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The Dog
Himmler is the dog’s master in “Hundstage;” the story only references him by name once. In the dog’s eyes, Himmler is wholly good. He’s an animal lover and cares even for the fish—and he wants to build a great nation that thinks of animals just as much as he does. This doesn’t change for the dog even when Himmler banishes him to the woods for the perceived crime of allowing a veterinarian to handle him. In real life, Himmler did pass laws advancing animal rights, but he was also one of the architects of the Holocaust. The dog also notes Himmler’s interest in Hinduism and transposing Hindu beliefs to Nazi Germany. His dream was to build a retreat where high ranking SS officers could receive spiritual training, which the dog touches on when he mentions that Himmler is restoring the castle at Wewelsburg.
Master/Heinrich Himmler Quotes in Only the Animals
The Only the Animals quotes below are all either spoken by Master/Heinrich Himmler or refer to Master/Heinrich Himmler. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Hundstage: Soul of Dog
Quotes
I was starving. My Master had recently begun to follow a vegetarian diet and decided that I should give up all meat too, in keeping with his beliefs [...] Not only that, he was concerned about my karma. He had promised me that if I did as he said, ate no meat, resisted my urge to hunt foxes, and tried to meditate once a day, I might be reincarnated as a human being in my next life. A human being! The thought was intoxicating.
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“A wise friend once told me that kindness, like cruelty, can be an expression of domination,” the pig said.
“That makes no sense,” I said scornfully.
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Get the entire Only the Animals LitChart as a printable PDF.
Master/Heinrich Himmler Quotes in Only the Animals
The Only the Animals quotes below are all either spoken by Master/Heinrich Himmler or refer to Master/Heinrich Himmler. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Hundstage: Soul of Dog
Quotes
I was starving. My Master had recently begun to follow a vegetarian diet and decided that I should give up all meat too, in keeping with his beliefs [...] Not only that, he was concerned about my karma. He had promised me that if I did as he said, ate no meat, resisted my urge to hunt foxes, and tried to meditate once a day, I might be reincarnated as a human being in my next life. A human being! The thought was intoxicating.
Related Characters:
Related Symbols:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
“A wise friend once told me that kindness, like cruelty, can be an expression of domination,” the pig said.
“That makes no sense,” I said scornfully.
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
