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Chapter 36
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Sarah’s Key, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Remembrance and History
The Power of Silence
Guilt
Identity
Bravery
The Limits of Love
Summary
Analysis
Jules, Geneviève, and Sarah are at the Orléans train station. Sarah is dressed in Nicolas Dufaure’s clothes and posing as Jules and Geneviève’s granddaughter. Sarah realizes that eventually one of the French soldiers will ask for her identity card, but because she doesn’t have one she persuades Jules to bribe the police with the money she has instead. On the train, Sarah is able to pass as the Dufaures’ grandson thanks to her blue eyes and blond hair, making her wonder if “being Jewish is something that one could immediately see.” When they arrive in Paris, the Dufaures are able to successfully bribe a policeman, who allows Sarah to enter the city along with Jules and Geneviève.
Sarah continues to wrestle with what it means to be or “look” Jewish. The very fact that she is able to pass as non-Jewish because of her physical features once again underlines the absurd, bigoted logic behind the anti-Semitism that was rampant during World War Two. This chapter is also important because it shows that Sarah is not only courageous, but also clever, as she alone concocts the bribing plan to get herself back into Paris.
Themes
