The Moon is Down - Chapter Two

In chapter two, the readers basically just get descriptions of the five soldiers staying with Colonel Lanser at the mayor's house. First, we learn about Major Hunter, who is apparently an engineer. "Except in case of war, no one would have thought of giving him command of men." (Steinbeck 20). From that description, we can tell that the people around him do not depend on him to be very controlling or good at leadership. He has also been married many times. Next, we learn about Captain Bentick, who is basically your friendly neighborhood family man. He is old and loves the British culture. He seems like a really sweet man, despite the fact that he is a soldier in a war. The next soldier we learn about it Captain Loft, who, unlike Bentick, is very young. Also, from what I gather, he is a complete know-it-all as well. He is all about his job as a soldier. It is his life. He is very full of himself as well. He is just overly proud of himself for being a soldier and he feels like the rest of the world revolves around him. "If he considered God at all, he thought of Him as an old and honored general, retired and gray, living among remembered battles and putting wreaths on the graves of his lieutenants several times a year." (Steinbeck 21). Obviously, war was all he cared about. After hearing about him, we learn about Lieutenants Prackle and Tonder. According to Steinbeck, they are known as snot-nosed undergraduates (Steinbeck 21). Prackle is apparently an artist of sorts, which makes me respect him a little bit, since I am an artist. He also really cares for his many blonde-haired sisters. Lieutenant Tonder is a poet who loves fantasizing about his future, such as his plans for his death. ""He imagined his death very ofter, lighted by a fair setting sun which glinted on broken military equipment, his men standing silently around him, with heads sunk low" (Steinbeck 22). For me, I would just say, "I'm going to go to bed and then pass away quietly in my sleep," but no, he has this all planned out.

Steinbeck, John. The Moon Is Down. New York: Penguin Classics, 1942. Print.