The document discusses friendship in the novels Of Mice and Men and The Outsiders. In Of Mice and Men, George cares for his mentally challenged friend Lennie and ultimately shoots Lennie as an act of mercy. In The Outsiders, Ponyboy and Johnny share a strong friendship and kill to protect each other, later hiding out and realizing their friendship is all they have. Both novels examine how the characters rely on friendship to survive.

1. “Your friend is the man who knows all about you and still likes you”, a quote by Elbert Hubbard explains why the characters in both Of Mice and Men and The Outsiders fought for their friendship even after what their friend might of have done in the past. Friendship in the novels The Outsiders and Of Mice and Men make the characters realize how much they need of each other in order to survive. Although friendship is a reason to live, it is sometimes worth dying for.The novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck shows many forms of friendship; like the one between George and Lennie. The two men learn how to appreciate each others company because they realize that’s all they have in their lives. George takes care of Lennie who has a hard time staying out of trouble because he is mentally challenged and always ends up helping him get out of his issues. Although George does not have to take care of Lennie, he continues to do it because he really cares about Lennie and of his safety. At the end of the novel, George has a very difficult situation he must handle; he has to decide to either kill his best friend and companion to save both of their lives or run away like they have always done. Even though George’s decision of shooting Lennie might of had appeared selfish, it was the proper choice because he wouldn’t have let another person kill Lennie than himself without feeling guilty. This act of mercy showed how much George cared of Lennie and how he took care of the situation without Lennie or anyone else getting hurt.Another novel that shows different kinds of friendships is The Outsiders. Ponyboy and Johnny’s friendship was so strong that they would kill for each other, which they did. When Johnny stabbed and killed Bob to save Ponyboy’s life, they both knew that they were in serious trouble and that they had to hide. While hiding in an abandoned church, Ponyboy and Johnny were closer than they had ever been before; and they knew that all they had was each other.