Part I, Chapter 36, Captain Glan's Dog Summary and Analysis

In Part I, Chapter 36, in order to address forbidden topics and speaking openly with the outside world through letters, Ginzburg and Julia become skillful in the use of double-speak, termed "Glan's Dog" after a novel by Knut Hamsun. Ginzburg and her mother use coded language, referring to themselves in the third person as if they were children, in order to share news and not arouse the prison censor's suspicion. For example, Eugenia's mother writes that Paul has not yet taken his exams; the meaning is that Ginzburg's husband has not yet been tried.

Ginzburg compares herself and Julia to Robinson Crusoe, doing their best to survive on what they have -such as making needles out of fish bones to mend their clothing. They discover their neighbor in the next cell is...