The Reader: Part 2, Chapter 9 Summary & Analysis

The judge asks each defendant why she didn’t unlock the doors, and each answers that she was unable to do so, because they were in shock or wounded or busy helping the wounded, and that they had not seen the church fire yet. The judge tells each of them, “The record indicated otherwise”—as the report from the SS archives suggested that the female guards had stayed behind to prevent the prisoners from escaping and kept them locked in a burning church. The women say the report is false, and one defendant points to Hanna, claiming that she wrote the report as a cover up.

When the judge asks Hanna why she did not unlock the door, Hanna tells him they had no other option, as they were outnumbered. Hanna claims that they couldn’t let the prisoners escape, because they wouldn’t have been able to restore order. Trying to defend herself, she insists that they had guarded the prisoners to prevent them from escaping, as so many had already died, but her attempts to defend herself only make her look worse. Hanna tells the judge that she and the other guards discussed together what they would write on the report, but the other defendant again accuses Hanna. A prosecutor suggests that they call a handwriting expert, but then Hanna tells them there is no need, and she confesses to writing the report.