Grace Kwon
York – 4th
Pre-AP American Literature
23 March 2015
Comparisons of Shootings In Of Mice and Men, the two tragic shootings of Candy’s dog and Lennie were surprised to the readers. As discussed in class, both of the shootings had many similarities. Both shootings happened to be the death of someone or something that was a life-long companion to someone else. Candy’s dog was by Candy’s side ever since its birth. Candy’s dog was the only character in the book that Candy would look forward to spending time with because of their close bond. Lennie on the other hand was George’s only and best friend. George had known Lennie since they were young and always had a close bond together. In the book, readers see that for George and Lennie, traveling together around the country is normal, but others find it very odd. This shows that their friendship is strong, even in times of trial or happiness. However, the actual reason for the shooting of the two characters vary. The reason for the death of Candy’s dog was for no illegal reason at all. The sole reason was the Carlson believed the dog was not beneficial to anyone in the farm and was too stinky to sleep around. Carlson had to reluctantly allow Carlson to kill his dog, who was innocent. However, Lennie was killed because he committed a crime that was punishable by law. Lennie accidently killed Curley’s wife and ran away because of fright. Since Lennie committed a crime, he was actually “worthy” of being killed and being punished for his actions. Although Lennie was mentally challenged, he was still responsible for his actions & therefore died a rightful death. Candy’s dog was also cared for after his death and was buried. Slim reminded Carlson to take a shovel to bury the dog after it was shot. However, Lennie was not buried. After Lennie was shot by George, everyone either comforted George or