Who is Mr. Korteweg and Karin from The Assault and what is their importance? The_Assault English & Literature Mr. Korteweg and Karin | The Assault

Mr. Korteweg is a retired seaman who lives next door to the Steenwijks. Mr. Korteweg's wife has passed away and he has brought his daughter, Karin, to live with him. Karin is an adult, a nurse. Karin befriends Anton in the days before that January night in 1945, playing games with him in the sitting room of her house and showing him her father's lizards. However, on that January night, Karin helps her father move the body of Fake Ploeg from their house to the Steenwijks house. For many years Anton believes this act to be a selfish one that targeted the Steenwijk family for unknown reasons. More than thirty years later, however, Anton runs into Karin and learns the truth. Mr. Korteweg was worried about the fate of his lizards. This is why Mr. Korteweg moved the body. The reason he chose the Steenwijks home rather than the Aarts is because he knew the Aarts were hiding Jews.