Is Taking a Life Ever Justified? Reflection in John Steinbeck´s of Mice and Men

563 Words2 Pages

John Steinbeck, in his novel, Of Mice and Men, implies that in times of dire need, taking the life of one whom is suffering is the only viable option. He develops his claim by illustrating Lennie’s mental illness throughout the various conflicts faced by the two men, George Milton and Lennie Small, while on their journey to reach the, “American Dream.” Steinbeck’s purpose is to rationalize the immortality of killing a loved one in order to sustain internal peace. The novel is intended for an audience that wishes to recognize the difficulties faced by those who lived during the time of the Great Depression.
The idea of killing someone for their own benefit is argued in John-Paul Ford’s press release, “Mercy Killing”. As stated in the release, a mother, “gave her brain-damaged son a lethal heroin injection to end his ‘living hell,’”(Source C) presents compelling evidence that killing someone you care about for the greater good should not be considered injustice. The mother told jurors that she had “no choice” (Source C) and had done it out of complete and unconditional love for her so...

Show More
Related

  • Decisions In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    913 Words  | 2 Pages

    As we journey through life, we must make difficult decisions, even when few options exist and the situation is grim. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, the decision George faces after Lennie accidentally kills Curley’s wife is complicated, as none of his choices are good. The importance of his relationship with Lennie forces George to look at the big picture and act in Lennie’s best interests, even though the action he must finally take will result in a weight that he will carry forever.

    Read More

  • How Does Steinbeck Make Difficult Decisions In Of Mice And Men

    600 Words  | 2 Pages

    George felt though an extremely difficult choice, killing Lennie himself was the right decision. Curley was gonna get his revenge and George did not want that because he did not want Lennie to die painfully. “‘I’ll kill the big son-of-a-bitch myself. I’ll shoot him in the guts.’”(Steinbeck 96). When Lennie killed Curley’s wife, Curley wanted to give him the most painful death. Curley wanted to shoot Lennie in the stomach which wouldn’t kill you at first, Instead you would bleed out slowly and painfully. George didn’t want Lennie to suffer so he knew he had to get to Lennie before Curley did and kill Lennie the fastest and least painful death he could which he did. Lennie would be arrested and thrown in jail for

    Read More

  • Epilogue To John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    605 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Mercy Killing In John Steinbeck's 'Of Mice And Men'

    887 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the words of Jack Kevorkian “In quixotically trying to conquer death doctors all too frequently do no good for their patients’ “ease” but at the same time they do harm instead by prolonging and even magnifying patients’ dis-ease.”. His excellent quote shows one that mercy killing can help a person stop suffering with a prolonged death.In Stienbecks novella Of Mice And Men Lennie falls victim to his impulses and makes himself suffer and George suffer the concequences. George reveals how mercy killing is necessary in some cases because it stops suffering, prevents worse from happening, and may help society continue working.

    Read More

  • Elements, Concepts, and Betrayal in John Steinbeck Of Mice and Men

    1399 Words  | 3 Pages

    Steinbeck upon creating the novel in the 1930’s seen and was experiencing some of the things he wrote on. In the beginning he introduced to us a friendship between two opposite men. One man, George Wilson, is a little man compared to his companion. His friend, on the other hand, was a giant who was naïve as a new born baby. His name was Lennie Smalls. Lennie Smalls was a character that Steinbeck used to allow his audience to see that although he had a good heart and was seemingly helpless, that one day his strength would be the cause of his downfall. Questions on whether or not Steinbeck’s readers should believe in the image in which it is given or primarily based it on the novel being written in a bad environment from the first of the novel. Steinbeck knew upon writing that readers tend to cling and fall for the caring, loving, and misunderstood bad guy trying to prove his innocence against all evil brought to him. So Steinbeck created Lennie to try and portray this character to his audience. Steinbeck had to be sure that all elements presented in the novel were able flow good and complete the recipe (Krutch 29-30).

    Read More

  • The Vulnerability of Innocent Characters in Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

    546 Words  | 2 Pages

    The harsh reality is one which hit everyone in America in the 1930. People found work hard to find and crime was on the uprise. This meant, unfortunately, that innocent people were the easy prey and, as we see in the Of Mice and Men, there were plenty of characters that were easy prey. Of Mice and Men characters have and do thing that make them vulnerable in way which do cause trouble. In this essay, that harsh reality and easy prey will be shown through to see which characters are the most vulnerable.

    Read More

  • The Ultimate Sacrifice In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    942 Words  | 2 Pages

    Difficult decisions are made by everyone, in fact, they are a factor of life. Within John Steinbeck’s novella Of Mice and Men one of the characters, George, was pressured to quickly decide on a life changing event. That decision being too kill his friend Lennie or, as a result, let him die at the hands of somebody else, someone who wanted to harm him. As George knew, Lennie’s requisite death was needed in order to protect him. George’s decision was the appropriate decision considering that Lennie was a danger to himself and others; furthermore, George acted out of love.Therefore, by killing his friend George protected his companion as well as numerous others.

