Previous
Geraldo Fernandez
Josef and Ruthie’s mother, and Aaron’s wife. After Aaron is taken away to the Dachau concentration camp following Kristallnacht, Rachel becomes the primary caretaker in the family. But when they meet up with Aaron again six months later and board the St. Louis, Rachel starts to care primarily for the traumatized Aaron, while Josef takes responsibility for Ruthie and is forced into increasingly mature situations. When Aaron dives into the water to try to commit suicide and is taken to mainland Cuba, Rachel is distraught and Josef must become the adult in the family. When the St. Louis leaves Cuba, Rachel tries to become hopeful again and spends much of her time in the ship’s dance hall, but this too becomes a shirking of her responsibilities and only makes Josef’s burden heavier. At the end of the book, when the Nazis force Rachel to choose one of her children to set free and one to be sent into the concentration camps, Josef completely assumes the role of adult in her place, and chooses to sacrifice himself to save Ruthie.
Rachel Landau Quotes in Refugee
The Refugee quotes below are all either spoken by Rachel Landau or refer to Rachel Landau. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Josef: On the Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 8 days
Quotes
It all came flooding back to him now—swaying and humming along with the prayers, craning his neck to see the Torah when it was taken out of the ark and hoping to get a chance to touch it and then kiss his fingers as the scroll came around in a procession. Josef felt his skin tingle. The Nazis had taken all this from them, from him, and now he and the passengers on the ship were taking it back.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Josef: Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 22 days
Quotes
For as much as he’d wanted to grow up, Josef wished now that he could join them. Be a little kid again, cheerfully oblivious to what was going on around him.
But he wasn’t a kid anymore. He had responsibilities. Like keeping his sister and his mother safe.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Isabel: Coast of Florida – 1994, 5 days (3)
Quotes
“Don’t you see?” Lito said. “The Jewish people on the ship were seeking asylum, just like us. They needed a place to hide from Hitler. From the Nazis. Mañana, we told them. We’ll let you in mañana. But we never did.” Lito was crying now, distraught. “We sent them back to Europe and Hitler and the Holocaust. Back to their deaths. How many of them died because we turned them away? Because I was just doing my job?”
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Mahmoud: Berlin Germany – 2015, Home
Quotes
I don’t remember much about him, but I do remember he always wanted to be a grown-up. “I don’t have time for games,” he would tell me. “I’m a man now.” And when those soldiers said one of us could go free and the other would be taken to a concentration camp, Josef said, “Take me.”
My brother, just a boy, becoming a man at last.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Refugee LitChart as a printable PDF.
Rachel Landau Quotes in Refugee
The Refugee quotes below are all either spoken by Rachel Landau or refer to Rachel Landau. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Josef: On the Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 8 days
Quotes
It all came flooding back to him now—swaying and humming along with the prayers, craning his neck to see the Torah when it was taken out of the ark and hoping to get a chance to touch it and then kiss his fingers as the scroll came around in a procession. Josef felt his skin tingle. The Nazis had taken all this from them, from him, and now he and the passengers on the ship were taking it back.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Josef: Atlantic Ocean – 1939, 22 days
Quotes
For as much as he’d wanted to grow up, Josef wished now that he could join them. Be a little kid again, cheerfully oblivious to what was going on around him.
But he wasn’t a kid anymore. He had responsibilities. Like keeping his sister and his mother safe.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Isabel: Coast of Florida – 1994, 5 days (3)
Quotes
“Don’t you see?” Lito said. “The Jewish people on the ship were seeking asylum, just like us. They needed a place to hide from Hitler. From the Nazis. Mañana, we told them. We’ll let you in mañana. But we never did.” Lito was crying now, distraught. “We sent them back to Europe and Hitler and the Holocaust. Back to their deaths. How many of them died because we turned them away? Because I was just doing my job?”
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Mahmoud: Berlin Germany – 2015, Home
Quotes
I don’t remember much about him, but I do remember he always wanted to be a grown-up. “I don’t have time for games,” he would tell me. “I’m a man now.” And when those soldiers said one of us could go free and the other would be taken to a concentration camp, Josef said, “Take me.”
My brother, just a boy, becoming a man at last.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
