“People don’t like to be conquered, and so they will not be”: The Enduring Appeal of The Moon Is Down

Danica Čerče

doi:10.4312/an.57.2.29-44

Authors

Danica Čerče University of Ljubljana

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4312/an.57.2.29-44

Keywords:

John Steinbeck, The Moon Is Down, art and propaganda, public and critical response, resistance movement

Abstract

The essay deals with the novel The Moon Is Down (1942) by American Nobel Prize winning writer John Steinbeck. Withing a year after its publication, the novel evolved into a play and movie. The appearance of this slim volume came as a shock to readers eagerly waiting another book on the same epic scale as its monumental predecessor, The Grapes of Wrath. During World War II, The Moon Is Down successfully served as a work of propaganda, as Steinbeck intended, raising morale in the European resistance movement. However, the work is not contingent upon time or place and deserves more critical attention. Reflecting delusions, traumas, and fears of a historical period, and the collective effort for survival, The Moon Is Down is also a study of today’s world in a state of conflict. By creating new awareness and conveying the idea about the unconquerable spirit of those reacting to the assault on freedom and democracy, it offers the assurance the people of Ukraine and Gaza, among others, want to hear.

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