Think Before Doing
In John Steinbeck's novel, Of Mice and Men, characters made pivotal decisions that had severe consequences. These decisions lead to the ultimate conclusion of the novel, which is both heartbreaking and dissatisfying. Curley, Curley's wife, and George are three characters that can be most-easily identified for the choices they made and the consequences that resulted from these choices.
From the beginning, Curley was a character drawn to be disliked. He was selfish, arrogant, and pompous, leading most readers to view him as bothersome. In chapter three, Curley made the careless decision to pick a fight with Lennie. "He slashed at Lennie with his left, and then smashed down his nose with his right...He [Lennie] backed until he was against the wall, and Curley followed, slugging him in the face." (Steinbeck, 63) Curley was under the impression that he was bigger, badder, and better than everyone else. He used his self-established dominance against weaker characters like Lennie in order to sustain his own pride. Up until this point, the characters in the novel allowed Curley to get away with his behavior. But that was soon to change, for Lennie defended himself against the assualt and unintentionally broke Curley's hand. "The next minute Curley was flopping like a fish on a line, and his closed fist was lost in Lennie's big hand...Curley was white and shrunken by now, and his struggling had become weak. He stood crying, his fist lost in Lennie's paw." (63-64) Curley's pompous, arrogant, impulsive behavior got him into serious trouble and went so far as to cause physical damage. While a broken hand was definitely a huge issue, Curley also lost a large portion of the pride he valued so much. This goes to show that, as William Pollard once said, "The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow."
Curley's arrogance and self-diagnosed authority lead to the poor decisions made by his wife. He was always trying to dictate her, telling her who she was allowed to talk to and where she was allowed to go. Although Curley was somewhat justified in his controlling behavior, his wife didn't think so. Throughout the novel, Curley's wife continued to disobey her husband's orders. She didn't care about what Curley told her. This was evident when she said, "Think I don't want to talk to somebody ever' once in a while? Think I like to stick to that house alla time?" (77) and when she said, "Ain't I got a right to talk to nobody? Whatta they think I am, anyways?" (87) The problem with Curley's wife was that she's a "tart" (28) who flirted with every guy she saw. For this reason, Curley liked for her to stay at home where she couldn't get into any trouble, so to speak. Even after being warned multiple times by different characters to stay in her home, Curley's wife continued to leave and talk to the other men. Her selfishness and vanity caused her to disobey Curley and get herself killed when she privately talked to Lennie. "He shook her then, and he was angry with her...and her body flopped like a fish. And then she was still, for Lennie had broken her neck." (91) If Curley's wife had just done as she was told and stayed away from the other men, there is a strong likelihood that she would still be alive. But she was stubborn, and that resulted in the ultimate consequence.
Bribery is something that should be used few and far between. George was a character who made the mistake of using bribery far too often, and he had to deal with consequences because of it. In order to get Lennie to behave properly, George initiated a long list of bribes against him. Throughout Of Mice and Men, there was one specific bribe that stuck with Lennie all throughout the book and became the reason behind the book's ending: "But you ain't gonna get in no trouble, because if you do, I won't let you tend the rabbits." (16) At the time, George assumed that this bribe was small and relatively harmless, but he was wrong. By utilizing Lennie's weakness, George created a situation that resembled a ticking time bomb. As the plot continued, Lennie seemed to only be concerned with 'tending the rabbits'. All of Lennie's actions are dependent on whether or not he will be able to tend the rabbits, which lead to his panic in the book's final chapters. As Curley's wife screamed for Lennie to let go of her hair in chapter five, he said, "Oh! Please don't do none of that. George gonna say I done a bad thing. He ain't gonna let me tend no rabbits." Shortly following this, Lennie accidentally killed Curley's wife. His concern for the rabbits was so immense and so strong that it clouded his sense of judgment. The murder of another character was caused by one small bribe made by George, and he had to pay the consequences for that by murdering his best friend.
Curley, his wife, and George each made detrimental decisions that, when placed together, caused the death of Lennie himself. Despite the many consequences that fell into play over the course of Of Mice and Men, Lennie's death was by far the most pivotal and important consequence of them all. Lennie himself did not make any decisions that resulted in dire consequences - after all, he couldn't really think for himself and only did what he was told - but the decisions made by others affected his life in the most disastrous way possible. This is why it is always important to think before you act - a lesson that the characters in this novel did not consider.

You've Got A Friend In Me
As Walter Winchell once said, "A real friend is the one who walks in when the rest of the world walks out." Friendship is a rare and beautiful quality, one that is often underestimated and overlooked. Many assume that friendship is having someone to hang out with on Friday nights, but in truth, friendship is much more than that. When looking for an example of true friendship, one might examine the relationship between George and Lennie in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men. Both men care deeply for one another, and their friendship is proved during multiple events throughout the novel. To Lennie, George is "the one who walks in."
The friendship between George and Lennie is so strong that other characters in the novel take notice. Slim, one of their coworkers, says, "Well, I never seen one guy take so much trouble for another guy." George is constantly helping Lennie and trying to make life easier for them both, and that task is definitely easier said than done. When Curley attacked Lennie, George helped Lennie to defend himself. When Curley's wife flirted with Lennie, George advised him to stay away, going so far as to admit he was scared for Lennie. Even in the smallest of circumstances, George made sure to always be there to help Lennie and guide him through life.
George and Lennie share a goal of one day living the esteemed American Dream. This goal not only consists of owning their own farm, but also of sticking together through and through. In fact, they share a special phrase together: "...I got you to look after me, and you got me to look after you..." (14) This quote is repeated at the end of the novel, showing that even in the darkest times, their friendship will always be there. By repeating these words to each other, it gives both Lennie and George confidence that they really do need each other, and that everything will be okay as long as their friendship remains.
Of Mice and Men is a title that connects two very opposite creatures: mice and men. In terms of Lennie and George, Lennie is the mouse and George is the man. In the book's early chapters, George asks, "What you want of a dead mouse, anyway?" He is under the assumption that there is no use in carrying around a dead mouse, because there is nothing good that can come out of it. Lennie highly disagrees, saying, "I could pet it with my thumb while we walked along." This small conversation is symbolic to the role George and Lennie play as best friends. Constantly, George wonders why he puts up with Lennie, seeing as all Lennie does is cause grief. In this moment, George is reminded that even though Lennie is a 'dead mouse', there is a good purpose for him and a valuable meaning behind their friendship.
George and Lennie could not be more different. They are two sides of the same coin, almost like light and darkness. One cannot live without the other, and both men knew this. Despite their fights and their odds, the relationship George and Lennie shared is one-of-a-kind, because it is filled with tolerance, patience, understanding, and brotherly love.