beah/ moon

Beah is like the moon in the sense he brings light to the darkness. In the story A Long Way Gone the writer/ character Beah is told to be like the moon. This means to make people smile and give them hope where there is none. Even though humans have flaws, such characteristics lead to conflicts like the one in the story, Beah shows acts of courage and bravery. In such a dark time these actions bring hope to those who need it. It can be debated that some things Beah does are not completely honorable. To say an action is wrong without understanding the circumstances that were committed is a narrow minded thought and deserves further inspection. You must put yourself in his shoes to understand that as a child soldier in the middle of a war you must do certain things to survive. He most likely caries a great deal of weight on his shoulders even more than that of Ann Frank. For instance, in the story Beah had the respect to take the dead body of a boy to a grave. This is a senseless act of kindness, one done whilst in the middle of a battle and with the pending threat of death over his head. I found this to be a strong example of how Beah has been like the moon in the fact that even in this dark time he had the ability to do such a respectful thing. That brought light into such a dark place, just like the moon does.