Where Should The Line Be Drawn?
?
“As soon as men decide that all
means are permitted to fight an
evil, then their good becomes
indistinguishable from the evil they
set out to destroy”--Christopher Dawson
Kurt Vonnegut, author of Mother Night, weaves an intriguing novel with his brilliant use of plot, theme, and character. This story is about a man, Howard W. Campbell, Jr., who becomes involved in the war as an American agent, and is on trial for committing war crimes. In the guise of a Nazi radio ...
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for crimes committed while under cover. Howard eventually turns himself in and is sent to Israel to be tried for war crimes. In the novel Mother Night, Howard’s crimes are not justified by his position in the CIA. Werner Noth, Police Chief of Berlin and Campbell’s father-in-law, believes that Campbell is a spy from the beginning. In a conversation with Campbell, Noth tells him he doesn’t care if he is a spy “because you could never have served the enemy as well as you served us”(80). This statement supports the idea that Campbell does his job too well and causes more harm than good.
Vonnegut divides the setting of the novel into three distinct categories. After living in America as a child, Campbell and his parents move to Germany. Howard eventually becomes a playwright in the German language and marries German actress, Helga Noth. Sadly, Helga is presumed dead during the war. In 1938, Howard Campbell is recruited by Major Frank Wirtanen to be an American ...
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With much help from Wirtanen, Campbell is set free again. This same night, Campbell turns himself in to stand trial in Israel.
In an Israeli prison, Campbell writes his memoirs. In the final chapter of the novel, Campbell faces his trial to be held the following day. Many people are willing to testify against him, but no one is willing to testify for him. At the last minute, Howard receives a letter from Frank Wirtanen who has agreed to testify on Campbell’s behalf. Campbell goes on to say, “So I am about to be a free man again, to wander where I please. I find the prospect nauseating. I think that tonight is the night I will hang Howard W. Campbell, Jr., for crimes against ...
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Where Should The Line Be Drawn?. (2008, June 14). Retrieved April 16, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Where-Should-The-Line-Be-Drawn/85227
"Where Should The Line Be Drawn?." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 14 Jun. 2008. Web. 16 Apr. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Where-Should-The-Line-Be-Drawn/85227>
"Where Should The Line Be Drawn?." Essayworld.com. June 14, 2008. Accessed April 16, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Where-Should-The-Line-Be-Drawn/85227.
"Where Should The Line Be Drawn?." Essayworld.com. June 14, 2008. Accessed April 16, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Where-Should-The-Line-Be-Drawn/85227.
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