Essay Questions

Why does Milos attempt to kill himself?

Milos has just spent the night with Masa, his girlfriend and she wanted to make love but he was unable to perform because of premature ejaculation. Because of his shame and not knowing that this is a common thing, Milos decides that he cannot go on living with this horrible outcome so he tries to kill himself.

Why does Milos end up being the one to plant the bomb on the Nazi train?

Hubicka is initially meant to be the one to plant the bomb on the incoming Nazi freight train, but he is called into a disciplinary hearing by Zednicek for having slept with a young woman whose mother discovered stamp marks upon her body. Thus, the brave task is left to the young man, Milos who is empowered because he was able to perform sexually for the first time with the help of an experienced woman the night before.

How does the stories of Milos' great-grandfather and grandfather foreshadow his death?

Milos' great grandfather was injured during the war and was thus paid every day without having to work. He would buy a bottle of booze and incite working men to beat him annually for rubbing it in their faces that he didn't have to toil to make money. He did it so much he was finally beaten to death. Milos' grandfather was a hypnotist and magician and when the Nazis invaded he attempted to stop tanks with his thoughts. He didn't and was decapitated by the tank. Milos' death seemingly runs in his family line, thus when he dies at the hands of the Nazis because of foolish decision making (though his less foolish than his ancestors) we see how their stories foreshadowed his death.