Previous
Big Joe Peaceful
Molly is a childhood friend to Charlie, Tommo and Big Joe, and later marries Charlie and has his baby, whom they name Little Tommo. Both Charlie and Tommo are very fond of Molly throughout their childhood, and she is kind, sweet, and loyal to them in return. In fact, she almost immediately becomes part of the Peaceful family because she visits so much. The boys and Molly are inseparable until Charlie and Molly fall in love, causing a rift between them and Tommo, as Tommo is also madly in love with Molly. In fact, Tommo’s love for Molly endures throughout the novel. This is why Charlie asks Tommo to go back and look after Molly after he is executed, because he knows that Tommo still loves her. Even when Tommo at one point meets and falls in love with another girl named Anna, he often imagines Molly’s face in his mind instead of Anna’s. Molly’s mother and Molly’s father are both cold and harsh, as they throw their daughter out of the house upon learning of her pregnancy. Mrs. Peaceful warmly welcomes Molly into their home, and she becomes an instrumental part of the family. At the end of the novel it is implied that after Charlie’s death, Tommo will try to go back and live with her and the baby.
Molly Quotes in Private Peaceful
The Private Peaceful quotes below are all either spoken by Molly or refer to Molly. 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:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
He told me once […] that your father was up in Heaven and could still see us easily from where he was. He was pointing upwards, I remember, and I didn’t understand exactly what he was trying to tell me, not at first. I thought he was just pointing up at the sky in a general sort of way, or at the birds maybe. But then he took my hand and made me point with him, to show me. We were pointing up at the church, at the top of the church tower. It sounds silly, but I think Big Joe believes that Heaven is at the top of the church tower.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7
Quotes
“He wouldn’t do that, Moll. It’s just a threat,” Charlie said. “He can’t do it. He just can’t.”
“He would,” Molly replied, “and he can. You know he can. And when the Colonel gets it into his head to do something, and he’s in the mood to do it, he will. Look what he did to Bertha. He means it, Charlie.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Private Peaceful LitChart as a printable PDF.
Molly Quotes in Private Peaceful
The Private Peaceful quotes below are all either spoken by Molly or refer to Molly. 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:
).
Chapter 6
Quotes
He told me once […] that your father was up in Heaven and could still see us easily from where he was. He was pointing upwards, I remember, and I didn’t understand exactly what he was trying to tell me, not at first. I thought he was just pointing up at the sky in a general sort of way, or at the birds maybe. But then he took my hand and made me point with him, to show me. We were pointing up at the church, at the top of the church tower. It sounds silly, but I think Big Joe believes that Heaven is at the top of the church tower.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 7
Quotes
“He wouldn’t do that, Moll. It’s just a threat,” Charlie said. “He can’t do it. He just can’t.”
“He would,” Molly replied, “and he can. You know he can. And when the Colonel gets it into his head to do something, and he’s in the mood to do it, he will. Look what he did to Bertha. He means it, Charlie.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
