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John Steinbeck’s only wartime novelette The Moon Is Down was controversial in that the conquerors and the conquered are neutrally observed even though this work is for the propagandistic properties during the Second World War. In other words, the Nazi invaders are described as Hamlet-like humans—under pressure, capable of cowardice and courage as much as the residents of the occupied town. Nevertheless, readers, notably of the occupied countries, turn out to have loved this work and so the author’s war effort seems to have been effective. As to this, I insist that this work is an excellent material for subjective reader-response criticism because it is too brief and abstract in terms of objectivity. To prove this argument, this essay observes the humanness of the novelette based on the characters’ activities along the plot and then criticizes controversial parts. As a result, the negative reviews are usually emphatic about the objective aspects while the readers, especially of the conquered countries, seem to have received it in a subjective way. Indeed, from the reader-response theories of Hans Robert Jauss and Stanley Fish, The Moon Is Down deserves to function as a propaganda literature well enough to argue that democracy is superior to totalitarianism and wins the war. Lastly, it is added that Steinbeck’s description of the humanness of the enemies should not be underestimated.