Projekt 1065

From the moment Irish Michael rescues British pilot Simon, the two begin to trade jokes about the English and the Irish. When Michael comes up with a clever plan to hide Simon, Simon asks if Michael is “‘sure [he’s] Irish’” (61), and Michael responds that Simon is a “‘nice enough fellow,’” so is he “‘sure [he’s] English’” (61)? These jokes create an instant bond between the two and help to distract from the danger of the situation. Simon goes on to tell another joke when Michael’s mother cleans his wound, this time using humor to distract from pain. Similarly, Simon uses humor to divert Michael’s attention while he’s on a roof, thus encouraging him to deal with his fear of heights. Tragically, Simon even tells a joke moments before his death; this particular joke is about a firing squad and hints to Michael that Simon planned to get himself shot, committing “suicide by Nazi” (250) to further the Allied cause.

Throughout the novel, Michael and Simon’s shared jokes illustrate how keeping a positive, even lighthearted attitude can help a person get through the most dismal of situations; they also illustrate how silly cultural feuds can be. For Michael and Simon, the ancient enmity between Irish and English is something to laugh about, and something that even draws the two closer together. This provides a strong contrast with the Nazis’ use of cultural differences to foster hatred and distrust, and to instigate a war. Simon and Michael’s humorous exchanges suggest that focusing on shared emotions and experiences allows people to move beyond cultural barriers, and connect on a deeper level—something the oppressive regime does not allow within Nazi Germany.

At the beginning of the novel, Michael thinks of his spy mission and the activities he participates in so he can pass as a Nazi, such as book burning, as “part of the game” (36). At 13 years old, Michael is still a child, and he doesn’t fully understand how important his fight against the Nazis is—and how much sacrifice it will require.

As the novel continues, Simon contributes to Michael’s perspective of his espionage as a “game”: Simon teaches Michael “Kim’s Game,” (230), inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s novel Kim, which helps Michael to study the objects around him more closely, notice details, and improve his memory. Kim’s Game certainly helps Michael to achieve his mission of memorizing Projekt 1065; however, Michael must see the war as more than a game before he can truly help the Allies. After discovering a plot to assassinate a scientist working for the Allies, Michael realizes that the best plan to foil the murder requires turning Simon and his parents in to the Nazis. If Michael goes through with this, he realizes, “this wouldn’t be a game anymore,” but instead an act of “real sacrifice” (231). Michael does choose to make that sacrifice, and his movement away from the “game of spies” (230) illustrates his growing maturity, as well as emphasizing the true, serious cost of war.