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Chapter 49
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
The narration returns to Julia’s meeting with Gaspard. Gaspard says that the last time his grandparents heard from Sarah was in 1955, when she sent a letter from the States to say she was engaged to an American. Gaspard says his grandparents waited years to hear from Sarah again, and died with their hearts broken. Gaspard begs Julia to find Sarah and give her a message of love from him and his brother. He also gives Julia a letter, written by Geneviève to her son, Alain, Gaspard’s father.
This chapter emphasizes how deeply Sarah was and is beloved by the Dufaure family. Simultaneously, it once again underlines the difficult reality that the love of Sarah’s adoptive family was not enough to help her overcome her profound loss. Although this chapter indicates that Jules and Geneviève were devastated by losing touch with Sarah, it by no means suggests that loving Sarah was not wholly worthwhile for the entire Dufaure family.
Themes
