Essay Questions

Why was Patty so captivated by Anton?

Patty was captivated by Anton because he treated her with respect and was nice to her. There was a mutual puppy love attraction involved but Patty's love for him grows as she gets to know him. She finds that he likes all of her qualities that her parents despise; he likes her constant questions, her thirst for knowledge and her talkative nature. She in turn begins to feel what it is to be loved just the way she is and is captivated by Anton because he has awakened that experience in her.

Was Patty right to help Anton?

Patty was right to see past the fact Anton was a German soldier and want to get to know him as a person and was right not to judge him on the actions of some of his countrymen. She was right in principle to want to help someone in trouble; however it was wartime, and Anton was a member of the enemy military; his escape could have endangered many American lives both at home and on the battlefield and so aiding his escape was the wrong thing to do. As a twelve year old, though, Patty did the wrong thing but for the right reason and so her punishment seems rather severe given that she really did not understand all of the implications of her friendship with him.

Why did nobody step in and take action against Patty's father for his abuse of his daughter?

Ruth tried to step in and defend Patty but was subordinate to Mr Bergen who fired her for speaking out. Patty's mother asked why he hit her but never defended her and should definitely have done so; however at this time in history a wife was not necessarily in a position to speak our to her husband. The only adult who really made any attempt to help Was the sheriff who prevented her father from taking the ring Anton had given to her although stopped short of actually investigating the abuse. Because he was an upstanding businessman and also because he was so obviously kind to Sharon, it would not be generally suspected that he was a cruel bully who inflicted terrible pain on his older daughter.