Character Clues

Character Analysis

Words

Words go a long way in this book to giving us some insight into what people are like. In many cases, words are used to hurt the Jews, and let us know that we're dealing with someone cruel and uncaring. Think about the horrible epithet that Fräulein Liczba in the Laboratory hurls at Primo: "Stinkjude" (15.26). Even though you might not know German, this means just what it sounds like: "Stinking Jew." Despite this woman's glowing blonde aura and her clean, fashionable clothes, underneath it she's just as cruel as the SS Officers in treating Primo like he's some kind of a subhuman.

We also see the opposite of this cruelty at work. Steinlauf, for one, provides some helpful words to Primo. He counsels him to stay clean, since even though it's a futile effort, it at least saves the "scaffolding [...of] civilization" and gives the prisoners the "power to refuse [their] consent" to their own destruction (3.12).

Actions

From the selfless actions of Lorenzo, who risks his own life to bring Primo food or to deliver a post-card to his family, to the offhanded disregard and outright brutality of the Kapos and SS officers, actions can truly speak louder than words in telling us about the character of the people Primo comes into contact with. Some, like Lorenzo and Charles (who tenderly cleans up their sick bunkmate) provide examples of compassion and common human kindness. Others, however, like the Kapo who wipes grease onto the back of Primo's shirt to clean of his hand, show through their actions that they have nothing but contempt for the Jewish prisoners.

Direct Characterization

Since this book is a memoir, we don't have the same level of dialogue and action sequences that we would get in a novel. Instead, we have the voice of Primo Levi giving us information about people through direct characterization. One memorable example of this is how he portrays Henri. He doesn't show us how Henri behaves, but instead explains at some length his strategy for manipulating people. Primo has opinions about most people he meets in the camp and is eloquent in his ability to describe them.