It all changes however when he is made to oversee the prisoner. To start with he teases and taunts the prisoner treating him as an object of comedy; he gives the prisoner simple commands in a stereotyped Japanese accent, ‘Flingers on blonce.’ Bamforth becomes extremely excited when the prisoner obeys his commands as if the prisoner is some kind of pet and he has been taught a new trick. ‘Did you see that? He did it like I said!’ He does not seem to realise that the prisoner is not talking because he cannot speak English, not because he is too stupid or incapable of speech as a dog or other animal would be
As soon as Bamforth sees the prisoner’s photographs of his family, his attitude changes again; ‘It’s a photo! It’s a picture of nippo bint!’ From this point onwards Bamforth seems to realise that the prisoner is really human and not some kind of Japanese monkey. He becomes much friendlier towards the prisoner and often defends him. This is illustrated by the fact that he gives the prisoner a cigarette. When Johnstone knocks the cigarette out of the prisoner’s mouth Bamforth takes the opportunity to start a fight, something he has been longing to do since the play began. This action may have been in defence of the prisoner but equally may have been revenge against Johnstone. This shows that his character has not changed as much as it first seemed; ‘I don’t ask you before I give a bloke a fag.’ Bamforth stoutly defends the Japanese prisoner when he is suspected of looting cigarettes from British soldiers, using irrefutable arguments in his defence; ‘I’m telling you. I gave him half a dozen nubs.’ He condemns every member of the patrol for his eagerness to inflict violence punishment on the prisoner; ‘Aren’t you the boy? So what are you waiting for? Well, come on, Jock, finish the job!’ His intense anger on finding out that the prisoner was about to be horrendously beaten shows that he has at least some level of humanity and decency. When the members of the patrol find out that the cigarette case is British as well as the cigarettes, they are again ready to beat the prisoner. It takes much more argument this time to persuade the patrol that the cigarette case has not been stolen, but Bamforth seems to manage it very well. His arguments are witty, ironic and often humorous, and he cleverly the fact that Whitaker is in possession of large amounts of Japanese items, bought at the base camp as proof of the innocence of the prisoner. His argument is that the prisoner has done the same; ‘Take a bow son. Here he is. The sole proprietor of the Samuel Whitaker War Museum.’ In doing this he also manages to bully Whitaker, something he has not done for a while. It becomes apparent just how worried Bamforth is about the welfare of the prisoner when, near the end of the play, he tries to give the prisoner water. When Mitchem tells Bamforth that they cannot spare any water, as they need it all for the journey, he is quite incredulous; he even offers the prisoner half of his own water; ‘He gets half of mine.’ When he is forbidden from doing this, he becomes quite angry. As the slow realisation creeps upon him that the prisoner is to be left behind, he becomes distraught, and in the end, loses his life defending the prisoner from the rest of the patrol. He appeals individually to every member of the patrol in turn to help him, each one turning his back on the situation. Bamforth is the only one who will protect the prisoner.
In Bamforth, unlike anyone else in the patrol, the pressure of war brings out his best qualities. At the start of the play, he uses his sharp, intelligent brain destructively, in violence and bullying. However, as the play progresses, a kinder, more friendly side of him is revealed. When it comes down to it, Bamforth is the only one out of all of them who really stands by his principles; he gives his life to try to save another.
Recently promoted to Lance Corporal by Sergeant Mitchem, Macleish is, on the whole, a very serious Scotsman who applies army rules and regulations to nearly every situation. He is often pompous, short tempered, easily provoked and quick to lose control of situations. He, at lest at the start of the play, seems to have strong moral convictions. He is also very worried about his brother, who he finds out has been posted further up country than himself.
From the first instant it becomes clear that, along with every other member of the crew, he respects Sergeant Mitchem. When Sergeant Mitchem tells him not to shoot unless he has to, Macleish meekly answers; ‘Fair enough.’ He also seems to respect, or at least relate to Corporal Johnstone. He becomes quite irritated when Bamforth makes malicious comments about Johnstone; ‘I feel it’s my duty to back up fellow N.C.O.s.’ This statement comes across as extremely pompous and self-important. He seems to think that just because he has been promoted he is better than the rest of the patrol.
