Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Ch. 4-6: What would you have done?
So as not to give anything away, I'll be as vague as possible. I really hope that no one told you how it ends...After you finish the novel, respond to the ending. Was it the right thing to do? What would you have done? Were there other alternatives? Why do you think it happens this way? What is Steinbeck's message? Hmmm. I know that we'll have lots to talk about on Thursday. A fulmination may erupt in response to the controversial conclusion. Complete your questions and a project or this blog for Thursday's discussion, then we'll take the test on Tuesday. There's a trial sort of thing that we'll start soon.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I think the decision George made was not only best for him, but it was also one of the better choices for Lennie. Lennie wouldn't have been able to survive on his own. He isn't smart enough. If he didn't go hide in a cave, people wouldn't except him because of his disability. He would cause more trouble to himself and possibly worsen his situation. I think George made the right decision. His actions show it was no easy decision. He frees himself from taking care of Lennie, but he is now just another one of those guys on the ranch who no one cares about. There were alternatives, like running away, but Lennie would somehow find trouble and the process would start all over again. Steinbeck's message is that sometimes it is hard to do the right things. Take into account that George probably didn't have all the time to think about what I wrote, but Lennie would have been tortured by Curley.
ReplyDeletePS-I DON'T LIKE WHEN LENNIE KILLS THE DOG :(
The right thing was to kill Lennie, otherwise Lennie would have been punished severely by the other people. I would have killed Lennie too, for the benefit of him, and not to sound bad, but also myself, because Lennie was a burden. The only other alternatives were to try and run, but that was clearly not very possible. I think it happens this way because in reality, there was no other way out. Steinbeck's message was that even the hardest things to do for a person may bear the best outcome.
ReplyDeleteAlthough i'm sure killing your best friend is not easy, George made the right decision. Curley said that he would shoot Lennie if he found him, and to avoid the torture and suffering that Curley would have put him though, George took care of it himself. After Lennie is killed, Slim reassures George and says, "You hadda, George. I swear you hadda." Slim understands also that it was the right decision. All George ever truly wanted for Lennie is for him to be happy and safe.
ReplyDeleteGeorge did make the right decision, if he hadn't killed Lennie much worse things might have happened. Not only to Lennie, but also to George and possibly the other men. If George hadn't been the one to kill Lennie Curley would have done much worse, so it was good that George killed Lennie. It happens this way because George has to be the one to kill him, they've always been together through thick and thin and this is another event in the novel that George can't just leave his friend to suffer. I think that Steinbeck is trying to say just that, in your life you will always have someone there for you. After the fact Slim reassures George that he did the right thing, which once again instills the leadership traits in Slim and shows that Slim is a reliable guy that George can now count on. Curley and Carlson at the end still don't understand the whole event, or why George and Slim are so caught up in what happened, proving that both are static characters in the novel; never changing their views.
ReplyDeleteLennie saved himself a lot of trouble, but Lennie was like a brother to George. Lennie was the only person in the world who really cared for George, and George was the only person who really cared for Lennie. They had been in the same position before, running after Lennie had made a mistake and gotten himself in trouble, they could have escaped. After all Lennie didn’t know what he was doing when he killed Curley’s wife. He was scared and couldn’t control himself. From George’s decision, Steinbeck is trying to show us that people aren’t always looking for the right way to handle something; sometimes, they’re just looking for the easiest way.
ReplyDeleteI understand why George had to kill Lennie, but it was still very sad. George had to be the one to do it, because he would have regretted it, like Candy regretted not killing his dog himself. Also, Lennie was Georges responsibility and his friend so he felt the need to kill him so Curley or one of the other men wouldn't do something worse. This is definitely my favorite book we have read so far in class. John Steinbeck creates amazing characters and is such a talented author and I would love to read more of his novels.
ReplyDeleteI feel that the ending of the novel was inevitable, and it was foreshadowed by Candy and his dog. I had this realization watching the movie in class when Candy said "I shouldn't have let him (Carlson) kill my dog. I should've done it." In a similar way, George finds Lennie first and he is the one to kill him, with a shot to the back of the head so he wouldn't feel it, the same way Carlson said to shoot the dog.
ReplyDeleteIt was the right thing to do. Lennie was Georges responsibility and George would never let Curley kill him. It is really sad that George ha to be the one to kill Lennie because that was his one true friend, but Lennie would have caused more harm to himself and others. George would have regretted not to do it himself because Candy felt guilt that he didn't kill his own dog and letting a stranger do it themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe descision George made to kill Lennie was a tough but correct descision. Lennie would have been confused and startled by all the men charging him with their guns. Although Lennie didn't know what he was doing whe he killed Curley's wife, the other men don't understand that. George wanted Lennie to die as calmly and as peacefully as possible. George felt like Lennie was his responsibility no matter what happened, and he didn't want Curley to be the one to kill him. It was the same situation as when Carlson killed Candy's dog, although it was sad, it was the right thing to do.
