Perfection In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

A Quest for “Perfection”

“If they are not fit to live, kill them in a decent human way” (Eugenics and Euthanasia Quotations) . All throughout history, people have chased after perfection. Whether it be mentally or physically, mankind has, with reckless pursuit, tried to purge itself of any flaws. Because of this impossible goal, those who were mentally and physically disabled have been persecuted and isolated, dating all the way back to the Greeks, who killed their babies if a deformity was noticed, and through the 1960’s when Eugenicists believed that those with mental retardness should be exterminated for the greater good of the human race. The mentally disabled have been called unworthy and unfit to live by many all over the world, and it

The message that Steinbeck tries to get across about society’s maltreatment of the mentally handicapped in the 1930s, is clearly demonstrated when Lennie is killed by his companion, George. Lennie, the arguable main character of the novel, is known for his incredible muscularity and childlike thought process. Although he is a full grown man, it is obvious that his mental IQ is not equivalent to the physical power he possesses, which causes him to use his strength unintentionally. At one point in time, Lennie accidentally snaps the neck of the wife of the boss’s son, Curley, and runs away because he is frightened of the consequences he will face. When George, Lennie’s closest friend, asks Slim, another worker on the ranch, if there is any chance that Lennie will be spared, Slim responds by saying that “Curley’s gonna want to shoot ‘im. Curley’s still mad about his hand. An’ s’pose they lock him up an’ strap him down and put him in a cage.” Curley confirms Slim’s response by ordering the men who are searching for Lennie, “when you see ‘um, don’t give ‘im no chance. Shoot for his guts. That’ll double him over” (Steinbeck 97). Envisioning what is to become of Lennie, George goes ahead and shoots

Undoubtably, the author wanted to portray how unfair and limited the justice was for those who unintentionally committed a crime, and were mentally handicapped, as well as how society itself believed that humanity would be better off without those who were impaired. Lennie is a true representation of the mentally disabled community at the time. Because of the rise of the Eugenics movement in the United States, people like Lennie were wrongfully condemned, and treated as though they were less than human. It was because of this movement that society adopted that truly killed Lennie. In the Eugenicists’ quest for perfection, they failed to recognize that they defiled themselves even more by the maltreatment of those who never deserved any punishment. However, their eyes remained closed to this injustice, and all they were able to see were the flaws that people possessed. They believed that the mentally disabled weren’t worthy of life, so, as stated by George Bernard Shaw, if they weren’t fit to live, then why not have them killed them in a decent human way? That’s the only way true perfection could be attained,