Of Mice and Men, written in 1937 by John Steinbeck, is a classic novel about two hard working farmers, Lennie and George, who have big dreams. As their dreams become reachable, Lennie messes up by killing someone and this time George can’t protect him from it. To solve his problems and to keep Lennie from being killed by someone else, George kills him. Mercy killing of this kind is at times the right and necessary thing to do. In certain cases, such as to rid people or animals of suffering, mercy killing is the right thing to do.
Although some people say killing is always wrong, it is not true. Mercy killing at times is the right thing to do. In the movie, Of Mice and Men, Candy and his dog, who he loves more than anything, are best friends; however, this dog is old, dirty, blind, and unable to work. This dog is clearly suffering by the way it appeals to people’s sight. Although Candy doesn’t want his to dog to be killed, he tells another man he can kill it. This is mercy killing because the dog was killed so it no longer had to suffer. Although Candy was sad, he knew deep down that his dog was suffering and it would be better to rid him from his misery than to keep him alive in pain. His dog died quick and fast, so he didn’t have to suffer. In some cases, such as putting suffering animals to rest makes mercy killing okay and the right thing to do.
Because everyone has different opinions, some people would say that killing is always killing and is never the right thing to do. In the Bill of Rights, our country guarantees freedom and everyone should be allowed access to live that out. No one deserves to die for a mistake they made. It’s completely against the, “…and the land of the free..,” that we hear every time we sing the national anthem. It’s completely against the Bill of Rights. It’s completely against the “Four Freedoms” that Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed to Congress in 1941. There are many alternatives other than death, such as jail where they will die when they’re ready. According to these people, we should just let murderers walk around on the streets. For some people, killing is always wrong, unjustified, and cruel.
No one wants to lives their life as a vegetable which is why mercy killing by doctors is okay. A nineteen year old girl in New York, Lindsay, tells the story of her father on a website. One day, her dad suddenly became suck and was soon diagnosed as being HIV positive. He struggled a lot and became sick more than ever; however, he eventually accepted it and went on to speak about it in support groups. At one point he was put into a coma, but he came out of it and went on, for a brief time, to live a normal life. A short time later, he was once again in a coma, but this time he was brain dead. Lindsay and her family chose to take him off life support and “let him go to God.” Because her dad lived a life in sickness and pain, Lindsay, her family, and the doctors all agreed that it would be best to rid him of his suffering, so they let him go to rest forever. In situations where people are suffering, mercy killing is a good thing.
Mercy killing can be a solution to people in a great amount of pain. When people are asked about killing, most would say it’s always wrong, but that isn’t true. When it comes to people being a vegetable, brain dead, and out of loop, it is best to rid them of their misery than to keep them suffering. Think about it, would you really want to live your life as a vegetable?
