The Bad Side Of Friendship In Of Mice And Men And Friendship

1043 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The nature of friendship

Friendship. A feeling that is valued by almost everyone in the world. But friendship can be “deadly.” Not in the sense that it can kill a person – maybe it can – but in the sense that it is a very fragile piece of the lives of those who live on Earth. Friendship can be an amazing piece of one’s life, or it can be one the worst aspects of life. When one makes a friend, a true friend, it allows that friend to learn a lot about that person. This could be a good entity, only if that friend is a friend that is not going to betray that individual. However, the bad side of friendship comes with a brutal price to pay. If a friend were to “backstab” that person, and reveal all of their secrets. This is one of the worst things that could ever happen …show more content…

The possibility of getting backstabbed by a friend. Todd May spoke of the three types of friendship Aristotle described, “In the latter, ‘those of who love each other for their utility do not love each other for themselves but in virtue of some good which the get from each other’” (May). These are the friendships of “usefulness” or “personal gain.” And once one person feels like they’re satisfied or the other can’t be of use anymore, that’s when they backstab the other in the back. Those kinds of friendships can be deadly, mentally and physically. Lennie and George in Of Mice and Men didn’t necessarily have a friendship like this, but they had more of a friendship where Lennie was taking “advantage” of George so Lennie could move on in life without as many hardships. However, George had to end up killing Lennie later in the story, “And George raised the gun and steadied it…He pulled the trigger” (Steinbeck 106). Though George didn’t necessarily want to kill Lennie, there were times when George would’ve rather been without Lennie. This could be interpreted many ways, whether it was good for George to kill Lennie or not. But one things for sure, George and Lennie’s friendship was different. George didn’t really want Lennie around all the time, while Lennie wanted George to be there so he could proceed through life. That’s what got Lennie killed. A deadly friendship

Show More
Related

  • Handicaps, Hardships, and Friendships in Of Mice and Men

    1354 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American Dream is a dream that everyone imagines to be picture perfect. The American Dream means having freedom, equality and opportunity’s to achieve the dream that you conceptualize to be right by you. In the novel, Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck did not want to just illustrate the American dream as being easy, but he wanted to point out the American Dream as being difficult too. Steinbeck made a work of art by composing a great novel to make the reader understand that life can be difficult and at times dreams are hard to achieve. Of Mice and Men was written and based on the settings of the Great Depression (Anderson). The Great Depression was a very dire time that left multiple of people despondent and the unavailing to move on with their lives. The Great Depression created a world where everyone had to seek and survive for themselves. In the novel Steinbeck wanted to explore and point out how powerless people where during the time of the Great Depression. Steinbeck purposely incorporated his characters to depict the life struggle of what people go through during grim times. In the novel, Steinbeck illustrated a great set of characters Lennie, George, Candy and Crooks. In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck discusses handicaps, hardships, and friendships of the characters.

    Read More

  • Loneliness In The Book 'Of Mice And Men'

    366 Words  | 1 Pages

    What is loneliness? Loneliness is an intricate and usually emotional reaction to isolation or absence of companionship. In the book ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck many characters such as Crooks and Curley’s Wife have experienced loneliness. Crooks is lonely because he is black. Curley’s wife is lonely due to being the only female at the ranch and having no one to converse with.

    Read More

  • Loneliness In Of Mice And Men

    591 Words  | 2 Pages

    Loneliness is the central theme in the novel Of Mice and Men. Many of the characters show signs of being lonely, some more than others. Loneliness haunts Crooks deep inside. Crooks accepts things the way they are though. Crooks does not talk to the other men and they do not talk to him. This causes the greatest amount of loneliness in Crooks out of all the characters. Rejection can cause most people to become crazy, as it

    Read More

  • Exploring Friendship and Human Nature in 'Of Mice and Men'

    450 Words  | 1 Pages

    The book, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck may have many themes present in the book. However, I think that there is only two. Those two themes are friendship and human nature. These two subjects play a recurring role throughout the whole book to make it what it really is.

    Read More

  • Essay Of Mice And Men Friendship

    879 Words  | 2 Pages

    Whether or not the men have a stable friendship with others determines some of their actions. George and Lennie’s friendship is very strong, so they base off their actions on the other persons. The have been staying together for many years. The two moving around and living together is great for Lennie, because due to

    Read More

  • Friendship In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    891 Words  | 2 Pages

    These two drastically different characters rely so much on one another that it becomes difficult to function alone in a “normal” society. Their friendship is pushed to the breaking point when Lennie’s actions lead to the death of a another human. George must then decide what is best for Lennie. He proceeds to take Lennie’s life himself rather than condemn him to an uncertain fate if handed over to the authorities or, worse yet, to Curley (Steinbeck 103-116). This recurring theme of friendship lasts throughout the entirety of the book through George and Lennie’s undeniable bond, how they face society's narrow minded view of their relationship, and through their

