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Edgar Derby is an American prisoner of war who is captured alongside Billy Pilgrim. Previously a middle-aged English teacher in Indianapolis, Derby was so devoted to the patriotic ideal of America that he pulled strings with his connections in the military so he could join the army. Derby seeks to find respect and validation in the military, as he believes in a romanticized image of the United States and its fighting forces. He stands out as a responsible, positive figure among the captured Americans, volunteering to look after Billy after he has a mental break during the British POWs performance of “Cinderella.” He stays in the hospital ward while Billy recovers, reading aloud to him. Derby is especially proud when the British POWs nominate him to be the leader of the American POWs, despite the other Americans’ disinterest in the election, and even fantasizes about writing home to his wife with the good news. He takes great personal pride in fulfilling the role of the noble American soldier.
Edgar Derby’s passionate belief in the United States and the war effort is equal parts humorous and pitiful. His attempts at leadership and order-making often come across as comically ineffectual, and there is something childlike and naive about his attempts to find purpose in circumstances that, to Billy and Vonnegut, seem so obviously absurd and senseless. Derby does, however, earn some genuine respect when he staunchly refuses Howard W. Campbell, Jr.’s call for the American POWs to join the Nazi party and fight against incoming Soviet troops.
His death by firing squad is on account of stealing a teapot from the wreckage of Dresden. That Derby is executed for such a trivial offense reflects the absurdity of war and the little value put on human life. It’s ironic that he survives the terrible firebombing of Dresden only to be needlessly killed just a few days later. His death is both tragic and anticlimactic, representing the meaningless waste of human life in WWII. It also occurs on the page when Billy’s mind is completely broken—he no longer has any capacity for sadness when he sees death, and he views Derby’s death with an indifferent Tralfamadorian sensibility. That he struggles to tell Valencia about it years later suggests that Derby’s execution may have been far more traumatic for Billy than he realizes, but Billy never truly confronts his emotions surrounding WWII. Instead, he relies on Tralfamadorian philosophy to cope, never giving himself the space to mourn Derby.
