To What Extent Does Schlink in His Novel “the Reader”,...

Essay Response To â€Å"The Reader† To what extent does Schlink in his novel â€Å"The Reader†, show that it is impossible to escape one’s past. In his novel â€Å"The Reader†, author Bernhard Schlink through the use of techniques such as structure, setting and characterisation reveals to an immense extent that it is impossible to escape one’s past. Schlink utilises the main protagonists of the text, Michael and Hanna, depicting their relationship, along with the idea of post war German guilt to further represent this idea. Michael is only fifteen when he first encounters Hanna, after this crucial point in the novel Michael and Hanna’s relationship eventuates and ultimately he falls in love with her, creating a physical and emotional connection†¦show more content†¦Schlink portrays Michael’s attempt to alleviate both Hanna’s and his own feelings of guilt sourced from their relationship and Hanna’s involvement in the crime in the quote, â€Å"She knew what she had done to people in the camp†¦she dealt with it intensively during her last years in prison† pg 211, Chapter 11, Part 3. The idea of being unable to escape the guilt of your past is shown by Schlink through the increasing negative consequences of Michael and Hanna’s relationship that result from the setting of post-war Germany. Through the characterisation of Hanna, Schlink deeply demonstrates that the past was impossible to escape. One of the main components of Hanna’s character is that she was illiterate. Many of Hanna’s past decisions that greatly affect the present are based in her illiteracy. One of these decisions was to become an SS guard at a concentration camp, and it’s this decision that causes her to be tried for crimes committed during WWII, and convicted to life in prison. The idea that due to her illiteracy Hanna was tried and sent to prison is a clear representation of Hanna being unable to escape her past. Schlink uses Hanna’s trial of her accused war crimes as a symbol of her illiteracy coming back into her life, further demonstrating that she was not able to escape her past. This is shown in the quote, â€Å"Her struggle was not limited to the trial. She was struggling as she had always struggled.† Pg 133, Chapter