Of Mice and Men Exam (Between the Line)

8.)In a sense, do you believe that Lennie`s death was justified? Why or Why not?

It is hard to say, because Lennie does have a condition, and many times throughout the book he is described as being a "nice fella" so the rare occasions that he would lash out were times that he was either at the wrong place at the wrong time, he was being tested, or provoked. Like when Curley attacked Lennie and Lennie stood there defenseless and crying until George forced Lennie to stand up to Curley and defend himself that is when Lennie broke Curley`s hand. Although I can see why people would say that his death was justified because he killed a puppy and Curley`s wife but let`s examine this for a minute. Both instances were accidental because both times Lennie wasn`t aware of his strength and because of his condition, it was extremely hard for him to realize the damage he could cause because of his ignorance. So in conclusion, I feel that technically his death could not have been justified because Lennie was not looked after when everyone was well aware that he had a condition.