    Read More

  • False Hope In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    714 Words  | 2 Pages

    This piece of literature portrays that false hope is a part of everyday life especially during the great depression. Every influential character in this novella seemed to have some sort of goal in their life that was discontented by the harsh reality of their life and the economy of the United States. George Milton expected for things to get better if he kept working hard, but then Lennie killed Curley’s wife, resulting in George euthanizing Lennie. Working hard and praying that life will get better isn’t always enough, which is the message of harsh reality that Of Mice and Men sends to the novella’s readers. Like everybody, George had a dream of happiness and comfort, which never became reality because of

    Read More

  • Loyalty and Sacrifice in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men

    556 Words  | 2 Pages

    John Steinbeck was born in 1902, in California's Salinas Valley, a region that would eventually serve as the setting for Of Mice and Men, as well as many of his other works. He studied literature and writing at Stanford University. He then moved to New York City and worked as a laborer and journalist for five years, until he completed his first novel in 1929, Cup of Gold. With the publication of Tortilla Flat in 1935, Steinbeck achieved fame and became a popular author.  He wrote many novels about the California laboring class.  Two of his more famous novels included Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath.  Steinbeck got the title for Of Mice and Men from a line of Robert Burns, a Scottish poet, “The best laid schemes of mice and men often go awry."  In Of Mice and Men, Steinbeck includes the theme of loyalty and sacrifice between friends.  Steinbeck illustrates the loyalty and sacrifice between friends through the friendship of Lennie and George.

    Read More

  • Compassion In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    265 Words  | 1 Pages

    Compassion might not seem like a big deal but it’s something that everyone one wants and needs. When Curley's wife repeatedly tells Lennie it's ok for him to talk to her. This shows that because Curley doesn’t talk to his wife very much, so shew wanted someone to talk to. Curley is the boss’s son so everyone is afraid to converse with his wife. Another example would be Candy is heartbroken about his dog being killed. It shows that dog's or pets can show love and compassion, just as a relationship with a human. While everyone is in the bunk room Candy says " I ought to shoot that dog myself, George. I shouldn't ought to let no stranger shoot my dog (Steinbeck 58). The quote shows Candy had sympathy and compassion for his dog. Now the quote

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Selfishness In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    1246 Words  | 3 Pages

    The first focus of living is surviving. Therefore, it does not follow logical reasoning to explore other aspects and enhancements of life until one establishes a sense of security in one’s ability to survive. Survival starts with an individual’s ability to endure, and ultimately progresses to an entire species’ ability to subsist. Selfishness is often viewed as morally wrong, however it may be necessary for individuals to think of themselves before others, in order to put them in a position to be able to help the others. In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, this selfishness is demonstrated by the characters who are struggling to better their own lives; therefore, helping to better the lives of others is a secondary thought if it exists

    Read More

  • Sacrifice In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    775 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are many things that are given up in our life for those who we care about, they may be small favors, or they may change someone's life completely. "Of Mice and Men" by John Steinbeck is a story about sacrificing things that have a major effect on the character, and may provide new challenges for them to face. Sacrifice is the ability to protect others for their sake, not yours.

    Read More

  • Euthanasia In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    447 Words  | 1 Pages

    Euthanasia is a painless killing of someone with incurable issues. In the novel, Lennie, a large man who is mentally challenged, has a lot going on in his life. By his side, George, a shorter man who guides Lennie, protects him and acts as his brother. At the end of the novel, Lennie is shot by George due to multiple reasons and he is right for doing it.

    Read More

  • Comparing John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    385 Words  | 1 Pages

    John Locke’s idea that “no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty or possession” appears idealistic in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. Although this thought should be strived for by humanity, Steinbeck’s use of a mentally handicapped character, Lennie, shows mankind’s inequality and lack of forgiveness towards a man who has no self control. Because Lennie lacks necessary mental functions, he causes harm to other beings, which causes the society to wish Lennie’s life harm. Unlike John Locke’s belief in the “no harm to life,” Steinbeck’s novel heavily focuses on the contrary.

    Read More

  • Sympathy In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

    919 Words  | 2 Pages

    Your stomach feels empty, your chest hurts while breathing in, you get sad. It’s the feeling you get when you walk past homeless people, you see someone sick, someone being insulted, hurt, sad or bony, starving children in Africa on your tv screen. Sympathy. It’s one of the most human feelings, it’s part of what makes us human. In his novel ‘Of Mice and Men’, which was published in 1937, sympathy is probably one of the or maybe even the most anticipated theme. In this novel the reader accompanies the big and mentally limited Lennie and the sharp-minded George who looks out for him as they find new work on a ranch. Throughout the book the difficult relationship between Lennie and George is a big topic, as well as the increasing amount of pity and sympathy you feel for several characters of this story. Although Crooks and Curley’s wife are sympathetic characters, Lennie deserves the reader’s pity most because at the end he even gets killed for something he didn’t want to do.

    Read More

More about Is Taking a Life Ever Justified? Reflection in John Steinbeck´s of Mice and Men

Open Document