"The Moon is Down" Question 4

In "The Moon is Down" there isn't a set hero of the novel. If I had to choose someone, although, it would have to be Mayor Orden.  He is the Mayor of the town shocker right?  In the beginning it shows him meeting the crazies who invaded his town.  They tell him all these things they need him to do in order to "make the process easier on the town".  Orden puts his big boy pants on tells them no.  He refuses to tell his people to comply to their orders because he knows it's wrong.  Through out "The Moon is Down" the Mayor is always portrayed as the good guy who is always trying to help his town best he can with out adding more friction to the current predicament.  The Mayor is unconditionally kind to those who deserve it and he is very clever.  He realizes he has little power or say in the current situation, but he utilizes all that he does have to the border line.   Mayor Orden is portrayed, honestly,  as the old guy that everyone knows.  They describe him as being the person even the elders in the town now come to think of when someone says the word "mayor".  He is a sweet man who wants the best for everyone in his town and does his best to make sure that happens.  He accomplishes getting a few people out of the town safely to escape their certain death.  He also sets up for weapons and man power to be sent to their town so they can try to do something about the crazy soldiers ruling their town.  In the end he is taken as prisoner to use as blackmail against the towns people basically.  The soldiers are hoping if they threaten his life along with Doctor Winter, another esteemed member of the town, it might whip people into shape and they'll do what they're told a little easier.  Those two being taken as prisoner is the end of the book so we never really find out if it worked or not.  In my previous blog I blogged about the theme of the book.  In my opinion it is hope.  I also believe that, to the town, Mayor Orden symbolized hope.  He was the upstanding authority figure to everyone and if he was doing ok and said that everything was going to be ok they believed him and had hope.  If the Mayor had died or gone crazy, basically if he had lost his wits and stopped hoping, the town would have gone down hill fast.  The soldiers, in my opinion, were headed in the right direction by taking him prisoner.  They were headed in the correct direction for their purposes of course.  

Simon, Marion, and C. Bosker. John Steinbeck: The Moon Is down. Paterswolde: Dalcomtext, 1997. Print.