Analysis three

This story takes place i France both in the past (1942) and in current time. I think that the location, France, enhance the story because they are in the same area as they are talking about. It makes it more real and more trustworthy that the characters are living in the country where this roundup actually took place during the second world war. 

I don't think that an occurrence like this could happen in Sweden. We learn from our mistakes, at the same time I think that it could occur but in a different way. Unfortunately I'm convinced that we will make our mistakes again, and things will go wrong. Just look at Sverigedemokraterna, even though they aren't that big it's still a threat and it shows that some people sympathise with their thoughts. The society today would not accept something like that. Not just the people with the power, but the grass roots wouldn't accept it. I think Sweden's society are too well educated to just go with the flow and follow a leader of that kind without questioning it. Even though there always will exist people that just would go with the flow, the majority would realise that something's not right and act against it. It this for example would have happen in Sweden today, social media like twitter for instance would have played a very important role and hopefully prevented an event like this.

I think that Tatiana De Rosnay, the author, focus much on feelings and on the environment. She's very good with details on how people look and I always get the feeling that I know exactly how the characters feel at different situations, which is rare. 

Before I started reading this book I had no idea that this so called roundup ever existed in France. The book is based on a true story but it's a fictional account of littlle known factual events that took place in Paris 1942 surrounding the vel d'hiv roundup.

// Emma

An image from the vel d'hiv roundup.

Analysis two

The protagonist is in this book Sarah, she is very young but extremely brave. She keeps on fighting for her mother and brother even though she knows it probably not going to lead somewhere. She does it just to make her mother stay alive. I happen to know that she won't always be this positive or strong (I have seen the  movie) but she will eventually turn more depressed and actually get sick. It's the horrible circumstances that makes her sick. 

The antagonist is this far in the book the french police. There isn't one person you can blame yet, but a whole group. The french police is the enemy and the evil ones. I'm not sure though, if the french men know that. They have no knowledge about whats going on, so they don't really know that their own police is the ones to blame for all these horrible things. I base this on the fact that the german police didn't tell the french police to do all of the dreadful stuff they are doing. The french police got an order, but did much more then to just obey... They went further. 

It would feel very wrong to say that I can relate to Sarahs problems, because I can't. I haven't even been close to having it as bad as she has it. And I don't think that I or the rest of us that wasn't in the war will ever understand what they went through. When you are reading the part that is written in current time, I find that Julias husbands grandma reminds me of my own grandma. But I'm sorry to say that the similarities with people I know and the ones in the book ends right there. 

If you try to think about how the Jews had it there at the camp, you can also try to imagine yourself there... And then try imagine how you would have reacted, what you would have done. It's hard. But when you've done that you'll see that Sarah and the other Jews you read  about, that their actions is plausible. 

I think that the choices you make in a matter of life and death are not to reflect what kind of person you are. It's a human instinct to do everything you can to survive. It would be weird if you didn't. So let's say Sarah makes a choise to do something she knows is wrong and maybe cruel but she has to do it to survive. And everybody else is dong what they can to survive. Then I would have sympathy for her actions and I would probably have done the same thing...

//Emma :)

Two scenes from the movie