Table of Contents
Semantics
Sentence structures
Discourses, formalities and metaphor
Semantics
Kindertransport reveals Eva’s journey of emotion during her escape. Eva’s emotional journey is well-represented in Kindertransport, during her evacuation. This shows that she’s afraid to be alone, and has connotations of fear. Eva presents another semantic fear field, when she feels trapped in her own identity. Eva is being dehumanised. “Will you take care of me?”, the organizer says. . . “no. no. The organizer’s humour comes through by showing Eva his authority. He is gaining more respect by doing this. The organiser is using humour to show his authority towards Eva. This gives him more status so that the children will conform to him. Through the interrogatives, he creates a dramatic irony.
Eva fears the Ratcatcher. In different male characters, he is everything that scares Eva. The Ratcatcher is an emotional presence that terrifies Eva. Loss of valuables also illustrates another fearful semantic. . . Two rings are in one heel and there is a chain of a David Star and a charm-bracelet for you. Helga gives precious family items to Eva, fearing that she will lose her. Eva will be reminded about her religion when she feels afraid and struggles by the star David. Helga’s gold watch, which represents the time they spent together, is a way to convey time connotations.
Samules plays is a separation throughout. Eva is forced to face separation from her mother Helga at the beginning of this play. She does so by showing Eva a cold and distant approach. Helga and Eva’s relationship has been affected by the war, as they are separated. This illustrates her lack of affection and her indifference towards her child, just because Shelga wants her to become independent. Eva doesn’t listen to her mom when she says, “Can’t I wait until later?” . . There’s nothing left to ‘later,’ Eva. . . The word “now” suggests a sense end. It is being used to tell Eva that they have no future together. The noun later’ implies that their future is shattered by the separation. Eva’s naivety is shown by the exclamatory sentence, “Mutti!” Vatti! Hello! Hello! See. I got into the carriage. I promised I would. I’m not even crying. She is trying to communicate her feelings with her parents using childlike language. Her repeated words show her confusion, but she still tries to please her parents despite being sent away. It is clear that Eva doesn’t understand what is going on. Her parents may not have told her the truth. A clear barrier has been created between her and her mother, which is seen by the audience as a sign she is suffering. Her mother’s words “There’s really no reason to cry” have changed Eva’s view of being independent. It is clear that she has managed to change her daughter’s mindset.
The Ratcatcher in Kindertransport also represents separation. He is hidden inside Eva’s head and creates tension. When the Ratcatcher enters Eva’s thoughts, she is uneasy. This anxiety of leaving her family affects how her sentences are structured. The Ratcatcher’s music is woven around the train chugging. . . The affirmative behaviour of the childlike statement is shown by her use of “we’ll be seeing our Muttis & Vatis” as a declarative statement. Bowlby’s idea of mother deprivation supports Eva’s mental change due to confusion during the transport.
Discourses and MetaphorsEva shows an interest in her religious identity by asking tag questions. Eva’s innocence is shown through this question. Her mother, who is independent, is also seen as a person of intelligence, helping Eva to grow. Ironically, the abyss represents the place where everything changes. She loses her Jewish identity and mother. Eva’s identity and mother are both gone as a consequence of the war. Evelyn blames her confusion with her identity, on her mother. “I was drawing in leagues upon leagues of salted water …(HELGA)… I have bled seas out of my eye”. This extract portrays the turning of the page as traumatic. Both characters show their changing relationship by expressing guilt. ‘I was drawing’ shows her suffering as a child in the emotional journey.
Through her metaphorical expression, she conveys the feeling of being in a state of flux, not knowing where she belongs, and a sense she’s lost. The metaphorical language used by her mother, ‘bled the oceans from my eye’, shows that she is suffering. She wanted only the best, and didn’t want her daughter changing her identity. As they grow older, the Holocaust has affected Jewish children and forced them to change who they are. . . No I did not. . . Did I? . . No… Evelyn goes blank”.
Faith suggests that Eva Schlesinger has changed by saying ‘you used to be’. Eva’s attempt to remove her identity is to take the name Evelyn. By using Evelyn sentences that are not fluent, Eva shows confusion in her struggle to tell her daughter what she knows. She is also unsure of herself, which creates tension through the ellipsis. She must reflect on her own past before she can respond to her daughter. She shows how she cannot accept her Jewish identity, because she was separated. Lil transforms Eva, a Jewish teenager who is struggling to remember her Jewish past.
