The Devil’s Arithmetic

by

Jane Yolen

The Commandant Character Analysis

A commandant is the person in charge of a concentration camp. The commandant at Hannah’s concentration camp is a fearsome figure whose appearance always means that prisoners are about to die. It becomes Hannah’s responsibility to help the children hide whenever the commandant comes down to visit their part of the camp, since children aren’t allowed to be in the camp.

The Commandant Quotes in The Devil’s Arithmetic

The The Devil’s Arithmetic quotes below are all either spoken by The Commandant or refer to The Commandant. 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 15 Quotes

Suddenly Hannah noticed that one of the camp babies was still cradled in a wash tub. Without stopping to ask, she grabbed it up and ran with the child into the middle of the midden. Garbage slipped along her bare legs.

Related Characters: Hannah/Chaya, Rivka/Aunt Eva , The Commandant
Page Number: 123
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

The commandant stood up and stared at her, his eyes gray and unreadable. “Are you his sister?”

She shook her head dumbly, afraid to say more.

“That is good. For you.”

Related Characters: The Commandant (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Yitzchak, Reuven
Related Symbols: Chimneys
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

When it was silent at last, the commandant threw the shoes on top of Fayge’s body. “Let them all go up the stack,” he said. “Call the Kommandos. Schnell!”

Related Characters: The Commandant (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Rivka/Aunt Eva , Shmuel, Fayge, Grandpa Will
Related Symbols: Chimneys
Page Number: 159
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Devil’s Arithmetic LitChart as a printable PDF.
The Devil’s Arithmetic PDF

The Commandant Quotes in The Devil’s Arithmetic

The The Devil’s Arithmetic quotes below are all either spoken by The Commandant or refer to The Commandant. 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 15 Quotes

Suddenly Hannah noticed that one of the camp babies was still cradled in a wash tub. Without stopping to ask, she grabbed it up and ran with the child into the middle of the midden. Garbage slipped along her bare legs.

Related Characters: Hannah/Chaya, Rivka/Aunt Eva , The Commandant
Page Number: 123
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 16 Quotes

The commandant stood up and stared at her, his eyes gray and unreadable. “Are you his sister?”

She shook her head dumbly, afraid to say more.

“That is good. For you.”

Related Characters: The Commandant (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Yitzchak, Reuven
Related Symbols: Chimneys
Page Number: 144
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 18 Quotes

When it was silent at last, the commandant threw the shoes on top of Fayge’s body. “Let them all go up the stack,” he said. “Call the Kommandos. Schnell!”

Related Characters: The Commandant (speaker), Hannah/Chaya, Rivka/Aunt Eva , Shmuel, Fayge, Grandpa Will
Related Symbols: Chimneys
Page Number: 159
Explanation and Analysis: