"civilian life in america is private, it is always striving for exclusiveness. our lifelong boast is that we got ahead of the next guy, excluded him" relate this quote to the play.

In our striving to get ahead and better ourselves, we try to be different from and more accomplished than the other people in our field. Joe, in his desire to achieve wealth and support his family, takes risks within his job just to be better than someone else in his position. This seems especially despicable since his private actions (civilian) affect the public actions of those who are serving in the war.