The novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck demonstrates that hard decisions, which may seem extreme at first, may be the best option. Lennie’s death is inevitable and George makes it peaceful and painless. George has an obligation to put an end to Lennie’s life because he is responsible for Lennie’s actions and Lennie commits murder. Lennie and his unfortunate mistakes are a huge burden to George and the he deserves the freedom that comes with Lennie’s death. After fleeing Weed because of Lennie’s impulsive ways, George and Lennie go to another ranch for a fresh start. Lennie soon ruins this new beginning by killing Curley’s wife and George has to make the decision of what to do about Lennie after this regrettable event, eventually choosing the right action; George kills …show more content…
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. When Candy’s dog is shot by another man, Candy has the terrible regret that he should have shot the dog himself. This applies to George and Lennie’s situation as well because Lennie does not deserve to be killed by an angry, inconsiderate person. George does not make the same mistake that Candy does and this shows that if something hard needs to be done, it should be done by the person most involved. It is clear that one is their brother’s keeper and everyone is responsible for the ones that are close to them. The necessity of killing one’s own brother in hard times is conveyed through Steinbeck’s characters, George and