The Cop and the Anthem

"The Cop and the Anthem" has only one character who is given a name, the protagonist "Soapy." It is made clear that Soapy is homeless, one of the underclass men and women who flocked to New York City during the earliest years of the twentieth century. The short story's narrative is set in an unstated day in late fall. Soapy faces the urgent necessity of finding some sort of shelter for the winter....