Lennie Panic In John Steinbeck's Of Mice And Men

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The reason that Lennie panic is because Curley’s wife ask him to stroke her hair but then he ends up not letting go and she start to complain, “Lennie was in a panic. His face was contorted. She screamed then, and Lennie’s other hand closed over her mouth and nose. “Please don’t,” he begged. “Oh! Please don’t do that. George’ll be mad.”’ ( “Of Mice and Men” pg. 91). When she start to scream, Lennie panicked. He scare that he would get in trouble, ‘“Now don’t,” he said. “I don’t want you to yell. You gonna get me in trouble jus’ like George says you will. Now don’t you do that.”’ ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.91) he started shaking her to make her stop yelling, “He shook her then, and he was angry with her. “Don’t you go yellin’,” he said, and he shook her; and her body flopped like a fish.” ( “Of Mice an Men” pg.91). The result of his panic is the death of Curley’s wife, “He looked down at her, and carefully he removed his hand from over her mouth, and she lay still….When she didn’t answer nor move he bent closely over her. He lifted her arm and let it drop… he whispered in fright, “I done a bad thing. I done another bad thing.”’ ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.91) He was shaking her so hard that cause her neck breaks, he does not mean to kill her on purpose but as we know Lennie is a big strong man. In my opinion, I think Steinbeck use the death of mouse and puppy to foreshadow the death of Curley’s wife. Lennie is a strong man and mice are so little so he’s small touch could cause dead to the mice, “I’d pet ‘em, and pretty soon they bit my fingers and I pinched their heads a little and then they was dead-because they was so little.” ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.10). It can cause death to puppy even though the puppy are not small as the mice, “Why do you got to get killed? You ain’t so little as mice.” ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.85). From these we know Lennie’s small action can have a huge impact. Which he was shaking Curley’s wife so hard, definitely she will be cause to dead. The dress that Curley’s wife wore is also another foreshadow of her own death, “She wore her bright cotton dress and the mules with the red ostrich feather.” ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.86). In fact, we know that Lennie like to touch soft thing. He has no control with touching the …show more content…
Now her rouged cheeks and reddened lips made her seem alive and sleeping very lightly. The curls, tiny little sausages, were spread on the hay behind her head, and her lips were parted.” ( “Of Mice and Men” pg.93). I think the way Steinbeck describe Curley’s wife in death is kind of ironic because the dead Curley's wife are described more vibrant than when she was alive. Her death seems the relief to her from the difficult life that she have, “Curley’s wife lay with a half-covering of yellow hay. And the meanness and the plannings and the discontent and the ache for attention were all gone from her face.” ( “Of Mice and Men”

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