The Moon is Down: Question 8

            The Moon is Down very accurately reflects history. The novel is set in a small town, which can be assumed is in Norway. The unnamed town is invaded by a large country, Germany. The novel takes place in the late 1930’s and the early 1940's. We know at that time Germany was in the war fighting against England, Russia, and the rest of the Allied countries. They mention England and Russia in the novel (Steinbeck).

            In the novel, Steinbeck writes about some interesting relationships. The main one that stuck out to me is the respect of the town to Mayor Orden. The way Steinbeck describes it, the people all think very highly of their mayor, and want to be protected by him as much as they want him to stay protected and safe from the invaders. This loyalty seems that it is typical of a town and their mayor in the time period in which the novel takes place (Steinbeck). Another relationship he describes is the relationship between the townspeople. They all seem to respect and have great trust in each other. I think this is true because of the way they act when they find out George Corell, the town storekeeper, was spying on them and leaking the information to the invaders, so they could invade the town with much ease. This hurt them so much because they befriended them, and thought that he was one of them and never expected something like that to happen (Steinbeck). The final relationship described is the relationship of the invaders and townspeople. This relationship would be typical of any situation such as this where one place is being invaded by another. The townspeople hate the invaders, and just wish they would leave so they could have their freedom back. This relationship is typical, because no one wants to be controlled by someone else, and told what to do. It is human nature, and remains true in the novel (Steinbeck).

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 7

            In The Moon is Down, Steinbeck uses several techniques to keep the reader engaged. The first technique used by Steinbeck is suspense. Suspense is always a good way to keep a reader engaged, because it keeps them guessing. When someone is left guessing, they want to keep reading more and more. This was true for me in this novel because I read it very quickly and really enjoyed it. In the novel, he uses suspense on several occasions, especially when Molly Morden kills Lieutenant Tonder. “Molly went to the center lamp, and her burden was heavy on her. She looked down at the lamp. She looked at the table, and she saw the big scissors lying besides her knitting. She picked them up wonderingly by the blades. The blades slipped through her fingers until she held the long shears and she was holding them like a knife, and her eyes were horrified. She looked down into the lamp and the light flooded up in her face. Slowly she raised the shears and placed them inside her dress" (Steinbeck 1532). This quote, although long, shows an example of how much Steinbeck builds up suspense in the novel. We are now wondering and guessing what she is going to do. Is she going to kill him, or is she going to use them as protection in case he tries to attack her or rape her.

            Another thing that Steinbeck uses to engage the audience is mystery. We can assume, or read the introduction, that the novel is a World War II novel. Although it is labeled fiction, it could very well have happened, or something very similar to this plot. The way Steinbeck uses mystery is not typical. He uses it in that we are never directly told what the name of the town is, and that the invaders are the Nazis from Germany and the Leader is Hitler (Steinbeck). This kind of mystery lets the reader imagine their own picture of what the plot is.

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 6

          Why do we still read this book?  What is so timeless about its message and characters?  What can we learn from reading this novel? We still read The Moon is Down, because although it is an old novel, we can still learn from the messages within. The characters in the novel are part of what makes the novel so timeless. Although the invaders are not people to look at for inspiration and respect, but they are humans. That is what makes it so good; everyone is human, no matter how good or bad. The Nazis are obviously terrible people. We have been taught this in school for many years. What makes this novel different is that Steinbeck gives them these characteristics that make them seem like real people, rather than monsters. The townspeople represent strength and persistence. They never stop trying to resist the invaders. This persistence makes them admirable, because it teaches the reader that if you want something done, never stops trying (Steinbeck).  

            In the novel, we can learn several things. We can learn persistence, as I mentioned earlier, and we can also learn about unity. Unity makes everything better. If we can work together in peace, we can accomplish anything. If an entire town can work together to save up dynamite and put away their differences for the time being, then it makes things so much easier to get things done (Steinbeck). Another thing we can learn in the novel is about the nature of war. In war not only the people being invaded suffer. In the novel, the invaders gradually get more and more tired of being hated. Human nature makes us want to be accepted and liked, and if every single person you deal with during the day has so much hatred, and even killed your friend, you are bound to get a little fed up and stir crazy (Steinbeck).

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 5

            The Moon is Down reflects history very accurately. The novel takes place during World War II. Although it never directly say it, the introduction and putting it together shows that the invaders are Germany and the town is a little town in Norway. The soldiers, including the Colonel, Major, Captains, and Lieutenants, we can assume are the Nazis. They also discuss that there is a leader. They say the Leader has a very specific plan, and may or may not be a kind of crazy. Based on this, we can assume this crazy leader is Hitler. This is a World War II novel, so it is set sometime in the early to mid 1940’s. Since the novel was published in 1942, it must have taken place before then. The novel also discusses that the country is at war with England and Russia. This is another fact that proves the World War II was taking the place (Steinbeck). The book gives the reader a look into a different side of the war we do not typically hear about. The small town, which remains unnamed, is invaded for their mine and forced to work. This is very accurate, because this happened frequently during the war (Steinbeck). The novel also shows betrayal that took place during the war. In the novel, George Corell lived in the town, got to know the people, and gained their trust. When the time came, he turned on them (Steinbeck 418). This reflects history, because it was a tactic used in the war to invade smaller towns such as the one in the novel.

