A Woman in Berlin

On Friday 1 June, the flowers begin to sprout in Marta’s window boxes. She eats a small breakfast and then sets out across the city to visit an old work friend named Hilde. When Marta arrives at Hilde’s house, Hilde seems quiet. Finally, she begins to talk without emotion: her brother was killed during the fighting and, while she was not raped herself, saw other women and young girls raped. Marta notes that Hilde has been “marked for life” (159). On her way home, Marta visits Gisela. One of the two girls staying at Gisela’s house is sick and likely pregnant with her rapist’s baby. They eat nettles and a thin flour soup together. On her walk home, Marta sees numerous coffins.

Marta tracks down the workman who stole her radio. Though he pleads ignorance, she tricks him into returning it. Afterward, however, she feels “grubby” (161). At home, she watches a woman sewing an American flag and ponders the difficulty of making a flag for each nation. That afternoon, Ilse visits with a possible business proposition. A Hungarian with American money wants to start a press, and because Marta has publishing experience, they want her to help. The plan does not sound feasible to her, but she agrees to go to the meeting anyway.