Euthanasia In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

"The right of a competent, terminally ill person to avoid excruciating pain and embrace a timely and dignified death bears the sanction of history and is implicit in the concept of ordered Liberty," (Pros 1). Throughout John Steinbeck's novel, "Of Mice and Men" George, a short farm laborer, must protect and teach Lennie, a tall but autistic farm laborer. George's responsibilities over Lennie creates a family-like bond. However when Lennie puts himself in serious danger, George is faced with the task of killing Lennie. On procon.org there is an article titled, "Is There a Legal Right to Die" which provides the reader with a list of pros and cons for euthanasia. Euthanasia is ending a life on purpose to relieve someone from suffering. Similarly,

The proponents believe that George and Lennie could have survived and that euthanasia should be illegal. Instead of killing Lennie, they could have ran away from Curley and his men, similar to what they did in Weed. By shooting Lennie, George isn't making Lennie's life better, but instead he is committing murder. '"...to prevent abuse and to protect people from unscrupulous doctors and others. They are not, and never have been, intended to make anyone suffer,"' (Pros 21). People shouldn't have the fate of their life decided by someone else, they should have a full chance to recover from any injury. Also, these machines and doctors that keep them on devices such as life support, are trying to save their lives not end them. Firstly, George and Lennie couldn't run away because they were surrounded by Curley and his men, they just hadn't been seen yet. At the same time, George didn't commit murder; Lennie didn't give his true consent because they didn't have the time. On the contrary, George and Lennie could have hid somewhere until Curley and his men would've left. "...on the proposition that patients have a general and abstract 'right to hasten death,' but on well established traditional rights to bodily integrity and freedom from unwanted touching," (Legal 2). People have a right to choose wether the speed of their death should increase or decrease. Correspondingly, Lennie should have been asked in some way about his opinion about his death. Again, George and Lennie could not have hid somewhere because they were surrounded, and Curley and his men were slowly moving closer to them while checking every part of the forest they were in. Once they would have been found, Curley would have simply kill Lennie slowly and painfully, and he might have tried to kill George for trying to help Lennie. Both of the counterarguments made by the proponents can be easily