Clara died, George has felt that he has a sense of duty
John Steinbeck, an American novelist, is well-known for his familiar themes of depression and loneliness. He uses these themes throughout a majority of his novels. These themes come from his childhood and growing up during the stock market crash. A reader can see his depiction of his childhood era. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck shows the prominent themes of loneliness, the need for relationships, and the loss of dreams in the 1930s through the novels’ character.
One week after Lennie's death, George sits in the dark corner of a bar. The room is all but empty and dead silent. All the windows are shut, through the small openings come beams of dull light that barely illuminate the room. George stares at his glass with an expressionless face, but a heavy sadness in his eyes. The bartender comes towards him and asks if he would like something else to drink.
Lennie has always been told what to do by George. George really helps him through problems that keep happening during the book. Lennie is incapable to live because he does not know his strength and George has to play the role as a living assistant for Lennie. Lennie does not mean to harm but because of his condition he essentially harms people. In the book it explains the
Consistently throughout the story George and Lennie were there for each other; in fact towards the very beginning Lennie and George discussed how they were better off than most guys because they had each other (14). When George killed Lennie a part of him died too, George knew murdering Lennie would hurt him mentally and emotionally. However he did it because he wanted what was best for his friend no matter the cost. His actions were altruistic and that made his decision the more favorable one. Another instance when George was selfless was when he gave up his dream. Throughout the story George and Lennie dreamed of and worked towards owning their own piece of land together. However, after discovering Curley’s wife dead, George returned to reality and informed Candy that they would, “never do her” (94). After losing his friend George understood the impossibility of achieving the American Dream. Beforehand George knew he would not want to live out his dream without Lennie, so by protecting Lennie and giving up on his own dream he put Lennie above himself. Conversely, someone may believe that George's actions were selfish and that he benefits himself by killing Lennie. After George comes after Lennie, the dim-witted man asks if George was going to yell at him. Reluctantly George told him “If I was alone, I could live so easy,” (103). Although George said
An Ethical Dilemma. People were terrified and disfranchised, John Steinbeck created Of Mice and Men, which set place during the dirty thirties (time of the Great Depression), a time where strength could not overcome aloneness and alienation. The child-like character Lennie was one of the most misunderstood characters, even with his best friend and caretaker George. In the beginning, they were uncanningly together in a society of loners during the time, having only each other, so close many assumed they were brothers. Throughout the story George had vowed to take care of Lennie, however under the circumstances he faced he chose to shoot his best friend.
Another reason George should put Lennie to rest is to keep Curley from being cruel to him. Lennie would have been very
In the exposition of the book, George and Lennie are sitting on a river bed a few miles south of Soledad beside the Salinas River. Lennie is a large, lumbering, childlike man with a mild mental disability. Because of this he relies on George for guidance and protection. Lennie is gentle and kind, but nevertheless, he does not understand his own strength and his love of petting soft things, such as small animals, dresses, and people’s hair, later leads to disaster. George was a small and wiry man who travels with and cares for Lennie. George’s behavior is motivated by the desire to protect Lennie with the hopes of delivering them both to the farm of their dreams someday. The author, John Steinbeck describes how the river was warm and on one side of the river, the “golden foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains.” On the other side of the river, there are trees that line the riverbed. Steinbeck describes how the trees were “willows fresh and green” during the spring time and “sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent limbs and branches that arch over the pool.” In the first chapter of the book, he describes how peaceful the place is that Lennie and George end up staying for a night. In the beginning of the book, Lennie asks George to talk to him about the dream that
Lennie himself had problems such as mental illness which he suffered from causing him to do bad deeds. First in the beginning, George and Lennie was trying to escape weed because, Lennie killed a women from their. Lennie holds small and fragile things in his hand, and does not understand how weak and frail they are, which ends up hurting or killing them.”I like to put things with my fingers, sof’ things”(90). He doesn't have any understanding when he is hurting something when he squeezes it because, he is mentally challenged. The last thing that shows this is he killed Curley's wife as well around the end of the novel.
George knew keeping Lennie alive He never understood things the way “normal” people do. He is like a giant baby, not able to make any decisions himself and pure at heart. George is wise and witty is fully capable himself, yet he sticks around Lennie regardless. “… if I was alone I could live so easy.
This is a novella written by John Steinbeck in 1937, about two men that lived during the depression. They were migrant workers, who wanted to buy a farm. ()
Of Mice and Men is written by John Steinbeck. The story is about these two men, George and Lennie, and they find work at this ranch. Within a few days, Lennie, a tall bulky man with the brain of a young child, gets in trouble, making his traveling buddy, George, do the unthinkable. George shoots Lennie to make his death a more "joyous" one than the one he would've received from Curley, the man that wanted to kill him the most. It was right for George to shoot Lennie because Lennie died suddenly, was thinking about the dream, and was shot by a friend.
Man needs companionship and has difficulty maintaining it because no humans think the exact same or have the exact same beliefs. To maintain a companion you must have things in common, you must be able to disagree with a sort of respectful understanding, and finally you must care legitimately about that person. These three requirements to preserve a companionship are at times arduous to keep true. Some people do not have the time, concern, or the ability to sustain a veritable friendship with a companion or companions.
1. In the novel of Of Mice and Men an example of a cruel being is Curley. He is a champion prizefighter who is the boss’s son in the story. Curley is a man who thinks he's a class above everybody else. He is an ill tempered man who goes around starting fights with men bigger than he. A good example for a kind fellow would be Lennie. Lennie is a big man who acts childish. He means no harm and he relies on George because of his disabilities. Man who is a mix of cruelties and kindness is George. George has a dream that is the same as Lennie’s dream which to have the farm of their dreams. He sometimes regrets having to put up with Lennie but at the same time he is devoted to him.