Refugee: Josef: Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 22 days Summary & Analysis

Josef watches Ruthie splashing happily in the swimming pool. He wishes now that he could join them and be a little kid again, but he knows that he now has responsibilities to keep his mother and sister safe. Pozner approaches Josef, asking if he’s ready—Josef has agreed to help take over the ship.

Ten men gather as a group near the social hall, carrying metal candlesticks and pipes. Josef, by far the youngest, leads them to the bridge. They encounter the first officer, and quickly grab him and push him into another room. On the bridge, they attack three sailors, taking them hostage. They tell the officer to fetch Captain Schroeder.

When Schroeder arrives, Pozner tells him that they are taking over the ship and going anywhere but Germany. Schroeder tells them calmly that his crew will overpower them and that they are inviting criminal charges upon themselves. Josef cries out that the passengers will hold the crew as hostages to make them sail somewhere other than Germany. Schroeder tells Josef that the crew will only obey him, and that he refuses to take the ship off course. He points out that Josef does not know how to steer the ship.

Schroeder says that he understands their desperation, but tells them that they are committing a crime. If they leave the bridge, he assures them, he will overlook what has happened. Schroeder promises that he will do everything in his power to land the ship in England rather than take them back to Germany, even to the point of running the ship aground. The other men agree, but Josef is furious.