Introduction
This is a deeply moving story about war, friendship, love, the struggle to find meaning in life. While this is a relatively short story, the author is able to pack it full of emotion and subtle meaning, thus eliciting profound swings of emotion for the reader. In particular, the ending is something that the reader will not likely forget, especially Oskar’s death and how Martin seems oblivious to the cause. Therefore, this is an expertly written story with many layers of meaning, all of which are worthy of analysis.
Summary
On the surface, this story is about Martin’s attempt to teach Oskar, a refugee from Germany English. Oskar has fled Germany in the 1930s out of fear of being persecuted, and moved to New York to give lectures to an American audience. Because he does not speak English, he hires Martin to help him learn. This facet of the story involves Oskar struggling to learn the language and struggling to survive in an unknown city, but this struggle is broken when Martin introduces Oskar to Walt Whitman’s Leaves of Grass, which helps him breakthrough the barriers holding him back.
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"The German Refugee".
However, there is much more happening beneath the surface. As the above story is happening, World War 2 has fully begun and so has the Holocaust. Martin also sees a letter from Oskar’s wife stating how faithful she had been to him for many years. Oskar does not speak much about Germany or his wife and the true situation is unclear. Therefore, when Martin finds that Oskar has committed suicide by gassing himself it is a bit of a shock to both Martin and the reader. However, while going through Oskar’s things, Martin reveals some information to explain it. In particular, he found a letter from his mother in law, who is anti-semitic, saying that her daughter has converted to Judaism against her wishes. She was then found by the Nazis, shot in the head, and buried in a mass grave. This was, of course, too much for Oskar to handle and so he killed himself. Perhaps it just the grief at having lost his wife or perhaps he felt guilty because he abandoned her when he fled to New York.
Review
This is a wonderfully written story, particularly because of the author’s use of character, setting, and plot. He uses these to convey his underlying point, which is that people’s inner struggles are often unknown, in the same way that the struggle of those persecuted by the Nazi’s was largely unknown at the time. For example, the plot is mostly about something that seems irrelevant, in that Oskar learning English is nothing compared to what was really going on. Here, the author is expressing the fact what people focus on is usually a mask for something deeper. Likewise, the author uses character to express a similar meaning. The story was told through the eyes of Martin, who was unaware of both the events happening in Europe and the inner struggle of Oskar. Lastly, the setting is also used in a similar manner. That is, it takes place in New York, which is far removed from World War 2 and the Holocaust.
Conclusion
This is a wonderful story with many layers of meaning and emotion. As the reader follow Oskar through his struggle to learn English and survive in New York, he is able to mask his inner struggles. In the end, however, this is all revealed after his death, in that Martin discovers his ties to the Holocaust happening in Europe at the time. Therefore, this story is highly recommended.
