In Chapter 6 George does two closely linked things he has rarely — if ever — done before: he makes a tender, explicit emotional admission and he gives Lennie a carefully intended reassurance.
- The admission (rare emotional honesty): George tells Lennie directly that he isn’t angry with him. In simple words he says something like, “I ain’t mad. I never been mad, an’ I ain’t now.” This is significant because George normally hides or masks his deeper feelings; he rarely allows himself to show that level of affection and pity so plainly.
- The reassurance (the deliberate comfort): George repeats the comforting dream of the little farm and the rabbits — the same story he has told Lennie before — but now he tells it slowly and lovingly, making sure Lennie dies thinking of the happiest thing he knows. By doing this George calms Lennie, keeps him from fear, and gives him a peaceful, hopeful image in his last moments.
Why does George do this?
- To spare Lennie an awful end. George knows that if the others (Curley and the lynch mob) find Lennie, he will be terrified, hurt, and probably brutally killed. George wants Lennie to die without fear and with a happy thought.
- To take responsibility. George understands that he has power over Lennie’s fate and that, in many ways, his decisions and the world’s pressures have led to this moment. By comforting Lennie and then taking the final action himself, George assumes responsibility and tries to control a merciful outcome.
- To relieve his own conscience. The tenderness and the admission (“I ain’t mad…”) are part of George’s attempt to reconcile his love for Lennie with the terrible necessity he faces. The reassurance helps both men — it calms Lennie and it lets George act out of mercy rather than cruelty or cowardice.
What this reveals about George’s feelings and sense of responsibility:
- George truly cares for Lennie. The frank, emotional admission shows that George’s relationship to Lennie is not only practical (a partnership to get by) but deeply personal and protective.
- He feels guilt and responsibility. George’s willingness to be the one to end Lennie’s life — and to do so in a way that spares Lennie pain — shows he feels partly responsible for what has happened. He cannot let a cruel or vengeful fate be Lennie’s end if he can prevent it.
- He chooses mercy. The combination of admission and reassurance demonstrates that George’s final act is motivated by pity, love, and a moral burden: he wants Lennie to die peacefully rather than suffer at the hands of others. It’s an admission that his guardianship includes making the hardest possible decision.
In short: the admission that he isn’t mad and the careful reassurance (the repeated dream) are George’s last, tender acts of protection. They show that he is emotionally attached to Lennie, feels responsible for him, and accepts the painful duty of ending Lennie’s life himself to spare him a worse fate.