Central Truth
The central truth of this novel is simply the importance of survival and what individuals must go through in order to achieve it. People must survive in order to carry on the message of the ones that have perished. Even if in the end only one survived, this would be enough to pass on the message of the horror that millions have endured. "Tadeusz Chmielewski was the first person I told about Treblinka...And I found that in telling him, I had forgotten nothing. Then I thought it was because I was able to tell him, I had forgotten nothing. It was along time ago, but I remember everything."(pg254) This quote is a great illustrating of how these people knew that they couldn't change the outcome of what was happening, but they could continue to share it with others. By keeping the message alive, it kept alive the spirits of the dead; by sharing it with others was what kept it fresh in their minds. These people experienced something most wouldn't even dream of, what makes this situation worse was that they had no choice.
…
