Concentration camp

The concentration camp is where the French professor suffered for seven years and where his family was killed.

French

It is the French language that helped the professor when he escaped from the concentration camp and went to France. His knowledge of French is what enables the professor to run across the world and find employment. It is also French that Harriet uses to escape from reality. When a boy is having sex with her and it is more painful then pleasurable, Harriet practices her French in her mind. When Harriet is suffering through humiliation and an injustice, she immediately attempts to think of a way to explain how she feels in French.