A Rumor of War

A Rumor of War

by

Philip Caputo

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PFC Peter Devlin Character Analysis

PFC Lockhart’s friend. Caputo describes the nineteen-year-old as “an all-American boy,” with blond hair, blue eyes, and the body of “a middleweight wrestler.”Corporal Gunderson later finds him dead, and Caputo helps to identify his body. Devlin had once gotten into trouble for sleeping on post, and Caputo made a plea of leniency for him because he was generally a good marine. The skipper let him off with a warning, and Devlin thanked Caputo for the favor.

PFC Peter Devlin Quotes in A Rumor of War

The A Rumor of War quotes below are all either spoken by PFC Peter Devlin or refer to PFC Peter Devlin . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Heroism and Identity Theme Icon
).
Chapter Twelve Quotes

That night, I was given command of a new platoon. They stood in formation in the rain, three ranks deep. I stood front and center, facing them. Devlin, Lockhart, and Bryce were in the first rank, Bryce standing on his one good leg, next to him the faceless Devlin, and then Lockhart with his bruised eye sockets bulging. Sullivan was there, too, and Reasoner and all the others, all of them except me, the officer in charge of the dead. I was the only one alive and whole, and when I commanded […] they faced right, slung their rifles, and began to march. They marched along, my platoon of crippled corpses, hopping along on the stumps of their legs, swinging the stumps of their arms, keeping perfect time while I counted cadence. I was proud of them, disciplined soldiers to and beyond the end. They stayed in step even in death.

Related Characters: Philip Caputo (speaker), Lance Corporal James Bryce, PFC Lockhart , Sergeant Hugh John “Sully” Sullivan, Lieutenant Frank Reasoner , PFC Peter Devlin
Related Symbols: Officer in Charge of the Dead
Page Number: 199
Explanation and Analysis:
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PFC Peter Devlin Quotes in A Rumor of War

The A Rumor of War quotes below are all either spoken by PFC Peter Devlin or refer to PFC Peter Devlin . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Heroism and Identity Theme Icon
).
Chapter Twelve Quotes

That night, I was given command of a new platoon. They stood in formation in the rain, three ranks deep. I stood front and center, facing them. Devlin, Lockhart, and Bryce were in the first rank, Bryce standing on his one good leg, next to him the faceless Devlin, and then Lockhart with his bruised eye sockets bulging. Sullivan was there, too, and Reasoner and all the others, all of them except me, the officer in charge of the dead. I was the only one alive and whole, and when I commanded […] they faced right, slung their rifles, and began to march. They marched along, my platoon of crippled corpses, hopping along on the stumps of their legs, swinging the stumps of their arms, keeping perfect time while I counted cadence. I was proud of them, disciplined soldiers to and beyond the end. They stayed in step even in death.

Related Characters: Philip Caputo (speaker), Lance Corporal James Bryce, PFC Lockhart , Sergeant Hugh John “Sully” Sullivan, Lieutenant Frank Reasoner , PFC Peter Devlin
Related Symbols: Officer in Charge of the Dead
Page Number: 199
Explanation and Analysis: