Helen Smith And Lennie Small Murder

Near the beginning of the story, George explains to Lennie that if he happens to get in some trouble he cannot get out of, to “come right here an’ hide in the brush” (15). After the killing, and to George’s surprise, Lennie has remembered as he “appears out of the brush” (100). This one specific element of Lennie and George’s relationship is more than a mere coincidence, but emphasizes the way Lennie disregards any command or memory of anyone other than George. When George arrives at the brush, and sees Lennie in a state of shock, he is forced to act. As the lynch mob draws near, George is able to fantasize the farm one last time before “sparing” Lennie’s life. But as George aims the gun at Lennie’s head, he kills the thought of a harmonic life he could have shared with Lennie.

George eventually finds out about the death of Curley’s wife so he sets out and kills Lennie by the river. Lennie dies a gentle death, thinking only the happiest thoughts. The moment before he died, his mind is filled with their farm and there rabbits and there dream. Steinbeck reminds you that Lennie is still as gentle as he ever is, despite the fact that he killed

As George found out about the puppy and Curley’s Wife he immediately ran down to the river. Once he got there he was talking to Lennie and knew he was going to have to shoot him. As he was getting ready to shoot Lennie he pointed it to the back of his head and did it. Lennie’s death is the same as Candy’s dog’s death.

Lennie starts having a conversation to Crooks, but he keeps babbling about the promises to keep their farm a secret. George is basically the brain of Lennie, without him he'll be in trouble.

Lennie took the life of Curley’s wife, and in rage this migrant worker wanted to seek revenge. For this reason, Lennie’s death was inevitable. In order to avoid a painful death full of misery, George killed Lennie. This action, hard on my client as well, needed to be done in order for Lennie to die peacefully. Before pulling the trigger, Mr. Milton painted a wonderful image in Lennie’s head:

Lennie Small is a character that readers are drawn to right from the beginning of the book. His innocence stands out from the grimey coverings of loneliness and hopelessness that the other characters wear. The reason Lennie is so innocent is because he has a mental handicap, one that prevents him from understanding complex human emotions such as guilt, or concepts such as death. In addition Lennie has trouble remembering things, “" I tried and tried [to remember]...but it didn't do not good." Consequently, Lennie has trouble fitting in with society. Ultimately his mental disability is what leads to Lennie's demise at the end of the book. Another trait that is an essential part of Lennie's innocent character is his devotion to his closest friend George. In fact, the only times Lennie is shown to be angry is when George is insulted or threatened. When Crooks, the crippled, black, stable hand, implies bad things about George, this devotion is clearly shown. “Suddenly Lennie's eyes centered and grew quiet, and mad. He walked dangerously toward Crooks. 'Who hurt George?' he demanded" When it comes to George, Lennie would deviate from the normal passive motives of his persona. More support can be found when George is the only one who can convince Lennie to “get him[Curly]” when Curly attacks him, as well as being the only one to stop him. Perhaps the most prominent support for Lennie's childlike innocence is in his utter belief of George and his dream. No matter how

“‘Ain’t gonna be no more trouble. Nobody gonna hurt nobody nor steal from ‘em.’ ‘Le’s do it now. Let’s get that place now’” (106). These are the last words that filled the air between George and Lennie, their last exchange preceding a pivotal moment in both of their lives. They conversation calms and soothes Lennie, who hopes to finally get the farm that he and George dreamed about for so many years. Yet unbeknownst to him, Lennie would soon be set free from his earthly bonds by his long-time friend; a bullet, shot from the barrel of George’s gun, would enter Lennie’s head and kill him instantly. That bullet was not one of self-gain and moral disrepute, but one of freedom and liberation from worldly restraints. While this remains a hotly contested topic in classrooms reading Of Mice and Men, George’s intentions in killing Lennie were overwhelmingly good-natured.

He was brought up by his aunt, Clara. When Clara died, George Small, Lennie’s best friend, took care of him, and they became partners. They found and lost jobs easily, because of Lennie’s enormously strength and his unstable mind. The last job they had before this ranch had ended miserably with Lennie and George fleeing from their Boss, because Lennie was accused of sexual assaulting one of the females. Lennie was seen going into the barn before the death of Curley’s wife, so it was clear that he killed Curley’s wife. Lennie ran from the barn right after the killing, but was eventually shot in the head by his own partner,

In order to prevent this agony from befalling his dear friend, George took it upon himself to kill Lennie with a quick, painless death by shooting him in the back of the head. This form of killing someone results in a painless, instantaneous death, as by shooting in the back of the head as done by George and Carlson, the spinal cord is obliterated, instantly killing the victim, so that they feel nothing. George decided to kill Lennie at his very happiest, while he was thinking about their plans for their piece of land. In doing so, George prevented Lennie from causing any harm to anyone else, or himself. He also saved Lennie from any grief or pain from being executed or shot by someone without sympathy, as well as having Lennie know of his death. One moment, Lennie was bubbling over taking care of his rabbits, the next he was dead, blissfully unaware of dying. This is the noblest motive for killing, and one that was highly justified by George, as well as preferable for Lennie. "And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie 's head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger. The crash of the shot rolled up the hills and rolled down again. Lennie jarred and then settled slowly forward to the sand, he lay without quivering."(p. 106)

Was the killing of Lennie Smalls justified? Many people struggle to determine if George should have or should have not killed Lennie. I believe that when George killed him it was justified. He could of let him go, but he knew Lennie would of been better off. If Lennie lived George knew the cycle would have repeated itself if they escaped, that if Curley had gotten ahold of him his punishment would have been worse, and that George won’t always be there for him.

George finds Lennie after he finds out that there is no more hope for Lennie and decides to kill lennie in the back of the head. “He brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie’s head… Lennie jarred, and then settled slowly forward to the sand, and he lay without quivering.” (pg.106) George kills Lennie as a way to keep people safe from him and to also make Lennie finally be at peace.

​After searching numerous places, Lennie and George found a place to work in a ranch in Salinas Valley. There, Lennie made friends with Slim, Candy, and Crooks. However, one day, Lennie squeezed a puppy too tightly and ended up killing it. Worried that George would find out and not let him “Tend the rabbits”, Lennie buried the puppy inside a barn. Right at the moment, Curley’s Wife walked in and demanded Lennie to tell her what he was hiding.

After the farm hands and Curley found Curley’s wife dead in the barn they all set out in search for Lennie “When you see ‘um, don’t give ‘im no chance. Shoot for his guts.” (Steinbeck:97) Lucky for Lennie, George knew where he would be hiding, back at the bush where George told him to go if he got in trouble. George ran ahead of the group and found Lennie in the bush. Lennie told George what he had done and George tried to tell him that it would be all fine. Lennie gets George to tell him about the future again and then George takes out Carlson’s lugar that he had taken and shot Lennie in the back of the head. He believed he was

After the death of Lennie, the ranch was not the same. The weather was in horrible conditions and crops weren't as good as before, everything was slowly dying. Everyone had separated from each other except for George and Slim, even though everyone saw each other they just went along with their day. It had been 6 days since Lennie's death and George was still empty inside and felt very lonely.

George says, “‘Maybe they wont hurt ‘im. I ain’t gonna let ‘em hurt Lennie’” (Steinbeck 95). In this quote, George shows the care he has for Lennie, and that he knows he has to protect him. Even in chapter three, George shows his care for Lennie by telling Slim they left the last farm to keep Lennie out of trouble. As a result, George has to shoot Lennie himself to keep the other guys on the farm from harming Lennie. George shooting Lennie himself makes Lennie more comfortable and calm then if the other men were to approach him.