The Reader

Literacy symbolizes both communication and arrogance. While Michael and Hanna have problems communicating about fights and her past, they don’t have issues regarding reading. Hanna can’t read, but she thoughtfully listens as Michael reads aloud to her. Reading becomes a dynamic exchange. Michael says they don’t share a world, but they share the world of the books they read together. As such, reading symbolizes their bond and feelings. It becomes a two-person activity. Hanna isn’t a passive listener. She participates, with Michael noting, “Her laugh, her sniffs of contempt, and her angry or enthusiastic remarks left no doubt that she was following the action intently” (37). Hanna’s diverse feedback indicates that she’s not uncultured. She can process the texts and engage them.

By reading to her, Michael communicates his interests—what he’s learning in school or what’s on his mind. For example, when he studies Greek culture in school, he reads her The Odyssey. In jail, reading becomes a way for him to maintain communication with her. It’s not the personal communication Hanna wants, but it’s genuine communication nonetheless. Reading becomes a symbol of expression. Through reading, Michael communicates his lifelong devotion to Hanna. Likewise, as Hanna learns to read, she reads thinkers like Primo Levi and Hannah Arendt to process her own actions.