Previous
Chapter 21
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Tattooist of Auschwitz, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Survival and Morality
Faith, Love, and Optimism
Unity, Sacrifice, and Empathy
Knowledge, Uncertainty, and Power
Summary
Analysis
That summer, Lale spends as much time as possible with Gita. Meanwhile, new prisoners continue to arrive, overcrowding the camp and creating tension, since the prisoners who have been there longest don’t want to share the perks they’ve managed to win for themselves. Because of this, fights break out, though Gita and Lale generally avoid conflict. In particular, Lale stays away from any kind of tension, noticing that he’s able to exist rather peacefully in his life with the Romany prisoners. However, Lale wakes one night to the sounds of chaos outside his block. When he opens his door, he sees that the SS officers are taking the Romany prisoners away. Horrified, Lale sees Nadya and he tells her not to leave, but she says she has no choice, adding, “I go where my people go. Goodbye, my friend, it’s been…” Before she can finish, a guard yanks her away.
That Lale is able to establish a relatively bearable life in Birkenau is a testament to his ability to embody optimism in deeply unsettling contexts. At the same time, though, it’s not always possible for Lale to avoid recognizing the horrors of his surroundings. When the SS officers take Nadya and the other Romany people away, for instance, it’s impossible for Lale to remain positive or optimistic, since the suddenness of this development reminds him that anything can happen in the camps, thereby forcing him to once again consider the fact that his and Gita’s future and safety remain uncertain.
Themes
The next day, Lale and Leon are tattooing prisoners when Mengele appears and he begins examining the new arrivals. Eventually, he approaches Lale and he says that perhaps today he will take him away, though after a moment he chuckles and moves on. Just as Mengele leaves, a piece of ash from the nearby crematorium lands on Lale’s head. Suddenly, he can’t contain himself. “You bastards, you fucking bastards!” he yells, beginning to cry. Leon tries to silence him, but it’s no use. Immediately, Mengele returns, asking what’s going on. Coming to Lale’s aid, Leon tells the doctor that there’s nothing to worry about, saying that Lale’s tattoo stick merely broke. When Mengele addresses Lale to ask if he wants him to examine him, Lale looks away, prompting Mengele to point out that he could shoot Lale for doing this. Gathering his emotions, Lale apologizes, and Mengele slowly walks away.
Mengele is one of the most sadistic figures at Auschwitz-Birkenau, as evidenced by the cruel medical experiments he conducts on living prisoners like Leon. As if this isn’t already bad enough, though, he also subjects prisoners to emotional torture. By taunting Lale and saying that he will perhaps take him away, he exacerbates the uncertainty regarding Lale’s future and safety. This is why Lale is unable to stop himself from yelling out when a piece of ash—a reminder of the Nazi’s ongoing extermination project—falls on his head, forcing him to reflect upon the fact that he has very little control over what happens to him and his fellow prisoners, even when he’s dutifully following the rules laid out for him by morally twisted SS officers like Mengele.
Themes