Unlike Evans, Macleish does not seem to be able to take Bamforth’s provocative comments, especially when they are about his rank or Scottish nationality. This is probably because of how seriously he takes himself. He seems very determined to live up to the responsibility his recent promotion has brought, and feels very offended when Bamforth makes fun of this. He does not seem to realise how pompous he sounds. When Bamforth calls Macleish a ‘Scotch haggis’ and a ‘Bastard’ Macleish reacts in exactly the way Bamforth wants; ‘Are you looking for trouble Bamforth? Because if you are, you can have it and no messing.’ This shows how easily provoked he is; no one else seems to react to Bamforth’s insults in such a way. Later on in the first act, Bamforth makes a joke about the Scottish; ‘We’ve got two thousand Jocks up the jungle suffering from the screaming ab-dabs and going mad for women, beer and haggis.’ Macleish takes this very badly, and then tries to assert his authority over Bamforth, which makes him sound even more pompous, and simply makes the situation worse; ‘And I’ll not stand for any of your subordinations.’ Delighted by this reaction, Bamforth provokes more and more until the pair almost come to blows; ‘Try taking your tape off and saying that, you Scotch get.’ This is when the inexperience and irresponsibility of Macleish reveals itself; by allowing himself to be taken in by Bamforth’s insults, he puts everyone in the hut at risk. No one is on guard, and, when Mitchem and Johnstone return, unnoticed, the hut is in a complete mess. He tries to justify this by saying ‘I …I had occasion to reprimand…’ He then, surprisingly, tries to defend Bamforth by refusing to tell Mitchem who caused the trouble; ‘If it’s all the same to you, Sergeant, I’d prefer not to say.’ The reason for this is likely to be that he did not wish to get any more hassle from Bamforth for getting him in trouble. It could also be that he is embarrassed about being baited with such ease.
It soon becomes evident that Macleish is quite concerned about his brother’s welfare soon after the fight between him and Bamforth; ‘It’s my brother. He’s with the highland boys.’ When the Japanese radio message comes through, he slowly realises the implications, (that the Japanese have broken through in strength.), along with most of the rest of the patrol. This is the first insight into how the pressure of war affects him. He is suddenly extremely worried about the welfare of his brother; ‘I’ve got my brother posted out there.’ Later on, when he is having a long conversation with Mitchem, Macleish again reveals how anxious he is about his brother; ‘So it’s possible my brother’s a POW already then.’
Macleish seems to demonstrate that he has some principles and ideals, when he is asked why he did not bayonet the prisoner. Macleish replies ‘You cannot order men to put a bayonet in an unarmed prisoner.’ This also shows his inexperience as a soldier; since the prisoner was so heavily armed, he could have easily pulled a pin out of a grenade and killed them all. This statement could have also been an excuse for being too frightened to kill the prisoner. He is probably also keen to treat the prisoner well because he thinks that his brother could be in a similar situation, and he is hoping that the Japanese will treat him in the same way. Unlike the others he seems to see the prisoner as a human like himself almost straight away; ‘He doesn’t seem a bad sort of bloke.’ This shows that he is a little more open-minded than the others, but it could also show that he is just worried about his brother.
The pressure of war also reveals how naïve and innocent Macleish is under his serious exterior. He tells Mitchem that he is not sure that he could really kill a man, and is very amused by Mitchem’s philosophy that women are the world’s biggest problem. Slowly, the realisation that the prisoner is to be killed dawns on him. The fact that he does not catch the hints by Mitchem that the prisoner is to be killed shows his naivety and innocence. He sees it as murder, and becomes very upset; ‘It’s bloody murder, man!’ He is horrified when he finds out that he will be bayoneted; ‘Oh god…not that.’ He does not want to believe what Mitchem is saying about him – that he is very similar to Bamforth in the way that he knows the army rules off by heart and applies them where he sees fit, and that he is scared of the responsibility that he has been given – even if it is the truth; ‘You’re talking through your hat.’
Throughout most of the play Macleish tries to treat the prisoner as a human. However, as soon as he thinks that the prisoner has been stealing cigarettes from British soldiers he is just as ready to beat him as the rest of the patrol; ‘I’ll kill him.’ This sudden change of heart is likely to be because he realises that his brother could have been one of the soldiers the prisoner has looted from; ‘My brother’s only 19…for all I know he’s dead!’ This shows that he is quite hypocritical; he preaches to others about rules and regulations, but when it suits him, he completely ignores. When he finds out that Bamforth gave the prisoner the cigarettes he becomes wildly defensive and apologetic towards the prisoner; ‘How was I to know? I…I’ve told you boy, I thought he’d knocked them off them off.’ However, as soon as he thinks that the prisoner has, after all been looting, he throws away his principles again, and is quite ready to beat up the prisoner again. Finally, he gives in to Bamforth’s argument and his temper subsides; ‘Och, what’s it matter anyway…’ He does not however, defend the prisoner when he is to be killed. When Bamforth appeals to him for help to protect the prisoner, Macleish leaves his ideals and principles behind and simply turns his back on the situation.
