George and Lennie are two migrant workers and have been friends since childhood. They travel from farm to farm looking for work. George is a small man but wise in many ways. Lennie is his opposite, a giant of a man but with a child’s mind. The two men talk about the future as they camp out at night, and it is clear that Lennie has a mild mental disability, is devoted to George, and depend on him for protection and guidance. Lennie loves to pet animals but often accidentally kills them. He has been carrying and stroking a dead mouse. When George finds out he fears that Lennie might catch a disease from the dead animal and angrily throws it away. George complains about Lennie, but we can tell he cares for Lennie, and their friendship is mutual. George and Lennie have a dream of buying a farm and keeping rabbits. George often tells Lennie about how wonderful life will be when they finally get to that farm.
When they arrive at the next ranch to work, George protects Lenny just like he always has, and does all the talking for the both of them. They meet Candy, an old man with a missing hand and his even older dog. They meet Curley, the boss’s cruel son. Curley just married a young pretty wife and is jealous of everyone she comes into contact with. Sure enough, Curley's wife flirts with George and Lennie in the bunkhouse where the hired help lives. George knows she is trouble and warns Lennie to stay away from her. George is always protecting Lennie. They meet Slim, a highly respected ranch hand. Slim notices the rare friendship between George and Lennie. Slim's dog also just gave birth to several puppies. Another ranch hand, Carlson, suggests Slim give one of the puppies to Candy and shoot Candy's old dog to put it out of its misery. Candy refuses to kill his own dog. Slim agrees to give Lennie one of his puppies, but Carlson continues to badger Candy to kill his old dog. When Slim agrees with Carlson, saying that death would be a welcome relief to the suffering animal, Candy finally gives in. Candy cares so much for the dog; he is unable to do it himself. Carlson, promises to do the job for him painlessly, and leads the dog out. This incident foreshadows later events.
Right after the deed is done, Candy regrets it. He thinks he should have taken care of killing his own dog himself, after all he loves his dog. He sees no future for himself on the ranch. When Candy overhears George and Lennie discussing their plans to buy land, he offers his life’s savings if they will let him live there too. The three make a pact to let no one else know of their plan. Now all three men have something to work for. One day when Curley is frustrated, he looks for an easy target for his anger. He finds Lennie and picks a fight with him. Lennie crushes Curley’s hand in the fight. Slim warns Curley that if he tries to get George and Lennie fired, he will be the laughingstock of the farm. Curley keeps quiet but now he has a grudge against Lennie.
One day, Lennie accidentally kills his new puppy in the barn. Curley’s wife comes to console him. She admits that life with Curley is a disappointment, and wishes that she had followed her dream of becoming a movie star. Lennie tells her that he loves petting soft things, and she offers to let him feel her hair. When he grabs it too tightly, she cries out in pain. In his attempt to silence her, he accidentally breaks her neck. When George finds out he tells Lennie to run away and meet him in the spot they’ve designated as the meeting place if either of them is in trouble. We can tell George has already decided what he must do next, and that he does not have the stomach for it.
As the men back at the ranch discover what has happened and gather together a lynch mob, George catches up with Lennie. Lennie is relieved that George is not mad at him for doing “a bad thing.” George begins to tell Lennie the story of the farm they always dreamed about. As he describes the rabbits that Lennie will tend, he can hear the sound of the lynch mob approaching. George takes a gun out and shoots his friend in the back of the head. When the other men arrive, George lets them believe that Lennie had the gun, and George wrestled it away from him and shot him. Only Slim understands what has really happened, that George has killed his friend out of mercy rather than let Lennie face the angry mob.
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