            The novel has symbolic and thematic significance. The novel symbolizes that everyone is human. Even the people, who can seem so evil, such as Hitler and the Nazis, are human and have human qualities and characteristics. Steinbeck describes the Nazis as dog lovers, poets, and family men (Steinbeck). This just makes them seem more human and less like monsters.

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 4

            The hero in The Moon is Down is Mayor Orden. I think the hero is Mayor Orden because he is so loyal to his people. He never turns on them, and always puts them first. Even when the invaders ask him if he will cooperate, he says he will have to talk to his people (Steinbeck 606). Mayor Orden is very kind also. He does all that he can to make sure his people are happy in a confusing and difficult time for them. Although he does not really accomplish much, because there was not much he could do in the situation, he helps people stay strong. He meets with Molly, and the Anders brothers, who all lost family, and discusses how to keep them safe (Steinbeck 1455). Even until the end of the novel, Orden encourages his people to keep resisting and fighting against the invaders, because eventually they will wear down. When the invaders finally realize that it is Mayor Orden that is keeping the townspeople from following the rules, they decide they must kill him. “Will you remember to pay the debt" (Steinbeck 1891)? These are some of the last words that Mayor Orden spoke, before being killed by the invaders. Although to most, it is just a reminder, but it was his way of saying to continue to resist. Orden’s last words proved how much he cared. He was not scared or saying goodbye, he was continuing to be strong for his people, and encourage them even more. In the novel, Mayor Orden represents loyalty. He never gives up on them when they need someone the most. After they discover it was George Corell that was helping the invaders, they felt betrayed and hurt. Orden was there to consol and make sure nothing would be changed by the invaders (Steinbeck). This is what made Mayor Orden the hero of the novel.

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 3

In The Moon is Down, there are a couple of themes discussed. The first theme is unity. I have discussed this in several blogs about the novel, because it is, in my opinion, one of the major themes I got out of the novel. They know that if they stick together, they will fight on together and never stop trying. “Defeat is a momentary thing. A defeat doesn't last. We were defeated and now we attack. Defeat means nothing. Can't you understand that? Do you know what they are whispering behind doors" (Steinbeck 844)? This quote proves y point, because the townspeople know this, which is why they stay unified and fight on.

            Another theme is that in war, both sides suffer. The invaders almost suffer more than the town being invaded. The invaders gradually start to lose themselves and their point of the mission over time. They start caring more about women and going home. They lose two of their men, both to the townspeople. They tried too hard to be liked, and they ended up being hated even more. The townspeople lost many of their people, which would have been discouraging to most, but to the people it made them want to fight more. They also lost their freedom to the invaders. They could no longer do what they pleased, and had to obey the strict rules put in place by the invaders (Steinbeck).

Steinbeck understands that it is human nature to want to be liked and accepted. This is how the invaders felt, and the fact that they were trying to be liked just made the townspeople hate them more. They wanted them to accept them, because some of the men wanted to meet a girl and settle down and have a family. They obviously did not understand no girl is going to like the people that take so much away from them (Steinbeck). Steinbeck understands that so well, which is why the novel is so good.

  

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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The Moon is Down: Question 2

            In The Moon is Down, the main conflict is that a small, unnamed town is invaded by a much larger country, which we can assume is Germany. The invaders then force the people into following their rules, and working in the mine in order to bring back the mined items back to their leader, which we can also assume is Hitler (Steinbeck).

            The cause of this conflict has to relate to things outside of the novel. In history, we know that the Hitler started the whole thing to gain power and make his perfect world. By invading the towns, he gets control and all of their valuable resources. This is why the town in the novel is invaded.

            There is not much gained from the conflict. The only people that could possibly gain from the invasion are the invaders. They get to get the products of the mine without even working in it. The townspeople only gained their unity, which I believe was always there, but they just discovered it. The struggle of the losses made them get closer and closer to one another. They work together to spread word about saving the dynamite and to have everyone save them (Steinbeck). This way of working together made them forget their differences to work together.

            The majority of things in the novel were the losses from the conflict. The invaders lost a couple of their men. They lost Captain Bentick from Alex Morden’s pick (Steinbeck 858). They also lost Lieutenant Tonder from Molly Morden stabbing him with her knitting scissors (Steinbeck 1532). The invaders suffered from the hatred of the townspeople and gradually grew further and further estranged. The townspeople lost Alex Morden, Mayor Orden, and many other townspeople (Steinbeck). The townspeople lost not only their town, but also their freedom. They could no longer go about their daily activities for fear of getting in trouble from the Nazis (Steinbeck)

           

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down, a Novel,. New York: Viking, 1942. Print

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