Chapter 7

1. Chapter 7 • At the start of this chapter, many gaps are filled about how David ended up in a labour camp, who “the man” was, why he helped David to escape and, to some extent, who Johannes was. Explain the answers to all of these questions that David, and no doubt you, yourself had. David learns that the guard’s name was the same as ‘the man’, so he has to be Edith’s son. The guard let Edith’s husband die because he hated him for loving Edith, but because David was Edith’s son, he couldn’t let the boy die. David was quite well looked after, considering how other people in the camp were treated, but he was not removed from the camp. Perhaps it was impossible to get papers for him as well as Edith. The guard also looked after Johannes enough for David to have had a ‘father figure’ in his life. When the guard knew he was leaving, he took a great risk in letting David escape.

2. 2. What happens to David after he is discovered near the stable door by the farmer? David is taken prisoner by the farmer and used for slave labour during the winter. • Why is David at first scared of the dog? David had only really known the dogs from the camp as vicious animals who bit you. Also , he was worried about the sniffer dogs who tracked down those who escaped. As a result, he had gone out of his way to avoid dogs.

3. 4. David finds it very difficult to understand why God would allow him to suffer, even wishing he had chosen a better God. Then he realises “where the trouble lay” (p.161) after he recalls something that Johannes had once told him. What is it that Johannes had taught him? Johannes said that your bad fortune was never someone else’s fault alone, that you always had a fault too and needed to recognise what it was. Instead of blaming God for being cruel, David realises that he has also been cruel, especially to Carlo, for not forgiving him when Carlo had patiently waited for this.

4. 5. What does David realise about himself in relation to Carlo (p.161-162)? David realises that Carlo had changed, and that he wanted David to forgive him. 6. How does David manage to escape from the farm? David digs a tunnel from the barn to the outside and as winter comes to its end, he escapes.

5. 7. Just as David believes that he might finally be free, he discovers that there is a “dark dot” (p.166) moving towards him. What does this turn out to be? David realises that it is the dog who had come to join him of his own free will.