Macleish is often dour, self –important, and unthinking. He seems to have strong principles and ideals at the beginning of the play, but these turn out to be mostly talk. He preaches to other members of the patrol, and then does the opposite himself. He seems to try to treat the prisoner well, but when he suspects him of looting, his principles go out the window. The pressures of war make him brutal, changeable and quick to lose self-control.
Private Whitaker is a young, inexperienced soldier from Newcastle upon Tyne, who is very eager to do well. He is quiet, timid, conscientious, and does not stand up well to bullying. He is nervous, and very easily dominated. Almost straight away, Whitaker reveals how eager and thoughtful he is. The first thing he does when the patrol get into the hut is trying the radio transmitter; ‘Not a peep.’ Throughout the play Whitaker tries the radio, further demonstrating his sense of responsibility. He could also be continually trying it because he does not like being cut off from base and is frightened of being left in the jungle. He shows that he is quite thoughtful and responsible in several other places in the book. The fact that as soon he has a spare moment he darns his socks for inspection demonstrates this. He also decides to stop trying the radio ‘till Mitch gets back’ because he does not want the battery to wear out. This shows great presence of mind. Bamforth, true to his character, constantly makes fun of this responsible behaviour on Whitaker’s part. However, the fact that Whitaker had not tried the radio battery before the patrol left shows his inexperience as a signaller.
Whitaker is revealed almost immediately as very timid and easily dominated, especially by Bamforth. Almost as soon as the patrol enter the hut Bamforth makes a cutting remark about Whitaker; ‘Now he tells us! Signals! Flipping signallers…’ Whitaker does not reply to this, which indicates that he is of a nervous and quiet disposition. Bamforth cruelly draws attention to how timid he Whitaker is; ‘…And the invading army of the rising sun is carving pieces out of Private Whitaker.’ This is followed up by suggesting that Whitaker is getting ‘windy’. He does not, in contrast to everyone else in the hut, join in with the argument between Macleish and Bamforth. This is again evidence that he is very quiet, and also shows that he is trying to keep Bamforth’s focus off him. Even Johnstone bullies him for not being able to decipher the radio signal; ‘How much a week do they pay you for this, lad.’ Mitchem has to defend him; ‘It’s not his fault. The battery’s dis.’ Even he, however, does stand up for himself when provoked enough by Bamforth; ‘Will you pack it in!’ He is simply told by Bamforth to ‘Get knotted.’ He also defends himself later when he is adamant that he has heard something on the radio; ‘I had something coming through.
His fear and inexperience as a soldier becomes apparent when the pressures of war first begin to mount in the hut. He is the first to realise the implications of the radio message, which shows that he is quite intelligent. However, the way he reacts reveals that he is very scared of actually fighting; he is so scared he is unable to move, and he does not respond to Mitchem’s question, ‘How strong’s the battery…come on come on!’ He is absolutely petrified, and is unable to speak. When the Japanese solder arrives, and Whitaker leaves the radio in full view through the window of the hut, he is just too frightened to pick it up. Later on, when the second Japanese message comes through, this time taunting, Whitaker is so frightened he stands up as if to run away, and he has to be pushed back down by Mitchem. He does show some experience and forethought, as he is very reluctant to try the radio because; ‘If there are any Japs near hear switched to receive they’ll get a fix on us.’ Since the patrol received this Japanese taunt – ‘We-you-come-get’ – he is quite paranoid. This is shown when he hears a bird in the forest and is so startled he reaches for his rifle. He is embarrassed by the cause of his fear. He illustrates how insecure he is when he continually asks Mitchem what the time is. He probably also wishes to know what the time is because he is very tired, and wants to get off his shift as soon as possible. This situation also reveals how naïve Whitaker is; he tells smith of his extremely expensive watch that was stolen from him. Smith realises that Whitaker has been cheated straight away; ‘They saw you coming and no mistake.’ The fact that he turned down forty pounds and a gold ring for his watch shows how gullible he is.
