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Similes
Chapter 9
Explanation and Analysis—The Human Nazi:
In Chapter 9, Vianne learns that a German soldier named Beck has been billeted to live in her Carriveau home as a guest, a development to which both sisters respond with suspicion and internal horror. Isabelle and Vianne do not trust Beck—for he works within Hitler's regime—but over time, Vianne is shocked to discover that Beck exhibits a type of respectfulness and intelligence she does not associate with the Nazi Party. To develop Beck's multifaceted character, Hannah utilizes situational irony when narrating Vianne's changing feelings towards the soldier:
"And a baby will soon be born. We are planning to call him Wilhelm, although I will not be there when he is born, and of course, such decisions must inevitably be his mother’s.” It was such a… human thing to say. She found herself turning slightly to look at him.
In the passage above, Beck discusses his wife and unborn son with a tenderness and warmth which Vianne assumed he could not possess. It is ironic, of course, that Vianne would marvel at Beck’s display of humanity, because of course, Beck is a human, as is each Nazi soldier. Additionally, his remarks towards his wife appear standard, if not even enlightened for the time period. However, his status as a member of the Nazi Party has Vianne assuming—not without reason, of course—that Beck is nothing but inhumane and barbaric, like so many other members of Hitler’s army.
Later in the novel, Isabelle and Vianne learn that Beck is a complex and nuanced man who does not side wholly with the barbarism of the Nazis. This moment of situational irony hints that judging a book by its cover is usually misguided. Although Vianne and Isabelle are correct in approaching Beck with extreme caution, they also assume automatically that he would have no regard for humanity, but he does, as evidenced by his warm feelings towards his wife and child.
Related Themes:
Chapter 26
Explanation and Analysis—The Woman in Oregon:
In Chapter 26, the narrative briefly switches back to the unnamed first-person narrator in Oregon from 1995, who receives a phone call inviting her to France for the passeurs reunion. At this point in the novel, readers do not know that the unnamed woman is Vianne. To draw out the suspense of revealing the novel's true narrator, Hannah uses situational irony to allow the reader to assume that the narrator is actually Isabelle, not Vianne:
“It is not me people want to see. It’s Juliette. And she hasn’t existed for a long time.” “You couldn’t be more wrong, Madame. Seeing you would be meaningful to many people.” I hang up the phone so hard it is like smashing a bug.
The passage above demonstrates situational irony, because Hannah directly references Juliette, Isabelle's code name during the war. Although the narrator speaks of Juliette in the third person, it is not a reach to assume that Isabelle would distance herself from her alter ego after the war, for safety reasons if nothing else. However, in reality it is Vianne on the phone, who references her sister's death when she says "And she hasn't existed for a long time." Hannah thus uses situational irony to leave the reader in suspense regarding the narrator's true identity.
Related Themes:
