Part 5/6

In part 6, George decided to shoot Lennie after he accidentally killed Curley's wife. I was very surprised at first, and I thought about why in the world George would do that. I thought about all the times they spent together and how much Lennie loved George. Towards the end of part 6, I realized why George shot Lennie when Slim said, "You hadda, George. I swear you hadda" (107). This brought me back to when Slim also said, "An s'pose they lock him up an' strap him down and put him in a cage. That ain't no good" (97). Both these quotes helped me register why George would shoot Lennie. Slim was telling George what would happen to Lennie if he was found by the guys. The guys would lock him up and Lennie would be tortured. George had to make a decision because he didn't want Lennie to be harmed by any of the men on the ranch. By shooting Lennie quick, George was able to save Lennie from being tormented and living the last days of his life, in pain. I believe it was a good thing that George shot Lennie himself.