Summary

In Chapter 18, Addison addresses his intended reader, saying the college application gave six options for an essay, and he chose to list his best and worst qualities. He says the other questions were ridiculous. He asks the reader to have a little more patience for him to finish the story.

Addison gave the historical definition of the November Criminals. The term first came into being as “a slur aimed at the German politicians who signed the Treaty of Versailles” (227). Some people felt they capitulated too easily and were traitors. The term came into popularity in Germany during the interwar years” to describe the “fears and hatreds of a whole constellation of political interests” (226). The country was in the throes of disaster with corrupt officials, soldiers who could not earn a living, and the anti-Semites. Addison refers to a book called Before Us Darkness...