The Banning Of Of Mice And Men By John Steinbeck

Banned book essay
In the realistic fiction Of Mice And Men, John Steinbeck illustrates George, one of the main characters of the novella, as morally ambiguous. This contributes to the overall theme of the story that companionship is a commitment and the consequences can be difficult to deal with. George can be seen as morally good or evil by his questionable actions done throughout the story, especially through the death of Lennie.
In the beginning of the story we are introduced to both George, a smart hardworking man who takes care of his mentally disabled friend, Lennie. They are both on their way to work on a ranch after leaving their last town.as they are walking along a riverbed, George instructs Lennie not to drink the dirty water. Though this may seem as if he is morally good he then proceeds to call Lennie stupid and complain about having to watch over him day after day. Though it is made apparent that both men love each other you can see the strain it leaves on Georges conscience this makes the readers question his morality as well as other actions of his throughout the book.

George feels the need to explain that he and Lennie aren't brothers. This is where we learn a key detail about Lennie and George's friendship. It is explained that following the passing of Lennie's Aunt Clara, George assumed responsibility for Lennie. George confesses he initially bullied Lennie and had him do absurd things, like leap into a river without knowing how to swim. This led to him almost drowning. After seeing Lennie almost drown, George felt bad about his actions. Since then he has taken his friend and has always stood up for him. This is another bittersweet action that can be seen as morally ambiguous through conscientiously feeling bad, he takes lennie in and cares for