What does the author reveal about his values in The Moon is Down? What perspective is this novel written in?

In the novel The Moon is Down by John Steinbeck, the author reveals that he believes that people whose homeland is being occupied during war have the true advantage. The reader can see this through the soldiers' reactions to living with the people that they are trying to control. Many times in this book the soldiers remark at how much they hate being there (Steinbeck 66). It takes a toll on them that everyone hates them and the native people never show any happiness or joy (Steinbeck 66). It is especially taxing on the soldiers because they were promised that they would be adored and that the people throw flowers at their feet, but this does not happen (Steinbeck 30). The occupying soldiers also meet resistance in almost everything they do and the people are willing to do anything to get rid of them. This includes murdering the soldiers and bombing the army's supply routes and bridges (Steinbeck 84). The reader also learns that Steinbeck thinks that trying to occupy a people is hopeless and truly dangerous for the soldier. This is made clear to the reader when one of the soldiers say that "flies conquer the fly paper" (Steinbeck 68). In this metaphor the flies are the soldiers and the fly paper is the occupied area. This metaphor means that the soldiers are trying to take over a people who are willingly to kill them or anything else to get rid of them. The army is also trying to take over a land that they know next to nothing about. The village people in this book are given a huge advantage over the soldiers because they have the home field advantage.

The Moon is Down is written in third person. Since this story is written as a drama and was meant to be acted out on stage, the reader is aware of everything the characters are doing. The fact that this book is not written in prose made this book impossible to be made third person omniscient, so the reader must rely on heavily on the characters' dialogue.

Bibliography: Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down. New York. Penguin Group USA, 2009. Print