Someone Named Eva

Chapter 4 shows Eva’s daily life at the German facility. The girls wake up to the German national anthem before sunrise and salute Hitler. Eva hides Babichka’s pin in her blouse before breakfast, calisthenics, and classes. Their classes are focused on learning the German language, history, and culture as well as the ideology of Nazism. Franziska, previously known as Ruzha, thrives in German classes and is quick to point out the mistakes other girls make. She becomes a favorite among the teachers.

Eva, on the other hand, struggles with her German. After a hard day, she cries in Czech that she hates German. Franziska corrects Eva, saying that German is the only “true language.” Eva does not argue but thinks about telling Franziska that neither of them are truly German.

Later, a small six-year-old girl from Poland forgets the rules and replies to a conversation in Polish. The teacher yanks the girl from her chair, pulls down her underwear, and spanks her bare skin with a ruler. She throws the girl on the floor and leaves her there. The incident upsets Eva, who dreams of having a big cake to celebrate when the Nazis are defeated.

As the girls learn German, they are told that their blond hair and light-colored eyes mark them as members of the Aryan race, which is superior to all others.