Warsaw, the capital of Poland, witnessed firsthand the highs and lows of World War II. After numerous bombings and invasions the city still stands and people live to tell it tale. Warsaw was a targeted by Germany during WWII by Hitler who had plans for the city to be destroyed. The change Warsaw went through can be pieced together by looking at the invasions and bombings that took place within the city and country. Further analysis of the events that actually occurred in Warsaw during World War II show the general condition of the people within the city. Looking at how the people were can give insight to what the Zabinskis lived through and what people might have acted like during that time. A deeper understanding of the characters can be
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Many people who had lived in Warsaw fled the city but stayed on the outskirts, hoping to at some point return to the city that had once stood tall. In Zygmunt Klukowski’s Diary from the Years of Occupation, 1939-44, Kluklowski gives his observations of the city from a distance, the town of Szczrebrzeszyn. A passage from the diary tells of his optimism for a better future for Warsaw:
The Germans have occupied Poland for a year. They have tried to destroy our Polish culture and everything that is Polish. Everywhere the Germans try to enforce the rules of German national-socialist life, but we treat them as a temporary evil, hoping that soon they will be defeated and our revenge will come. We are glad that this gives us more strength to fight against the German occupation and that, in spite of our defeat, we believe in our final victory and our bright future.
While it was easy for the people outside of the city to keep hope for their future, many people within the city’s walls feared for their own. With the Germans roaming the city, people often burrowed up with others in crumbled buildings. Antonina found refuge in a lamp shop, “... people from upstairs, homeless people from other locations, from destroyed buildings, even from other streets, were gathering like moths attracted by the warmth of these two ladies,” (Ackerman,
Many people who had lived in Warsaw fled the city but stayed on the outskirts, hoping to at some point return to the city that had once stood tall. In Zygmunt Klukowski’s Diary from the Years of Occupation, 1939-44, Kluklowski gives his observations of the city from a distance, the town of Szczrebrzeszyn. A passage from the diary tells of his optimism for a better future for Warsaw:
The Germans have occupied Poland for a year. They have tried to destroy our Polish culture and everything that is Polish. Everywhere the Germans try to enforce the rules of German national-socialist life, but we treat them as a temporary evil, hoping that soon they will be defeated and our revenge will come. We are glad that this gives us more strength to fight against the German occupation and that, in spite of our defeat, we believe in our final victory and our bright future.
While it was easy for the people outside of the city to keep hope for their future, many people within the city’s walls feared for their own. With the Germans roaming the city, people often burrowed up with others in crumbled buildings. Antonina found refuge in a lamp shop, “... people from upstairs, homeless people from other locations, from destroyed buildings, even from other streets, were gathering like moths attracted by the warmth of these two ladies,” (Ackerman,