This is a haunting novella by Steinbeck about a small town in the midst of WWII. There are the brave conquerors and the simple miners. But, the conquered become the conquering or at the very least, they cannot be said to be defeated because they have the power to fight back in every little way, they are the free people. Free people can never be conquered. There is bitterness and hatred of the town people to the soldiers and there is fear and longing and the illusion of power of the soldiers to the town people. "The fly has conquered the flypaper."
"Free men cannot start a war, but once it is started, they can fight on in defeat. Herd men, followers of a leader, cannot do that, and so it is always the herd men who win battles and the free men who win wars."
How has a group of people ever been incorporated within a new government against their will? It seems impossible.
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