ReplyDeleteI think George killing Lennie was the right thing to do. It wasn't very easy for him, but it had to be done. Lennie was holding him back and he wouldn't be able to last on his own. I think George felt it should be him to kill Lennie, instead of Curley and the other guys. I think it relates to when Candy said he should have killed his dog instead of Carlson. The same situation applies with George killing Lennie. It was very sad, but it was definitely the right decision. There weren't really many other options with Lennie's disability. I think it was very brave of George to do this and it should have been him instead of the other guys all along.
ReplyDeleteI don't think George should have killed Lennie. George could have led the men away and come back for Lennie and Candy. They could have gotten the house and the land and lived uninterrupted for the rest of their lives. Steinbeck wanted to send the message of doing what's right but in this case I don't think it was right. Killing is wrong, it doesn't matter who the other person is.
ReplyDeleteKilling someone is never something good. I think George should of ran away with Lennie to where they could live in peace with no one to cause any trouble. I think the reason George killed him is because all the other guys were getting close to their hiding spot and if they saw Lennie alive they would of killed him, and George wanted to be the one to kill Lennie not anyone else.
ReplyDeleteGeorge had a very difficult decision to make. He knew that Curley was after Lennie one way or another and, I believe that George made the right choice to kill Lennie, rather that somebody else doing so. Candy regretted not being the one to kill his dog that he had raised since it was a puppy. I think that George learned from this and decided that it would be best for the both of them to be the one to shoot Lennie. There were other alternatives, such as reporting Lennie to the police and sending him to prison, putting him into a mental hospital, or even letting Curley get to him. I think that George made the best decision. I think that Steinbeck’s message was that doing what is easy isn’t always right, and doing what is right isn’t always easy. It was a hard decision for George, but he knew that it would be the best for Lennie.
ReplyDeleteI think that what George did was the best thing to do, Lennie would have been shot by Curley or Carlson, and George would of rather he shot him than for them to. I'm not sure what I would of done in a situation like that. I feel like it was for Lennie's own good, he really couldn't survive on his own, and George wasn't going to be around forever. George needed to live his life too, and Lennie might of been locked up in a mental hospital and treated terribley. I think the whole situation of shooting the old dog was a lot like the ending of the book. It was for the dog's good, and it didn't hurt the dog, just put it out of it's misery. Lennie didn't have misery per say, but he would've been a lot more trouble to George and maybe other people later on in life if George hadn't done what he had done. If there was an option where Lennie didn't have to be killed, then George would of seized it, but the men were coming for Lennie anyways, so he figured it would be better for him to shoot him and make it painless. Candy didn't get to shoot his own dog, Carlson did it for him, and George didn't want that to be the case with him and Lennie.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Amanda. George faced a tough decision, a decision that many, including myself would not know how to handle. George eventually came to the decision that it would be better for him to shoot Lennie than for Carlson or Curley too. Also, George's situation with Lennie in a way co-insides with Candy's decision to have Carlson shoot his old dog. Even though the decision was tough for these two characters, they delt with it the best they could, and did so in order to in a sense move on and live their lives defined by their own terms, which they couldn't have done (especially in George's case) with their other "half".
DeleteKilling Lenmie was a difficult decision for George; in the moment it was the right thing to do brcause it saved Lennie from a worse fate. It was the best choice. The only other alternative would have been to start over again; this wouldn't have worked, it didn't at this ranch, why would it at another? Steinbeck's possible message was that when it comes to 'family', Lennie and George, Candy and his dog, the person closet needs to be the one to make the decision- only they can know what's best.
ReplyDeleteI think that George killing Lennie was the best choice. Lennie was constantly getting in trouble, even though he did not mean to. If George had not killed Lennie the other men would have found a way to kill him themselves. He died thinking of something happy and he was not in a panic, like he could have been if the other men found him. They could have ran away together again, but the other men might have caught up to them and they had no job to go to. I thik George made the right decision because he was doing what was best for Lennie. The ending is very sad and it was almost foreshadowed throughout the entire book.
ReplyDeleteI believe George had to kill Lennie. Although it is never good to kill, by George killing Lennie, George saved Lennie much harm. He was not aware of what was about to happen and was killed quickly and painlessly instead of being murdered by a mob. Even if they ran away to the farm there is no garuntee they would be safe there. Lennie had to live always expecting to be criticized by George and by quickly killing him he put Lennie out of his suffering.
ReplyDelete