The Devil’s Arithmetic

by

Jane Yolen

The Badchan Character Analysis

A badchan is a professional or semi-professional wedding entertainer, similar to a jester. The badchan at Shmuel and Fayge’s wedding immediately senses that the Nazis are trouble, saying that he feels the presence of the Angel of Death. He chooses to go to his own death in the concentration camp, believing it is his best option under the circumstances.

The Badchan Quotes in The Devil’s Arithmetic

The The Devil’s Arithmetic quotes below are all either spoken by The Badchan or refer to The Badchan. 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:
Memory Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

Pretty girl, with faraway eyes,
Why do you look with such surprise?
How did you get to be so wise,
Old girl in young-girl disguise.

Related Characters: The Badchan (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Shmuel, Fayge, Shifre, Esther, Rachel
Page Number: 55
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Devil’s Arithmetic LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Devil’s Arithmetic PDF

The Badchan Quotes in The Devil’s Arithmetic

The The Devil’s Arithmetic quotes below are all either spoken by The Badchan or refer to The Badchan. 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:
Memory Theme Icon
).
Chapter 7 Quotes

Pretty girl, with faraway eyes,
Why do you look with such surprise?
How did you get to be so wise,
Old girl in young-girl disguise.

Related Characters: The Badchan (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Shmuel, Fayge, Shifre, Esther, Rachel
Page Number: 55
Explanation and Analysis: