Refugee: Josef: On the Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 14 days Summary & Analysis

The day before the ship is scheduled to reach Cuba, the crew holds a massive party for the passengers. It is a celebration in the face of all of the trauma that they experienced in Germany, as they prepare for their new lives. The next morning, the anchor is dropped, and Josef learns that a Cuban doctor is going to visit the ship for a medical inspection, to ensure that none of the passengers are “insane, a criminal, or [have] a contagious disease.”

When the doctor arrives, he asks for the passengers to assemble in the social hall. Josef runs back to his cabin and explains what is happening to Rachel and Aaron. Josef is concerned that Aaron will be deemed “too mentally disturbed to enter Cuba.” Aaron, meanwhile, grows frightened, fearing that the inspection will be like a roll call in Dachau. He tells Josef that he saw another man shot dead with a rifle right next to him, and he couldn’t make a sound. Rachel assures Aaron that it won’t be like that.

Rachel and Josef escort Aaron to the social hall. As the doctor approaches them in line, Aaron begins to whimper, attracting the attention of other passengers. Rachel tries to comfort him, to no avail. Aaron starts to blubber, until Josef slaps him hard across the face. Josef is surprised at himself, but realizes that “in the past six months, [he] and his father ha[ve] traded places.” Josef lies to Aaron and says that the doctor is a Nazi in disguise, and that if Aaron speaks or moves, he will send Aaron back to Germany.

Rachel starts to cry, but Aaron pulls himself together and stands at attention like a prisoner. The doctor comes down the line and looks at each person. Josef, Aaron, Rachel, and Ruthie all pass the inspection. Josef is relieved, but he feels terrible for scaring his father, and for “taking his father’s place as the man in the family.” He hopes, however, that when they get off the ship, everything will go back to normal.

Just as Josef starts to feel hopeful, the man in line next to him says that the whole process was a sham—there was no actual medical inspection. Josef wonders what the purpose of the visit was if it wasn’t for a proper inspection. Then, Josef sees that a few Cuban police officers remained behind, blocking the only way off the ship. A woman asks them when they will be allowed into Havana. The policeman replies, “mañana”—tomorrow.