Trust

Throughout the novel, the author emphasizes one theme over and over more than any other: the lack of trust that is present in Nazi Germany during World War II. No one in White Rose, Black Forest trusts anyone and anyone who does show the slightest bit of trust or lack of distrust ends up paying a high price, like Uncle Hermann.

Pervasive distrust is first exhibited by Franka and John, who mutually do not trust one another one bit when they first meet. When Franka saves John from dying in the snow, she is immediately suspicious of how he got there, and her suspicions only deepen after she hears him crying out in English in his sleep. John for his part, tries desperately hard to maintain his cover with Franka, denying several times that he is anybody but Werner Graf saying, "that's classified information" any time...