“I wanted simultaneously to understand Hanna’s crime and to condemn it. But it was too terrible for that. When I tried to understand it, I had the feeling I was failing to condemn it as it must be condemned. When I condemned it as it must be condemned, there was no room for understanding” (Meagan Adler)

I was analytically captivated by the internal struggle Michael becomes defined by in part 2 in relation to Hanna and her accusations.  Hanna’s harsh accusations that Michael observes and analyzes throughout the trial put him in an internal state of conflict, for he finds himself wanting to condemn her, but at the same time wanting to understand her.  Michael realizes that he is incapable of both understanding and condemning her and furthermore suffers from this conflict throughout part 2.  As he comes to the realization that Hanna is illiterate, he cannot help but feel some sort of sympathy for her and a desire to tell the judge and lessen the punishment.  This realization contributes to his overall internal conflict and forces him to answer the question which puts him in an agonizing state of mind;  he says, “Imagine someone is racing intentionally towards his own destruction and you can save him- do you go ahead and save him?” (pg.138).  He asks his father for advice and his father tells him that he cannot force someone into something, but can try to open their eyes if they are blind to something. 

Throughout the reading, Michael constantly shifts from having sympathetic feelings to having numb feelings towards Hanna.  For example, at some parts he expresses, that he sees “Hanna loving me with cold eyes and pursed mouth, silently listening to me reading, and at the end banging the wall with her hand, talking to me with her face turning into a mask” (pg.147).  At this part we see him reflect upon the artificially manufactured and manipulative relationship he had with Hanna in his past.  He resentfully sees her as an evil figure.  At other parts of the novel he feels as if it is obligation to help her and tell the judge she is illiterate.  A particularly powerful part of this week’s reading was that in which Michael expresses, “I wanted simultaneously to understand Hanna’s crime and to condemn it.  But it was too terrible for that.  When I tried to understand it, I had the feeling I was failing to condemn it as it must be condemned.  When I condemned it as it must be condemned, there was no room for understanding” (pg.157); this part of the novel underscores the painstakingly complex internal conflict Michael has.  Ultimately, he does not tell the judge that Hanna is illiterate and feels almost relieved as he is again defined by a numbness and can move on with his everyday life.