Killing A Loved One In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

Having to let go of someone you love is one of the hardest things to do. Killing a loved one is on a complete different level of difficulty. Of Mice And Men, by John Steinbeck, shows examples of having to let go, and gives some reasons why a person might even kill someone they love. Candy (a old worker on the farm) is forced by others, to let them take the dog that he has had since it was a puppy, and kill him. George (a migrant worker) is also influenced by others to let go of the only friend, and the only person he has in his life, Lennie (a man with a learning disability who works with George, and George has taken care of for a long time). Because of others, George even goes to the extreme, and kills Lennie himself. The influence of others is so strong in Of Mice And Men, that it tears Candy, and George from their

George cannot stand to see anything bad happen to Lennie because of how much he loves him. So, do to how influential the decision by Curley to kill Lennie, George decides to just kill him himself. “I just done it” (118). When Slim (another worker on the farm) ask George why he did it he does not know how to answer. There was no simple answer, he loves, and cares for Lennie so much there is no way he wants to kill him. However, the influence of Curley saying was going to kill him, forces George to either have someone else do it in a likely gruesome way, or peacefully kill him by himself. Without Curley’s influence, George never has to let go of Lennie. Having to let go is extremely difficult for anybody. In Of Mice And Men, strong influences of others forces characters to let go. Candy does not want Carlson to kill his dog, and George certainly doesn’t want to kill Lennie. However, they are both nearly forced to because of the fierce influence others have. It is crazy to think about just how much others can impact someone's