Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Milkweed, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Identity and Relationships
War, Dehumanization, and Innocence
Ingenuity, Resilience, and Survival
Family
Summary
Analysis
Janina no longer has hair bows or socks, and her shiny black shoes are just scraps. She cries and screams at her mother a lot, but Mrs. Milgrom doesn’t get up from her mattress nowadays. Janina and Misha spend a lot of time picking lice from each other’s hair, and Misha is good at making her laugh. In return, Janina throws Misha’s things over the ghetto wall and goads him into chasing her.
Each character has his or her own way of surviving the deprivations and indignities of the ghetto: Janina often responds by lashing out and misbehaving, Mrs. Milgrom seems to wither, and Misha tries to cheer up his adoptive sister. Each method is an adaptive strategy in its own way.
Themes
One night, after everyone else is asleep, Misha sneaks out of bed. Just before he squeezes through the gap in the wall, he’s shocked to discover that Janina has followed him. At first, he refuses to let her follow him, but she says he has to—he’s her big brother. He smacks her, but she just smacks him back. Misha gives up and squeezes through the wall, with Janina at his heels.
Janina’s determination to follow Misha is a turning point for them both. Sneaking and stealing has always been a major part of Misha’s identity, but now being a brother is as well. Janina’s desire to join him in smuggling causes those parts of himself to collide in an unexpected way, forcing him to adapt.
Themes
