First Lieutenant Hagen Character Analysis in Ordinary Men

First Lieutenant Hagen is Major Trapp’s adjutant. “Hagen” is actually an alias and very little is known about him other than that he was killed in 1943. Before the executions in Józefów begin, Hagen takes charge of the process of selecting Jews to be sent to work instead of being executed that day. During a judenjagd, Hagen and some others stumble on a camp of escaped Russians and Jews who are armed. Hagen is accidentally killed by one of his own men during the firefight.

First Lieutenant Hagen Character Timeline in Ordinary Men

The timeline below shows where the character First Lieutenant Hagen appears in Ordinary Men. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Nationalism, War, and Ethnic Cleansing Theme Icon

...and acts as Trapp’s deputy battalion commander. Little is known of Trapp’s adjutant, First Lieutenant Hagen, other than that he is killed in 1943. (full context)

Peer Pressure, Conformity, and Acceptance Theme Icon

...Platoon will arrive later) and Trapp tells the company commanders what their orders are. Lieutenant Hagen passes this information on to Buchmann, who tells Hagen that he refuses to take part... (full context)

...is given instructions about where to shoot to cause immediate death with minimal mess. Meanwhile, Hagen selects the “work Jews” who will go to the camps. Some unrest occurs as the... (full context)

...to carry out these orders (everyone except Wohlauf, who briefly returns to Germany). Trapp and Hagen are present to lead the men. Working in conjunction with the mayor, Trapp selects only... (full context)

...gunfire and ultimately all 100 to 120 Jews and Russians are killed. In addition, Lieutenant Hagen is accidentally killed by one of his own men. There is also some trouble with... (full context)

...Battalion 101 find themselves engaging more and more with Polish resistance groups and enemy soldiers. Hagen is accidentally killed by police fire during a judenjagd in 1943; in the final year... (full context)