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Examples Of Euthanasia In Of Mice And Men

802 Words4 Pages

Patrick Bateman

Mr. Irby

English 3

7 March 2023

Euthanasia in Context

Animal shelters are often surrounded by angry people holding signs saying, "These dogs deserve a second chance!" or "Stop gas chambers!". Protesters against animal euthanasia often believe that murder and euthanasia are one and the same, though the official definitions differ greatly. While euthanasia is easy to define in the case of animals, which cannot communicate and aren't as intelligent as humans, the line between ethical and unethical killing gets blurrier with people. For example, in the 1937 novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George shoots his mentally disabled friend Lennie after Lennie accidentally kills their boss's daughter-in-law. This scene …show more content…

Some readers of the story determine that there was no indication that he was saving Lennie from a worse fate or that there was no other option for either character; however, Lennie was in danger of being lynched by Curley and the ranch boys, who were close to discovering them during this scene. If George had tried to stop Curley, it's likely that he would have ended up injured as well, and if Lennie had tried to run off, he would not have lived long, as the book established that Lennie doesn't have any survival skills. However, some argue that the case against George is still valid, as Lennie wasn't given an explanation and didn't consent to be killed, thus making the decision murderous. However, Lennie's disability- potentially autism- inhibited his understanding of social dynamics and conditions, thus rendering him unaware of the reasoning behind George's actions, if George had tried to explain them to him. The final accusation against George is that his actions are seen by some as selfish, as killing Lennie would allow him to keep job and live easy, as the book acknowledges the animosity George feels toward Lennie. However, just because it would have benefitted George to kill Lennie doesn't mean that it was his goal, as George is clearly shaken by the incident when the ranch boys find

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879 Words | 4 Pages

George makes the correct decision in shooting Lennie because Lennie is happy when he dies instead of being afraid and in pain as he would be if he had died another way. George has to kill or turn in Lennie because Lennie committed murder and George has the responsibility to deal with him. George deserves freedom from Lennie’s mistakes and by killing Lennie, he receives that liberty. Lennie is not a bad person. He has a good heart and does not mean to do the bad things he does.

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2. George knows that it would only be right for him to be the one to take Lennie's life. One could justify that George has been taking care of Lennie for a very long time and he wishes to be the one who took care of him up until the end. 3. One last reason why George could be considered "right" in killing

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424 Words | 2 Pages

However, George could have stood up for Lennie instead of killing him. There is other options other than immediately killing. Lennie was not very smart and George knew that, George was not thinking of Lennie he was thinking of himself. In the passage, Of Mice and Men, George says “He’s dumb as hell, but he ain’t crazy.” This shows that George knows that he is not stupid.

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587 Words | 3 Pages

George killing Lennie is “Mercy Killing”. George had to kill Lennie or else he would have killed more people without even thinking. George did not want to do this and did it as peacefully as possible but he felt he had to do this action. Although George loved Lennie, it was hard for him to keep taking care of him. When they went to new farms to work George would have to keep his eye on Lennie at all times and he was scared to leave him alone while he went in town because he did not know what he would do and if Lennie would them both fired or even killed.

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461 Words | 2 Pages

In the book, Of Mice and Men, George Milton and Lennie Smalls, try to make enough money to build themselves a home. After working on a farm for a few days, Lennie, the mentally ill man, gets into trouble and is hunted. George finds Lennie at their meeting place from the beginning and takes a responsible action towards what Lennie has done. That responsible action was the mercy killing of Lennie.

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717 Words | 3 Pages

Ultimately, George should have killed Lennie because he had a history of violence, he was mentally unstable, and he didn’t know how to take care of himself. First, Lennie had a history with violence. He started off with killing the mice, then the girls dress. “Hell no. He just scared her.

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434 Words | 2 Pages

George's justification for shooting Lennie is to keep him from experiencing the pain that will follow the consequences of his actions. Lennie is going to be lynched, seemingly beaten up, furthermore Curley is going to kill Lennie. George also perceives that even if they were to escape, it would be just a matter of time before Lennie has another "accident" and kills someone else. George knows he can't protect Lennie from society, as he also cannot protect society from Lennie. Killing Lennie before he is caught is the only kind thing to do.

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465 Words | 2 Pages

Sir Shrek Irby English 3 03/08/2006 Murder or euthanasia Around the world there are about 920000 euthanasians in pets and animals and over 400000 murders happen every year In John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, there is a debate about whether Lennie's death was a murder or a euthanization. However, this essay will argue that Lennie's death was a euthanization and not a murder. In Steinbeck's novel portrays Lennie's death as a euthanization because it was not a planned event that George intended to happen.

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532 Words | 3 Pages

The main reason George killed Lennie is because Lennie would have killed somebody again. And the evidence is clearly there, the pet mice that he killed, the poor puppy that he accidently hit to hard, and especially Curley’s wife. He almost killed the girl in weed if he had gone any further. The sad thing is is that he doesn't know how strong he really is, nor does he know what he’s done wrong in the first place.

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600 Words | 3 Pages

Daniel Larson Mr. Irby English 3 5, March 2024 Murder or Euthanasia What is the difference between murder and euthanasia? Murder is unjustifiably killing someone, and euthanasia is a painless killing of someone with an uncurable disfunction. In the story Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George shoots and kills Lennie for an action he had done earlier in the book. George is forced to take care of Lennie because of his autism.

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652 Words | 3 Pages

It is clear that George did not have the right to end Lennie 's life in such a selfish way. George always talks to Lennie about how fabulous they are when they are together at their own ranch and from day to day I end up with their life in a very cruel way. In conclusion, it can be said that George 's reasons for ending George 's life were enough to do so since Lennie was a very dependent person and could not stand alone. George tried to help him at all times as far as he could, but still Lennie was still in serious trouble, that 's precisely the reason why George wanted to prevent Lennie suffering in the future because he realized that he could not live alone.

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704 Words | 3 Pages

George’s decision to kill Lennie was ultimately for his benefit. “The hand shook violently, but his (George) face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger” (Steinbeck 106). The quote which states how Lennie dies also shows that George was nervous and hesitant in killing Lennie. Scarseth explains in the article, “Friendship.

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737 Words | 3 Pages

Lennie with his simple mind, always gets into trouble. This time, Lennie gets himself in a bind once again, that George can’t save him from. George decision to kill Lennie in the story, was due to his responsibility, sympathy, and love for Lennie. George’s decision to kill Lennie was out of sympathy for him.

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443 Words | 2 Pages

Although, Lennie’s actions probably weren’t his fault, with him not being able to learn from his actions and remember that his own strength is too much for him that he became a threat. George, pained to do it, knew what was best for Lennie and other people/animals, and had to end his life. Overall, even though George had to make some pretty drastic decisions and someone’s life got taken away, it was all for the best and nothing bad will no longer happen and who knows, maybe George will get to live his

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839 Words | 4 Pages

In the novella, Of Mice and Men, by John Steinbeck, George’s decision to kill Lennie at the end of the novel was justified. George and Lennie were best friends, and have been since they were little. They got ran out of Weed(the old farm they used to work at) for harassing a girl and not letting her go. He was just scared from her screaming and kicking. He didn’t mean to harm, or scare her.

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