A far more unpleasant side of Whitaker is uncovered when Bamforth tells the patrol how Whitaker had bought a huge number of Japanese souvenirs in the NAAFI from soldiers returning from the front lines; ‘The sole proprietor of the Samuel Whitaker War Museum…’. Bamforth implies that Whitaker intends to use these items to brag about his experiences in Malaya to his friends when he returns to England; ‘You will be able to chat them up, boy, on how you won the war. The Tyneside hero.’
A more human side of Whitaker is illustrated when he tells the patrol about his girlfriend in England, Mary Pearson, who he met at a dance. He shows how low his self-esteem is because he assumes that because his girlfriend has not written for a while she has found another boyfriend; ‘I’m thinking happen she’s got fixed up with another bloke.
In accordance to every other member of the patrol, when Bamforth appeals to him for help, he does nothing. He seems so petrified of death that he cannot even contemplate not getting back to base; ‘I’ve got to get back!’ The final scene ultimately shows how the pressure of war affects him. When he is chosen by Mitchem to cover the prisoner. Under the pressure he completely loses control and shoots the prisoner, with a long, loud burst from his gun. Whitaker realises the consequences of this immediately; ‘God…God…God…God…OH GOD!’ This shot, in reality, kills the entire patrol, as it gives away their position to the nearby Japanese.
Private Whitaker is very quite, timid, and easily bullied. He is also eager, but he lacks in confidence. The latter is definitely true in the first act. He is quite nervous and easily dominated. The pressures of war seem to accentuate his worst qualities – he becomes increasingly nervous, insecure and anxious. He also reveals more about his life; he seems to become more open, and talks more to take his mind off more serious matters. By shooting the prisoner, he sentences the rest of the patrol to death. He cannot stay in control under pressure, and the presence of mind that he has in act one simply disappears under the pressure of war.
Sergeant Mitchem is an experienced professional soldier, who has a certain natural authority and leadership. He remains detached from the emotional side of the play, and makes rational, fast, and effective decisions. He has a very cynical attitude to war, and life in general, but he is sympathetic and humane towards the men he is commanding.
Upon arrival in the hut, Mitchem immediately demonstrates his experience, quick thinking and authority. He comes up with an answer to Johnstone’s question of how long the patrol would be in the hut straight away; ‘Half an hour or so…’ He then illustrates his expertise in dealing with situations such as the one that they are in; he tells the patrol to ‘Mount a guard. Two men on stag. Fifteen minute shifts.’. He also exhibits a lot of forethought and military knowledge when he tells the patrol to ‘Go steady on the compo packs’ because he does not want the patrol to run out of food. He also tells them, ‘don’t shoot. Unless you’ve got to.’ Mitchem does not want the patrol’s position to be revealed to any nearby Japanese, especially while he is away checking that the surrounding area is secure. When he returns to find Bamforth fighting with Macleish me makes sure someone is on guard before he reprimands the pair. This again shows forethought and conscientiousness. Yet again he demonstrates this when describing current the situation to the patrol; ‘…we’re moving off in fifteen minutes. We march at five-yard intervals – I don’t want any of you closing up…all positions have been consolidated. Which means that all the mobs from round these parts have been moved up to the front.’ This also illustrates his strong, logical leadership, fast thought, and a huge amount of military experience. He quickly realises that Johnstone’s complaints about the radio are completely useless; ‘It’s no good flapping over that.’ This again demonstrates that he has a logical and cool mind, and that he does not let his emotions affect this. He also has a strong sense of military responsibility – It would have been much more easy and safe to kill the prisoner as soon as he was captured. However, Mitchem realises that he could be a good source of military intelligence, and puts the greater good of the army before his and the patrol’s safety.
In the first act as well as revealing a competent, calm mind, he shows empathy and humanity when dealing with the men. The first instance of this is when he tells the patrol that they can all smoke and sleep if they like. This shows that he wants the men to be as comfortable as possible and that he knows that they will be more calm if they smoke, and more capable of walking fast or even fighting if they rest – Mitchem knows how to get the best out of his men. Later he defends Whitaker when Johnstone berates him for being unable to decipher a radio transmission, which shows that he feels sympathetic towards Whitaker for being constantly bullied. The most obvious example of his empathetic and humane, however, is when the first Japanese radio message is received. When they realise the implications, he speaks calmly and reassuringly to them, directly attacking their fear; ‘You’ve heard one slimy nippo on the set and now you’re having second thoughts…’ He then gives them a series of quick, specific instructions, which restore order, and stop the patrol panicking.
