In Chapter Six, the story ends where it began, but the values of the setting have changed. Instead of a place of sanctuary, the pool is now a place of death. Instead of the rabbits playing in the brush, the heron is swallowing the little snake whole. Instead of green leaves and a gentle breeze, there are brown, dying leaves and a gush of wind. Instead of safety for Lennie, there is death. Instead of companionship for George, there is a future of loneliness.
Lennie experiences two visions in this last scene. One is Aunt Clara who scolds Lennie for letting George down and not listening to him. The other is a gigantic rabbit who berates Lennie and tells him George will beat him and leave him. In neither of these visions does Lennie experience feelings of remorse or guilt for what he did to Curley's wife. In fact, neither his conjured Aunt Clara or the giant rabbit scold him for that act. In regards to Curley's wife, Lennie simply knows that he "did a bad thing" and that the consequences will be severe. His thoughts, though, focus on the pattern he and George have established when Lennie does bad things: George scolds him, threatens to leave him, and then ends up telling him once again about their dream of a ranch. The fact that Lennie anticipates the same pattern this time is indicative of his childlike innocence. Instead of asking George right away for the story of the farm, he asks him for the story of "giving me hell." He knows this will make George feel better, and everything will be alright again.
