The Forest of Vanishing Stars

The forests of Eastern Poland and Belorussia represent safety, comfort, and a connection with the divine. Jerusza takes Yona from her home in Berlin to the forest, where she learns how to survive and later teaches those survival skills to Jewish refugees. For Jerusza, the forest holds the secrets of God. It also functions as a nurturing mother who gives the Jewish groups everything they need to survive the war. Both Jerusza and Yona feel at home in the forest and nowhere else. As a space outside of normal social structures, it allows its inhabitants to transcend limiting social roles. For example, Yona knows how to survive there better than anyone else, making her a natural leader for the refugees. This contrasts with society’s strict gender roles, represented in Aleksander’s struggle to let Yona lead as well as Juttner’s insistence that Yona behave like a “proper” German woman. Likewise, the forest as a peaceful, life-giving place juxtaposes with the village’s violence and death. These symbols combine to highlight how war and genocide are humanmade terrors, not natural ones.