Character Analysis
When we first meet Geertrui, she's a headstrong nineteen-year-old gal trying to survive World War II. A lot happens over the novel, but one thing that stays the same is Geertrui's personality—no matter what era of her life we're hanging out with her in, she's still the same opinionated, loveable person, even when we meet up with her on her death bed fifty years later. This isn't to say that Geertrui doesn't meet her fair share of hard times in the book, though—and most of them center on her beloved Jacob.
Crazy, Stupid Love
You'd think we wouldn't have much in common with a teen living through a horrific moment in human history, but as it turns out, Geertrui's going through some of the same ups and downs that most teens go through, even if World War II is raging just outside her door. And this, Shmoopsters, means love is in the air. Geertrui's love for Jacob is the main focus of her story, and no war is going to change that.
At first, Geertrui isn't even aware that she is in love. All she knows is that she cares about Jacob too much to leave him to die while the rest of the soldiers escape to safety. Check out what Geertrui says in an impassioned speech to her family about the English soldier:
He and I have slept huddled to each other for warmth while the enemy has demolished our home. We've treated him as one of ourselves, one of our family. Together, Mama, you and Papa and I, we've saved him from death. Yet because he's decided for the sake of his comrades—and for our sake as well, let me remind you—to do something he's not strong enough to do, when he'll surely be killed, you tell me, Papa, it's nothing to do with us. That we must not interfere. That I am not rational for wanting to help him. All I can say is that if he were Henk we wouldn't think twice about it. Well, in these last few days I've done more for this man than I have ever done for my brother. (7.39)
You go, girl. Did you notice that she kind of compares Jacob to Henk, her brother, though? She argues here that Jacob is part of their family in the same way as Henk, though to us as readers, we get the sense from how impassioned she is here that perhaps her feelings for Jacob are a little more than sibling-like. This little speech has teenage crush written all over it, even if Geertrui herself doesn't quite see that yet.
Whether she understands her feelings or not, though, one thing's certain: Geertrui and Jacob really get each other, and they won't leave each other for anything. It's sweet, passionate… and all the more heartbreaking when they are finally torn apart.
Grave Matters
By the time we catch up with Geertrui after the war, a lot has happened. She's raised a family, her hubby, Dirk, has passed away, and she's dying of stomach cancer. It's terminal, uncomfortable, and extremely painful, so she decides to throw in the towel—she figures that death is coming anyway, so she might as well decide when and how it comes.
It's not a decision that's taken lightly by her family, though. Tessel and Daan argue over whether it's the right thing to do, but ultimately, you know, it's Geertrui's decision. She tries to explain life and living to Jacob when he visits her in the nursing home, saying:
Biology, you see. It's because of biology that we want to live and not to die. And it is because of biology that we come to a time when we want to die and not to live. (12.55)
Geertrui thinks it's all comes down to biology. We all want to keep on living, because that's what our bodies do, and that's how we're made—and then we hit a point, again thanks to biology, where we just don't feel like going on any longer. We wonder if there's more to it than that though—after all, biology will end our lives for us if we wait for it (spoiler alert: we're all gonna die), but Geertrui's interested in taking matters into her own hands. So is that biology at work? Or is she interfering with biology?
In the end, the author leaves it up to us to decide whether this is true. Is it okay for Geertrui to have an assisted death because she's dying anyway, and in so much pain? What—if anything—makes this different from a suicide? We'll leave that one to you, Shmoopsters.
Memoirs of a Grandma
In a book that's so obsessed with the idea of art and literature, it's fitting that Geertrui's story is preserved in a book for Jacob. While there is a practical element to this—so he can read it in English instead of Dutch—it's also significant because it provides Geertrui with a reason to record her experiences. She tells Jacob when she gives him the memoir:
So here they are. Your grandfather's war. The words we spoke to each other. And the charm of his love for me. They are more precious to me than I can ever find words to say, whether in your language or my own. (19.46)
Throughout the book, Jacob's wondered about the idea of honesty coming through in the words of Anne Frank or the paintings of Rembrandt, and here, Geertrui gives him her experiences—as honestly as she possible can—for him to read in a book. It makes us think that the real message of the story isn't just about Jacob finding himself or learning about his past, but about Geertrui reliving hers so everyone can know about it. By recording her life, it can live on forever.
Geertrui's Timeline