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.
Diary Extracts-EpilogueChapter Summaries & Analyses
Summary: “Extracts from the Diary of Captain Wilm Hosenfeld”
This diary is written by Captain Wilm Hosenfeld, the German soldier who aids Władysław at the end of the war. The entries take place from January 1942 through August 1944. Hosenfeld begins by comparing the German campaign to the “dreadful deeds and appalling barbarities” of the French Revolution and to the “terrible atrocities” of the Bolsheviks” (193). He details specific accounts of German violence in concentration camps as well as abroad. Hosenfeld goes on to condemn the German agenda, saying that Hitler and any German who wishes to exterminate Jews are, “sick, abnormal, or mad” (198).
For Hosenfeld, “The greatest ideal on earth is human love,” and he believes that justice will prevail (196). He connects strongly to his Catholic faith, and his condemnation of the German campaign grows stronger and stronger as time goes on. In his estimation, there is no way that the Germans will win the war, since “the love of freedom is native to every human being and every nation, and cannot be suppressed in the long term” (197).
Epilogue Summary: “A Bridge Between Władysław Szpilman and Wilm Hosenfeld”
The Epilogue is composed by Wolf Biermann, a famous Jewish-German poet, song-writer, and essayist. He provides some more background on Wilm Hosenfeld and reflections on Szpilman after the war. Biermann discusses the period in which The Pianist was banned, a time when “the subject was intolerable to all concerned, victims and perpetrators alike” (212). At the time when The Pianist was first published in 1946, “it was impossible to publish a book in Poland which presented a German officer as a brave and helpful man” (221). Szpilman had to portray Hosenfeld as an Austrian in this early edition.
Biermann depicts Szpilman as a valiant man who “played a direct part in the brave resistance” (213). Though Szpilman tried his hardest to find Hosenfeld after the war,he was ultimately unable to do so. Szpilman is able to meet with Hosenfeld’s family years after the soldier’s death.
We also learn that Hosenfeld helped many other Jews during the war and sent his wife a list of their names. He died in a prisoner of war camp in Stalingrad.
Diary Extracts-Epilogue Analysis
These additional pieces provide some historical and character context for The Pianist. When Szpilman writes the memoir directly after the war, he has no idea who his rescuer is. It is only years later that he learns more about him. Through Hosenfeld’s diary, we get a clearer picture of the soldier’s character and learn more about why he helped Szpilman. Hosenfeld was a devout Catholic, and as such believed in God’s laws, prompting him to ask, “Why does God permit this terrible war with its dreadful human sacrifices?” (205). At the core, Hosenfeld always believed that the German campaign was wrong and in direct opposition to his moral framework. Knowing this about Hosenfeld, it is clearer why he went out of his way to help Szpilman, and other Jews. Much like Szpilman, Hosenfeld had a sense of integrity and morals that guided him throughout the war.
