How It All Goes Down
Illumination
- Here's the story of Herschel and Grandfather:
- Herschel only had one friend, and it was Grandfather. He was a Jew, and they lived peacefully.
- Then, in one gigantic paragraph that spans over five pages, here's what really happened:
- In a scene that mimics the one where Not-Augustine's father refused to spit on the Torah, the Nazis line up everyone in town and demand they tell them who the Jews are.
- Those who are fingered as Jews are put into the synagogue.
- Herschel begs Grandfather not to say he's a Jew, but Grandfather does it to save his own family.
- Herschel begs and begs, "Eli youaremyfriend do not let me die I am so afraid of dying Iamsoafraid" (29.86) but he is put into the synagogue with the rest of the Jews and burned alive.
- After Grandfather's story, he simply says, "we must make sleep" (29.87).
- Talk about nightmares, guys.