Death In Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men And S. E.
Death is the inevitable end that everybody fears, if not for themselves then for their loved ones. As Jean Dubos put it best, “Death is a law, not a punishment.” Stopping death’s claim that will eventually have everyone is beyond possibility, but living life to the fullest until there is no more life to live is one. Then there are the ones left behind, however; the husbands and wives, the daughters and sons, the best friends. In John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men and S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders, death is a topic all characters are well acquainted with by the end of each book, due to unfortunate mistakes or choices made by some, leaving the rest of the miserable characters missing their best friends. These deaths force loneliness upon many characters
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Johnny from The Outsiders is a young teen whose true family is “the Greasers” and is forced to run away when he bravely murdered someone to protect Ponyboy Curtis, another Greaser. While hiding, Johnny saved children from a burning church, but an injury sustained by this caused his death. Lennie from Of Mice and Men is a large man which comes as a disadvantage because of his mental challenges. Lennie accidentally murdered a woman, and was getting hunted down by Curley, the widower, when George, Lennie’s best friend, shoots Lennie is the head to make his death as quick and painless as possible. Johnny's slow death leaves the gang with loneliness that’s unbearable for some. Ponyboy is in complete denial of his friend’s death, saying, “Johnny was dead. But he wasn’t. That still body back in the hospital wasn’t Johnny,” But Pony later came to accept the truth; that Johnny was the still body in the hospital bed. Lennie’s death leaves George with no best friend and a pain that he may never recover from. Death creates a pit in one’s stomach that, for George, resulted in loneliness, guilt, and regret. For the gang this death resulted in loneliness and guilt. With time, these negative feelings will fade, but the loneliness these characters possess may never be completely
Johnny from The Outsiders is a young teen whose true family is “the Greasers” and is forced to run away when he bravely murdered someone to protect Ponyboy Curtis, another Greaser. While hiding, Johnny saved children from a burning church, but an injury sustained by this caused his death. Lennie from Of Mice and Men is a large man which comes as a disadvantage because of his mental challenges. Lennie accidentally murdered a woman, and was getting hunted down by Curley, the widower, when George, Lennie’s best friend, shoots Lennie is the head to make his death as quick and painless as possible. Johnny's slow death leaves the gang with loneliness that’s unbearable for some. Ponyboy is in complete denial of his friend’s death, saying, “Johnny was dead. But he wasn’t. That still body back in the hospital wasn’t Johnny,” But Pony later came to accept the truth; that Johnny was the still body in the hospital bed. Lennie’s death leaves George with no best friend and a pain that he may never recover from. Death creates a pit in one’s stomach that, for George, resulted in loneliness, guilt, and regret. For the gang this death resulted in loneliness and guilt. With time, these negative feelings will fade, but the loneliness these characters possess may never be completely