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Was George Justified In Killing Lennie

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A murder is any type of unlawful killing that was planned ahead of time by a person with intent to harm. Murder throughout history has been considered an act of evil and a sinful deed. In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice and Men, George killed his best friend Lennie and many readers believe that George’s actions weren’t justified. However, George was justified in killing Lennie because he saved him from the consequences of the murder, and he prevented Lennie from accidentally hurting someone else.
George was justified in killing Lennie because George saved him from the consequences he would have faced if he was caught by Curley or sent to jail. After Lennie killed Curley’s wife, Curley and a mob went after Lennie to “shoot him in the guts,”(Steinbeck) which would have been a excruciating and slow death. George also realizes Lennie would be lonely in jail and without a friend where they would “strap him down and put him in a cage.” (Steinbeck) By mercifully killing his friend, George shows that his decision to give …show more content…

Before arriving at the Ranch, George and Lennie worked at the Weeds and had to desert their old jobs because Lennie had grabbed a girl's dress and she “tells the law she been raped” (Steinbeck) and the “guys in weed start a party to lynch Lennie” (Steinbeck). Lennie also hurts animals like the mouses the “lady would give to him” and “she stopped givin’ ‘em” because Lennie “always killed ‘em” (Steinbeck). Lennie had killed Curley’s wife in a violent struggle where “Lennie had broken her neck.” The evidence provided proves that Lennie hurt and killed people or animals countless times, which makes Lennie an immediate threat to those around him even if it was unintentionally. George recognizes this and decides that killing Lennie prevents him from accidentally hurting or killing someone else making George’s decision to kill Lennie

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