The old
dog and Candy himself are symbolic of what happens when someone outlives his usefulness. The dog
has lived a long life as Candy's companion but no longer serves any purpose. He smells bad, is
blind and has a bad coat. Carlson, a static character whose main purpose in the novel is to kill
the dog, complains:
Well, I cant stand him in here, said Carlson. That stink hangs around even after
hes gone. He walked over with his heavy-legged stride and looked down at the dog. Got no
teeth, he said. Hes all stiff with rheumatism. He aint no good to you, Candy. An he aint no
good to himself. Whynt you shoot him, Candy?
Candy can't bring himself to
put the dog down, but Carlson volunteers, and Slim, whose "opinions were law," thinks
it's the best thing to do. Slim reiterates Carlson's claim that the dog is no longer
useful:Carls right,
Candy. That dog aint no good to himself. I wisht somebodyd shoot me if I get old an a
cripple.
Symbolically, the dog is similar to Candy. The old swamper, who
lost his hand in a ranch accident, has also outlived his purpose. He fears that he will soon be
fired from the ranch since he can no longer work as hard as the other men. He expresses this
fear after he offers to contribute his money for the farm thatwants to buy. He says,
Maybe if I give you guys my
money, youll let me hoe in the garden even after I aint no good at it. An Ill wash dishes an
little chicken stuff like that. But Ill be on our own place, an Ill be let to work on our own
place. He said miserably, You seen what they done to my dog tonight? They says he wasnt no
good to himself nor nobody else. When they can me here I wisht somebodyd shoot me. But they wont
do nothing like that. I wont have no place to go, an I cant get no more jobs.
Unfortunately for Candy, the dream of the farm is shattered afteraccidentally kills
Curley's wife. In Chapter Five, George is no longer interested in buying the farm because he
knows he will have to kill Lennie. Lennie, too, has outlived his purpose. He can no longer live
in society because of his actions. The dog, Candy and Lennie become castaways in a society which
cannot be burdened by the old, the crippled or the mentally challenged.
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