Dash

Dash symbolizes stability—throughout the story, he’s always there for Mitsi. Before the concentration camp, his presence was physical. He and Mitsi share the same space. They sleep in the same room, and Mitsi can give him all the affection she wants. Pearl Harbor turns her friends against her, but the racist atmosphere doesn’t alter Dash. As the narrator explains, “What happened on December 7 hadn’t changed the way he felt about Mitsi. Not one whit” (11). In the concentration camp, Dash’s steady presence manifests through the letters Mrs. Bowker writes in his voice. The reliable correspondence fortifies Mitsi and fills her with resilience and hope. The narrator admits, “[Mitsi] knew it was Mrs. Bowker who was writing to her. But Dash had always been there when Mitsi was sad. He was her best friend. It was a comfort to imagine talking to him” (148). Through Dash’s dependable but intangible presence, Mitsi counters the cold concentration camps.

Dash also symbolizes adaptability. To resist the apathetic concentration camps, Mitsi has to change. She can’t be stubborn and wait to go home. If she does that, she’ll continue to feel like a stone. Dash’s letters connect her to the people in the camps and show her that compassion and feelings can exist there. Dash, too, has to adapt to new surroundings: He has a new home. Though their situations are drastically different, their narratives parallel—Dash makes a new friend, and Mitsi makes several new friends. Even Dash’s name symbolizes adaptability. Dash means to run, rush, or hurry. It represents a person (or animal) on the go: It doesn’t represent a person (or animal) who’s stuck and doesn’t try to confront their environment.