Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Nightingale, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Morality and Impossible Choices
Antisemitism and Active Resistance
Gender Roles
Love and War
Summary
Analysis
Isabelle realizes that many of the public sentiments she’s heard about the war are untrue. The Maginot Line did not hold, and now the Germans are moving deeper into France. Before the Germans arrive in Paris, Julien Rossignol decides to send Isabelle away to live with Vianne. He has her pack her things and leave with the Humberts, a family he is friends with. Isabelle doesn’t want to leave Paris but ultimately does what she is told.
The Maginot Line is the border between France and Germany that France heavily fortified at the start of World War II. After the Germans broke through the Maginot Line, they quickly defeated French forces and occupied France. Because Julien doesn’t want Isabelle to live under the Nazis, he sends her away to live with Vianne.
Themes
Isabelle and the Humberts try to drive out of the city, but their progress is slow going because there are so many people in the streets. Even when they do get to the countryside, the roads are flooded with people, all of whom are fleeing Paris. Eventually, the Humberts’ car runs out of gas, and the group is left to travel the rest of the way on foot. However, Isabelle quickly loses the Humberts in the crowd. Alone and hungry, Isabelle wanders into some nearby woods because she smells smoke and meat. Eventually, she finds a young man named Gaëtan sitting by a fire. She approaches Gaëtan cautiously, and he offers her a seat.
Isabelle’s trip out of the city almost seems more dangerous than if she had stayed, at least for the time being. This is the first time in the novel that Isabelle witnesses the desperation of the French people. Although the Rossignols are quite wealthy, Isabelle quickly becomes just as vulnerable as the rest of the crowd—the Humberts’ car can only protect her for so long.
Themes
Isabelle asks Gaëtan why he isn’t a part of the war effort. Gaëtan explains that he was a prisoner until very recently. Apparently, the Parisian prison guards released all of their inmates before the Germans could take over, allowing Gaëtan his freedom. Now, Gaëtan is on his way to see his family before joining the war. Isabelle is envious that Gaëtan can become a soldier and she cannot. She expresses this sentiment to him, and he tells her that she is welcome to join him if she would like. This surprises Isabelle, who is used to being told she cannot be a soldier because she is a beautiful girl who should be kept away from violence. Isabelle tells Gaëtan that she will join him, but she needs to see Vianne first.
It’s been common throughout history for prisons to release prisoners during wartime, often so that they can help the war effort. Indeed, Gaëtan plans to do just that. Gaëtan is the first person Isabelle meets who readily accepts her willingness to join the war effort, regardless of her gender. This immediately warms Isabelle to Gaëtan and excites her. Although Isabelle’s bravery is admirable, it is also rather immature. She does not yet know the cost of war; her only experiences with it are the stories she’s read in books.
Themes
