tightly； you're gonna
shake； rattle； and roll before you turn thirty。 Jack could sympathize with
Grimmer's problem。 He could sympathize with the parents of the murder victims。
With the murdered children themselves； of course。 And with Monkey DeLong。 Let
the reader lay blame。 In those days he hadn't wanted to judge。 The cloak of the
moralist sat badly on his shoulders。
He had started The Little School in the same optimistic vein。 But lately he
had begun to choose up sides； and worse still； he had e to loathe his hero；
Gary Benson。 Originally conceived as a bright boy more cursed with money than
blessed with it； a boy who wanted more than anything to pile a good record so
he could go to a good university because he had earned admission and not because
his father had pulled strings； he had bee to Jack a kind of simpering Goody
Two…shoes； a postulant before the altar of knowledge rather than a sincere
acolyte； an outward paragon of Boy Scout virtues； inwardly cynical； filled not
with real brilliance （as he had first been conceived） but only with sly animal
cunning。 All through the play he unfailingly addressed Denker as 〃sir；〃 just as
Jack had taught his own son to address those older and those in authority as
〃sir。〃 He thought that Danny used the word quite sincerely； and Gary Benson as
originally conceived had too； but as he had begun Act V； it had e more and
more strongly to him that Gary was using the word satirically； outwardly
straight…faced while the Gary Benson inside was mugging and leering at Denker。
Denker； who had never had any of the things Gary had。 Denker； who had had to
work all his life just to bee head o