Irony

Irony is when the outcome that happens is the opposite of what you expected. There are many different kinds of irony in "Of Mice and Men" but the most known one is that George must kill Lennie because he loves him and to put him out of his misery per say.

"The voices came close now. George raised the gun and listened to the voices.

Lennie begged, 'Le's do it now. Le's get that place now.'

'Sure Right now. I gotta. We gotta.'

And George raised the gun and steadied it, and he brought the muzzle of it close to the back of Lennie's head. The hand shook violently, but his face set and his hand steadied. He pulled the trigger." (Steinbeck, 106)

This quote is talking about how right before George shot Lennie, he told him that they would finally get to go to that place he was always talking about. This is ironic because due to the bond George and Lennie share, it would never seem that George would end up having to kill Lennie, even though it was because he loved him.

Lennie had always wanted to go to the farm with all the rabbits, and to "send him there" George killed him instead so he wouldn't be tortured and then killed by all the farm hands. An ironic part of this is that George used the same gun to shoot Lennie to put him out of his misery, as that was used to do the same to Candy's dog.

-Daniel