Comparing Death In 'Of Mice And Men And Looking For Alaska'

Emotional Death

Introduction

Every living thing will die eventually. Carlson shot Candy’s dog and he died. Lennie broke Curley’s wife’s neck and she died. George shot Lennie and he died. Alaska’s mother suffered aneurysm and she died. Alaska got into a car accident and she died. All of these events caused them to be dead and thus impacted those around them. Through these five deaths in Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, as well as Green’s Looking for Alaska, both authors convey a similar message to readers that death leaves people with nothing physically, yet it affects the people in the surrounding emotionally, with feelings of loneliness, anger, and guilt.

Feeling of Loneliness by Death Candy from Of Mice and Men faces the feeling of loneliness after his old dog died. Such feeling is seen from the moment Slim first persuaded Candy to shoot the old dog, and he refused to do. Candy squirmed, “Well – hell! I had him so long. Had him since he was a pup” (42). From this scene, Candy claims that he could not live without his dog because he had him since he was a little puppy. He had shared a tight bond, and hence became depressed and frustrated

In the novel of Of Mice and Men, Curley acted all mad in a temper. He came to life and shouted, “I know who done it,’ he cried. ‘That big son-of-a-bitch done it. I know he done it” (Steinbeck 92). Shouting and using harsh words are the traits that show anger and Curley became this angry since his loving wife is dead. Because of his wife dying in Lennie’s hand, he also announced, “I’m gonna shoot the guts outta that big bastard myself, even if I only got one hand. I’m gonna get ‘im” (Steinbeck 93). This other scene shows the alarming and horrifying determination by Curley of killing another person because he knew that Lennie is the one who made the trouble and broke his wife’s