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The Judge
Michael’s wife, and later ex-wife. A law clerk and later a judge, Gertrud is described by Michael as “smart, efficient, and loyal.” Michael marries Gertrud after she becomes pregnant with their daughter Julia. Though Michael never tells Gertrud about Hanna, he cannot stop inwardly comparing her to Hanna, which causes the marriage to fall apart. Nevertheless they maintain a friendly relationship with each other.
Gertrud Quotes in The Reader
The The Reader quotes below are all either spoken by Gertrud or refer to Gertrud. 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:
).
Part 3, Chapter 4
Quotes
I don't know what I would have done if a professor of legal history had not offered me a research job. Gertrud said it was an evasion, an escape from the challenges and responsibilities of life, and she was right. I escaped and was relieved that I could do so…. Now escape involves not just running away, but arriving somewhere…. Doing history means building bridges between the past and the present, observing both banks of the river, taking an active part on both sides. One of my areas of research was law in the Third Reich, and here it is particularly obvious how the past and present come together in a single reality. Here, escape is not a preoccupation with the past, but a determined focus on the present and the future that is blind to the legacy of the past which brands us and with which we must live.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Reader LitChart as a printable PDF.
Gertrud Quotes in The Reader
The The Reader quotes below are all either spoken by Gertrud or refer to Gertrud. 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:
).
Part 3, Chapter 4
Quotes
I don't know what I would have done if a professor of legal history had not offered me a research job. Gertrud said it was an evasion, an escape from the challenges and responsibilities of life, and she was right. I escaped and was relieved that I could do so…. Now escape involves not just running away, but arriving somewhere…. Doing history means building bridges between the past and the present, observing both banks of the river, taking an active part on both sides. One of my areas of research was law in the Third Reich, and here it is particularly obvious how the past and present come together in a single reality. Here, escape is not a preoccupation with the past, but a determined focus on the present and the future that is blind to the legacy of the past which brands us and with which we must live.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
