“We did not have a world that we shared; she gave me the space in her life that she wanted me to have” (Meagan Adler)

          I was analytically captivated by the abnormally complex dynamics in Michael and Hanna’s relationship that we are gradually exposed to in Part 1 of The Reader.  As Michael slowly reveals Hanna through a personal first person reflection on his past, we, as a reader develop a strong inclination to dislike her.  We see her as a character that takes advantage of Michael’s youthful vulnerability and furthermore exploits this weakness to control him throughout their relationship.  It is not until the end of the reading that we begin to see Michael mature as he experiences the enjoyment of hanging out with his friends at the pool.  Being part of an intense relationship in which age serves as a significant barrier, Michael is able to escape the complicatedness of his love life and experience enjoyment with people his own age.  A connection that I was particularly intrigued by was that in which Michael develops with Sophie; we see the progression of this natural connection as Michael almost tells her about Hanna.  I hope that this connection develops as we read on and that Michael and Sophie eventually have a relationship. 

We, as a reader, cannot help but dislike Michael and Hanna’s relationship, for we see Hanna as a authoritative and cunning woman who strategically manufactures a fake love with Michael so that she can manipulate him.   At times, we see Michael as he feels dejected and like he is being taken advantage of; after he is ignored on the train in which Hanna works he expresses, “I felt rejected, exiled from the real world in which people lived and worked and loved.   It was as if I were condemned to ride forever in an empty car to nowhere” (pg.45).  Here, we see Michael as he discovers his weaknesses that Hanna has exploited.  He sees that he has “unconditionally surrendered” (pg.49) to her in their relationship.  Another idea that I am intrigued by is that Hanna constantly refers to Michael as “kid”; I feel like she exerts her superiority and her authoritarian need to control Michael.  Overall, we experience the artificiality of the manufactured relationship between Michael and Hanna; as he expresses, “We did not have a world that we shared; she gave me the space in her life that she wanted me to have” (pg.76).