Zach.
Ms. Hughes
English 10 – Block 3
26 September 2024
Friends, the people that we can trust and confide with. The people who we would do nearly
anything for. However, doing something for these people might come at a cost or with risk.
Throughout literature, many authors use literary devices such as conflicts and imagery to convey
the difficulty of these decisions. Throughout his novel Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck uses
characters such as George and Candy and their internal conflicts of varying stakes to articulate
the underlying theme, “Helping a friend can require a hard decision.”
John Steinbeck uses the event of George taking in Lennie to display the theme by showing
George sacrificing his original American dream to take care of Lennie. In the beginning of the
book, George berates Lennie for his incompetence and how he could be successful if he was
alone, saying if I was alone, I could live so easy. I could go get a job an’ work… (Steinbeck 11).”
Later, George is talking to Slim about Lennie. George talks about his and Lennie’s past, stating
“When [Lennie’s] Aunt Clara died, Lennie just come along with me out workin’. Got kinda used
to each other after a little while (Steinbeck 40).” These 2 quotes exhibit how conflicted George
was as he felt it was his incumbent duty to take care of Lennie, but also wanting to live out his
own American dream. This connects to the idea of how internal struggles underscore the theme.
In addition to the prior example, Steinbeck also utilizes the event of Carlson putting down
Candy’s dog to provide a bleaker demonstration of how internal conflicts support the theme.
After Slim and George are done talking, Carlson and Candy walked in. Carlson smells Candy’s
dog and tries to get Candy put it down, insisting that “He ain't no good to you, Candy. An' he
ain't no good to himself… (Steinbeck 45).” This forces Candy into an agonizing internal conflict
in which he must choose between holding on to his lifelong friend or putting him out of his
misery. This event reinforces the idea that a hard decision may be required to help a friend.
Finally, Steinbeck employs the final act of the story of George killing Lennie as a pivotal
example of the use of internal conflict throughout the book and how it connects to the main
theme. As George finds Lennie, he begins to acknowledge Lennie’s imminent capture, and in a
sad yet amicable act, comforts Lennie before killing him, stating "I ain’t mad. I never been
mad… (Steinbeck 106).” This rearticulates the main theme by showing George making a harsh
decision that bettered his friend, connecting to the idea that “Helping a friend can require a hard
decision.”
In conclusion, John Steinbeck utilized the character’s conflicts to convey the underlying theme
of the story. He does this by showing George’s struggle over taking in Lennie, Candy letting
Carlson kill his dog, and finally by showing George making the hard decision to kill Lennie. All
of these are prominent examples of sacrifice for the sake of a friend, leading back to the theme of
“Helping a friend can require a hard decision.”
