Of Mice and Men

In the two novels Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck and A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines there are many themes that are demonstrated using some of the characters relationships in the novels. One of these themes is the sacrifice one has to make in life, in order to make an impact that affects many lives. In Of Mice and Men, George sacrifices really living his life in order to take care of Lennie because he promised his aunt that, that is what he would do, help him out and be his caretaker. In A Lesson Before Dying, Grant sacrificed time that he could have used to accomplish something else, but used it to attempt to turn Jefferson into a man before death so he would have decent morals and learn the correct way to act, as a respectable man. Also, Jefferson's life was sacrificed in order to create a hero for the black community. Sacrifice is mandatory to reach greater things in life, and without it, success would be overly tough to achieve. Not being able to accomplish what you desire because of another individual is a terrible thing to happen, but if you care enough for somebody or something, you will know how much it takes out of you to give up what you really want, yet still make that sacrifice, just because you care that much for that other individual. In Of Mice and Men George gives up doing great things in his life, potentially dying in a metaphorical sense. He did not have the chance to take care of anything besides Lennie. He has become overly occupied because he has to keep an eye on Lennie, take care of him, comfort him, and make sure that he doesn’t get them fired from their current job. When Lennie “done another bad thing”, he says to George “Well, I can go away, I’ll go right off in the hills an’ find a cave if you don’t want me” (99) but George did not take his offer even though he might have liked to, instead he comforts Lennie by saying: “No, I want you to stay with me here”. Even though George can go off on his own, keep his money for