HHhH
Everyone wants to go down in history for a memorable moment in their life. Not many would want to be known as the “bad guy” or “villain”. Only rarely that happens, but it seems as if many in place of time saw an opportunity to be comparatively merciless towards others. It’s 1942, where Slovaks, Czechs, and Germans were being afflicted by war and where most felt like a captured animal. Being just a civilian Czech with a forced 8:00 pm curfew, being watched by Nazi Soldiers. That’s how daily life went after the infiltration of Czechoslovakia. This happened to not only Czechoslovakia, but many other countries. These events had happened for a reason, more likely due to a person. I’m Jazmyne and I will be talking about the novel, HHhH by Laurent Binet.
HHhH is a book that, though historical fiction, has real characters and real events. The story revolves around the two main characters, Jozef Gabcik (Yosef-Gab-u-Chik)and Jan Kubis (Huan/Jan Kubis) along with a group of less important characters that include Reinhard(t) Heydrich, Heinrich Himmler, and Adolf Hitler.
In HHhH, the story tells how these two brave and outgoing men had killed Heydrich, one of the most threatening men in the Third Reich. Jozef and Jan are parachutists assigned from London in the Czech Resistance who were presumably the only ones who could prevent one of the most cold-hearted Nazi Leaders from taking over all of Europe. We follow the two men that had escaped SS guards in Czechoslovakia to the death of Heydrich, the Reich-Protektor(Hitler’s protector), and even their own deaths in the place of a Prague Church. HHhH is a quick-paced novel with shorter chapters that lead into curiosity and wonder of the Second World War.
Throughout the book, the most change I’ve seen in a character is in Heydrich’s character. In the volume, there hasn’t been major changes in many characters, but the book focuses on Heydrich for the most of part one. As the plot follows, he was born of a Roman Catholic mother and a Protestant father(a member or follower of the Western Christian churches, which are separate from the Roman Catholic Church and follow the principles of the Reformation, including the Baptist, Presbyterian, and Lutheran churches). Many historians regard Heydrich as the darkest figure within the Nazi elite. Adolf Hitler described him as "the man with the iron heart". His attitude towards others as he changes within the book is much more negative than in the beginning. Though he had these feelings, he had a reason. Often people made “made fun” of him, and his name, as the book illustrates. Growing up, Heydrich still despises the Jews for past reasons and worked for a ruthless leader within Germany. I believe this also changed his character, with the influences that he had been shown to. Through the characters, a theme is produced within the plots.
The historical theme throughout the book is over the time of a situation or place, history changes with continuity, no matter for better or worse. Or say that over time, things may change, no matter their impact.