Parallel Journeys

“War has been raging somewhere in the world ever since the end of World War II. Despite the Holocaust, genocide—the intentional murder of an entire race of people—has been attempted again. Racial prejudice, bigotry, and anti-Semitism continue to poison our planet.”

Eleanor Ayer points out that genocides continue to take place. She doesn’t name the specific genocides, but she suggests them, so she uses a literary device: allusion. Acknowledging that genocide continues makes Alfons’s and Helen’s story more universal.

“Soon, even our parents became afraid of us. Never in the history of the world has such power been wielded by teenagers.”

Alfons brings in the theme of Power Versus Helplessness. The parents of Hitler Youth members are helpless. They’re afraid of their kids. If they criticize them, their kids could get them in serious trouble.

“He was thirty-two, I was sixteen and absolutely not interested in this old man, so I behaved in an obnoxious manner.”

Helen demonstrates her power by resisting her mom’s attempt to get to marry the older man. The scene with the man foreshadows or previews how she can use her formidable, independent personality to survive the Holocaust. She knows what she wants and will not settle for less.