    Read More

  • Examples Of Friendship In Of Mice And Men

    1193 Words  | 3 Pages

    However, the reader should also note that although people are good friends with one another, if there ever comes to be a situation where something tragic occurred to someone because a friend did something bad, sometimes the other friend must step up to stop the other friend from doing bad things which ends their friendship, but is better for everyone else as a whole. George had to shoot Lennie to preserve their friendship instead of allowing other people to interfere and kill Lennie in a more drastic and horrendous manner.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men Friendship Comparison

    671 Words  | 2 Pages

    In life, friendship is something that everybody needs. It allows people to function better and be more successful. Some people think that all friendships are the same and do not differ from the next. However, I believe that each friendship has its own quality that makes it different from all of the other friendships while still retaining all of the characteristics that make the relationship a friendship. Today, this essay will highlight the qualities that are the same in the friendship of Maurice and Laura from An Invisible Thread and the friendship of Lennie and George from Of Mice and Men while also identifying the differences between them as well as illustrating the very attributes that define a friendship.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men Friendship Essay

    657 Words  | 2 Pages

    Strong essay- Well chosen quotes with Is friendship really necessary in life ? In the book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck the main characters George and Lennie are best friends who travel through California looking for a stable job and a stable place to live during the time of the Great Depression. Throughout the book both George and Lennie’s friendship is questioned because of Lennie’s mental disability and during this time everybody works for himself to save money and settle down. Another reason they are questioned is because everyone during this time is very cranky and looks out for themselves. Everyone needs a good friend in life no matter what circumstances.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men Friendship Essay

    1065 Words  | 3 Pages

    In an American society, many people settle in the United States of America in hopes of seeking the American Dream, which is the freedom of life, equality, and the aspiration to accomplish individual goals in life. Any person that has lived through the great depression has had their life drastically changed by many hard obstacles that had to be fought in order to sustain an excellent life. Some of the crucial themes of the novel Of Mice and Men is that having your own dream attains ambition, companionship, and assurance, allowing one to succeed in life with meaning and importance. Three major examples show this idea. John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men divulges the longing for friendship, the desperation for the American Dream, and the cruelty of humanity through the creation of his two main characters, George and Lennie.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men

    404 Words  | 1 Pages

    Friendship is a very complicated word. What does it mean? Does it mean always protecting someone, looking out for them, or does it mean killing them you so someone else will not torture them? Whatever it means, it happens in this story between the two main characters, George and Lennie. George used Lennie for protection; he also looked out for Lennie’s feelings. But he killed Lennie in his darkest hour, so he would not be tortured after Lennie killed Curly’s wife. What does it mean? No one really knows the hole meaning.

    Read More

  • Of Mice And Men Crooks Friendship Analysis

    316 Words  | 1 Pages

    I believe everyone has that one person they can count on whether it’s your best friend from school, Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, ect. But there’s just this one thing holding back the character Crooks from Steinbecks book Of Mice and Men. That is making and desiring a friendship someone he can talk to and not be whipped or discriminated on. Crooks is the African American, hunchback man who lives in the horse stables. Steinbeck shows many examples of how Crooks desires a friendship.

    Read More

  • The Chosen

    1111 Words  | 3 Pages

    This topic shows us that even though it doesn’t always seem likely that a person needs a friend, some people need someone to talk to or someone to help them open up and to be revealed to a whole new life. We should learn by this topic that our friends shouldn’t always be clones of ourselves and we should be listening and helping our friends. Even through the toughest times, through silence, true friendships always last.

    Read More

  • True Friendship In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    948 Words  | 2 Pages

    Even though the book has its rough spots, Steinbeck portrays the true bond of friendship that even people as close as siblings have. Throughout the story, George and Lennie stand up for each other, understand one another, and George always knows what is best for Lennie. George did not want to kill Lennie, but at the same time, he did not want him to have to suffer the horrible consequences; he knew that Lennie’s death would be beneficial to Lennie in the future. Furthermore, George knew what was best for Lennie and decided to kill him for his own good.

    Read More

  • The Importance of Friendship

    1086 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The silver friend knows your present and the gold friend knows all of your past dirt and glories. Once in a blue moon there is someone who knows it all, someone who knows and accepts you unconditionally, someone who is there for life.” This is a quote I read once in an article by Jill McCorkle. I wrote it down and posted on my wall. McCorkle’s description of a “gold friend” describes a friendship that I have with a group of girls who mean the world to me.

    Read More

More about The Bad Side Of Friendship In Of Mice And Men And Friendship

Open Document