The Hiding Place: The Lieutenant Summary & Analysis

One day, Corrie is taken to a “hearing”—she’s led outside of the prison to a cheerful cottage with a warm fire, where a German officer introduces himself courteously as Lieutenant Rahms and settles her by the fire. He tells her that he can help her, but only if she tells him everything. Corrie knows she has to be on guard against this calculated friendliness, and for an hour she evades his questions about fake ration cards. Luckily, she doesn’t actually know that much about the operation with which she’s been involved, due to the secrecy its members imposed on each other.

When the Lieutenant asks about Corrie’s “other activities,” meaning hiding Jews, she feigns ignorance and embarks on a long explanation of her years of religious instruction of mentally disabled children. The lieutenant is genuinely perplexed, telling her that such things are a “waste of time and energy” and that “surely one normal person is worth all the half-wits in the world.” Corrie sees that this man has been completely brainwashed by Nazi philosophy.

Carefully, Corrie explains to Lieutenant Rahms that God cares about people “simply because he has made us,” not because of any artificial value the world imposes on them. Lieutenant Rahms abruptly ends the interrogation.

However, in the morning Lieutenant Rahms himself comes to Corrie’s cell and brings her to his office. He asks her to tell him about the Bible, and Corrie says that it says that with God’s help, “we need no longer walk in the dark.” She asks Lieutenant Rahms about the darkness in his own life, and he confesses that he can’t stand the work he does and is constantly worried about his wife and children suffering bombings in Germany.

For two more days Corrie meets with the Lieutenant, who mostly wants to hear about her childhood and religious faith. Corrie asks him to have her transferred back into a cell with other people or even Betsie, but Lieutenant Rahms refuses, telling her that he has no authority and is “in prison” himself.

At their last meeting, the Lieutenant asks Corrie to explain the divine meaning of suffering. He asks her what kind of God would let her father die in prison. However, before she can try to answer a guard comes to take her back. The lieutenant tells her softly to walk slowly in Corridor F.

Following his instructions, Corrie sees Betsie’s cell, which is much neater and more cheerful than the others, with food packages neatly arranged. She knows that this atmosphere is the result of Betsie’s influence. She even sees her sister’s back and her neat bun.

Weeks later, Lieutenant Rahms organizes a brief family reunion at the prison—the pretext is the official reading of Father’s will, for which all family members must be present. Stunned, Corrie walks into his office to be embraced by Willem, Nollie, and Betsie for the first time in months. Willem says that Kik has been arrested and deported while helping a downed American parachutist; Father, meanwhile, died in a municipal hospital after becoming ill in his cell. While the lieutenant has his back turned, Nollie presses a tiny Bible into Corrie’s hands. Corrie is especially thankful because she has just given away her last Gospel in the shower.

Willem quietly relays the information that Rolf and another underground police officer helped the Jews escape from the Beje while they were assigned by the Gestapo to “guard” it. All of the fugitives are safe now except for Mary Itallie, who inexplicably went walking during the day and got arrested.

After some minutes, the Lieutenant curtails the reunion. Before leaving, Willem leads the group in prayer, thanking God for bringing them together and for the influence of the Lieutenant, who can gain nothing from helping them.