Of Mice And Men Pity Analysis

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In ‘Of Mice and Men’, Lennie is the character we have the most pity for. Do you agree? The book ‘Of Mice and Men’ by John Steinbeck is a story of two men both of whom have lead very difficult lives. At first the reader is captured by the simple mindedness of Lennie Small, a character who is portrayed as a big, friendly giant, but later it becomes clear that it is others who are baring the consequences of his poor decisions and then the readers pity directed towards them. George has to put up with Lennie and then kill his best friend, Curley’s wife faces discrimination and even her kindness towards Lennie leads to her death. It is Lennie’s lack of understanding of the pain he is causing that loses our pity towards him and it is the weight…show more content…
When George makes this decision Lennie’s suffering comes to an end, where as it continued on for George, having to live with the guilt of killing his best friend and losing the closet thing that he had to family as well as all the hopes and dreams he had for the future. In the book there are other characters that are bearing their own problems. There is Curley’s wife who is not even given the dignity of having her own name used; instead she is just referred to as a ‘Hussy’, ‘Jezebel’, ‘Bitch’ and ‘Tart’ throughout the entire book and tragically it is her kind actions towards Lennie that lead to her undeserved death. Candy, like his dog, is old and perceived of as having little value. The cruel decision to kill his dog is symbolic of the future that awaits him before he is included in George and Lennie’s dream of buying the farm. This ray of hope is also shattered by Lennie’s fatal error. In a book that is so filled with sorrow, loneliness and tragedy it would be impossible and almost unfair to find a character who deserves the most
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