Everything Is Illuminated

With the impending attack on Trachimbrod, Safran Foer once again highlights the dangerous lure of memory and the way that humans retreat into memory when faced with the need to act. Even when the shtetl is under imminent threat of attack, the people are not able to make decisions or take action. Instead, they become immersed in their memories and are unable to protect themselves. This example of the dangers of being lost in memory is the most extreme in the novel, as people literally lose their lives as a result. The point is clear here: Action is scary, but inaction is deadly. In the face of discrimination, we cannot manufacture a safe haven out of memories and fantasy. Action must be taken in order to prevent violence. Likewise, violence that occurs cannot be erased through attempts at forgetting.

With this, the Dial’s story of living near the waterfall highlights the way that overwhelming forces, or traumatic events, can be normalized through their constant presence. As a result, those living under its pressure shape their lives and their behavior around its force. In the end, they no longer notice its presence, but that does not mean that they are unchanged. The Kroker and Brod must shout to be heard over the pounding waterfall, a way of living that is tolerable for them but seems aggressive and overwhelming tor outsiders. In the same way, traumatic events distort our ways of being. Safran Foer says that even if we survive, we are indelibly changed, and this is one of the ways that generational trauma persists.

Grandfather’s solution to generational trauma, right or wrong, is to “free” Alex and Igor from the burdens of his past by taking his own life. He recognizes that after Alex kicks his father out, he is capable of taking the family in a new direction. He fears that his presence will continue to affect his grandsons’ futures. Likewise, he acknowledges the necessity of Alex and Jonathan agreeing not to correspond anymore. Catharsis is necessary to unearth trauma and start the healing process, but as Trachimbrod showed us, dwelling in memory is not productive or healthy. It is imperative for everyone to move on after the novel’s revelations.

It becomes obvious that Grandfather’s letter to Jonathan is, in fact, a letter to Alex when he starts writing “you,” in a way that can only refer to Alex. When the letter ends mid-sentence, we could see it as Grandfather becoming overwhelmed and discontinuing the letter. Or, we can see it as Alex becoming overwhelmed by what he is reading, realizing that this letter is actually for him, and choosing to stop translating. In this last moment, we are reminded of the book’s theme about fiction and truth and the ways we are constantly crafting our own realities.