Summary

It is now 1938, and Helmuth starts Oberbau, the middle school at Brackdamm. Most boys wear Hitler Youth uniforms, but not yet Helmuth. His teacher, Herr Vinke starts a lesson regarding honor over cowardice, telling a story about a drowning sailor. The sailor is given the choice of keeping himself or the naval flag afloat. Helmuth suggests the sailor should drop the flag and live to fight another day, and Herr Vinke is outraged. He punishes the whole class by assigning an essay, “Adolph Hitler, Savior of the Fatherland”. In a notable turn of events, Helmuth’s anger swells instead of his historical pride.

For the first time, Helmuth deeply contemplates the thinking of his peers and superiors. He is most upset that Herr Vinke has pitted the other students against him just for speaking his mind. At home, Gerhard says...