Mitchem commands, because of a combination of the above factors, much respect within the patrol. Even Bamforth seems to respect him and accept his authority. He quickly halts the conflict between Bamforth and Johnstone, early in the play. As soon as he enters the hut, during the later incident between Bamforth and Macleish, he immediately restores order; everyone seems very worried about their lapse in discipline, as if they feel they have let Mitchem down. While Bamforth is being reprimanded for this incident, he gives Mitchem none of the backchat that he gives everyone else in the patrol.
Mitchem does, next to all of his good points, have a worse side. He is very sarcastic and cutting, in many of his comments, much like Bamforth, especially when he disciplines Macleish for covering up for Bamforth; ‘You think I running a Sunday school outing? “Please, Miss, it was Jimmie Smith who sat on the tomato but I promised not to tell.” (EVANS laughs.) Shut up!’ This is followed up by a long lecture directed at Bamforth, which contains many threats, and also the cutting sarcasm shown earlier, and also reveals his cynical nature, and the fact that he is a very good judge of character. He can easily tell what Bamforth is like – that he dislikes being in the war, and that he bends every rule and regulation to suit him; ‘You can quote King’s Regs from now till the middle of next week. Up to every dodge and skive that’s in the book.’ He has a realistic but very cynical view of heroism, as is revealed in the second act. He realises that insane moments of bravery can help in military situations, but also recognises that for the most part, war is not like that; ‘The trouble is with war – a lot of it’s like this – most of it.’ He also believes that women are the cause of much trouble in the world, something that becomes apparent when he is having a long conversation with Macleish; ‘I’ll tell you what’s the trouble with this world, Jock – bints.’ This conversation is more evidence that Mitchem is a good judge of character – he implies that Macleish is very similar to Bamforth in the way he uses the rules. Mitchem also admits his first visible mistake; recommending Macleish for promotion.
As the pressure of war increases, this sarcastic, cutting side of him seems to be accentuated. Just like everyone else, the stress gets to him, though it is not as obvious as it is in the others – it makes him harsh an impatient, but he still remains calm enough to think logically and clearly. The first instance of this is quite early in the play, during the incident between Bamforth and Macleish. This conflict makes him quite stressed and it shows. He is extremely cutting and cruel in his remarks, especially towards Bamforth. The second, and more obvious occurrence of this is when the first radio message is received. He snaps at Whitaker for being so frightened that he cannot talk and at Macleish for asking about his brother, ‘Shut up!’, before pulling himself together, and calming the rest of the patrol down. However, this soon disappears when the Japanese soldier appears. He becomes slightly short tempered; ‘I said no noise!’ However, he remains calm enough to think hard about the situation and decide not to kill the prisoner. After this he becomes, again, much more calm. He is quite humane towards the prisoner, unlike Johnstone, and lets him, within reason, have what he wants to keep him happy; ‘Let him have it.’ Even under this stress Mitchem can make unpleasant and difficult decisions. When he realises the difficulty of their position, and the fact that, because the Japanese have broken through in large numbers, they cannot survive as well as the prisoner, he is prepared to kill the man in order to improve his own men’s chances; ‘We’ve got no choice.’ After this, however, Mitchem makes his first visible mistake. He tells Whitaker to try the radio again, even though he knows that it could reveal the patrol’s position. This seriously jeopardises the patrol’s safety, and decreases their chances of survival significantly. The next incident where the pressure obviously is getting to Mitchem is right at the end of the play, where the stress is at its most intense. He finally loses his temper when Bamforth refuses to get out of the way of the prisoner, and then the prisoner is shot. After a line of abuse from Bamforth, Mitchem strikes him down; ‘We’ve had enough from you.’
Mitchem is an extremely strong, competent leader and soldier. He stays unemotional and calculating throughout most of the play. He makes rational, fast decisions under massive pressure. He is also very cynical about nearly everything. However, when the pressure does increase, he becomes short tempered and sarcastic, but still makes equally quick decisions. Next to Bamforth, he is the strongest character in the play.
In the Long and the Short and the Tall, there seems to be a general rule, to which all of the characters follow when put under pressure. This changes the characters view on life and even on the war. The weaker characters, such as Macleish, Evans, Smith, and, most obviously, Whitaker, become more and more scared as the pressure mounts. The stronger characters – Johnstone, Mitchem, and most of all, Bamforth, simply become stronger under the pressure, though this strength manifests itself in different ways. The angriest of the characters, Johnstone, is the only one out of all of them to survive. This seems to give out the message the people who survive wars are people like Johnstone - the most violent, not like Bamforth, the bravest, or like Mitchem, the most intelligent and experienced.
