36 pages • 1 hour read
Władysław SzpilmanThe Pianist
Nonfiction | Autobiography / Memoir | Adult | Published in 1946A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
Ritual
Władysław and the other Jews in the ghetto make heavy use of ritual in order to move through their days and maintain a sense of self. When he is still working in cafes, Władysław makes the same walk to and from work every day. Mother Szpilman insists that all family members sit down to a midday meal, and, “in her own way she was trying to give us something to cling to” (71). These rituals extend to the whole family, and Władysław notes, “They concentrated entirely on staying in control of themselves and maintaining the fiction of ordinary daily life. Father played his violin all day, Henryk studied, Regina and Halina and Mother mended our clothes” (94). Here, “fiction” suggests that the family is aware that their lives are in disarray, but it is important for them to craft a narrative in order to maintain the semblance of control.
Even when Władysław is separated from his family and hiding in almost total isolation, ritual is what allows him to maintain his sanity. While hiding in Helena Lewicka’s flat, “I did all I could to lead as regular a life as possible. I studied English from nine to eleven in the morning, read from eleven to one, then made my midday meal, and returned to my English studies and my reading from three to seven” (148).Władysław has endured the trials of the war for years, and he knows he must force himself to maintain this ritual in order to not give up. In his final days of hiding, when he is malnourished and barely surviving, he “went over in my mind all the compositions I had ever played, bar by bar” (168). These repetitive actions are important to their practitioners throughout the entirety of the war.
Art
Art and artists form an image system throughout the memoir. In the ghetto, many artists make up the café culture of which Władysław is a part. He relates to other actors, musicians, and visual artists who form this subculture within the ghetto community. Many musical colleagues and other artists help Władysław throughout the memoir, such as the husband and wife actors (Bulgockis) who help finally help him out of the ghetto. Here, art and artists have a very positive effect on Władysław’s spirit.
Art, however, has a corrupt form. The memoir depicts the ways in which the positive power of art can be corrupted. When the Germans force Jews to dance in Chłodna Street, they take the art form of dance and use it for dehumanizing purposes. So, too, do the Germans form, “a police jazz band which, incidentally, was excellent” (77). Here, the Germans’ engagement with music has a small, souring effect on Władysław’s engagement with it. Finally, the Germans engage with the artistic medium of cinema: “The Germans were making these films before they liquidated the ghetto, to give the lie to any disconcerting rumours if news of the action should reach the outside world” (81). In this way, art has the potential to elevate as well as denigrate. It is, however, very present on all counts.
Animalistic Humans
The author makes heavy use of animal imagery when describing the Jews. Since the Germans conceptualize the Jews as less than human, the author enacts a sort of meta-commentary by showing that the Germans’ actions did reduce Jews to an animalistic state. When the ghetto gates close in November 1940, “The dark streets were swarming with figures wearing white armbands. They were all in an agitated state, running back and forth like animals put into a cage and not yet used to it” (59). Here, the word “swarm” subtly suggests insects or animals moving together, while “animals” clinches the image. After the Germans remove the Jews from their homes, they have a great deal of agency and humanity stolen from them. When the Germans force the Jews to do physical labor, “The Germans went hunting human game for use as workhorses” (61). Here, the Jews are little more than horses to enact labor. When Władysław himself is hiding out in Lewicki’s flat, he notes, “I was caught there like an animal, and it was only a matter of time before the slaughterers came to find and kill me” (139). Here, Władysław’s conception of himself turns animalistic: he views himself as powerless in the hands of his German pursuers.
