German? Jewish? English?
Visas
Käthe
had to obtain a visa to exit Germany and another one to enter England.
She had to leave most of her property behind. She could not bring much
money with her.
In order to obtain a visa for England she would have to have a job.
Imagine Käthe applying for a job as a domestic
helper. (This was actually the job that she obtained.) What would she write in her
letter? Remember she had experience as a wife, mother and scientist. She
could also drive.
German Jews in London
Käthe
settled in north London. There was quite a vibrant group of German Jews living
there. This would be useful to her as
she didn’t speak English all that well at first. Just like her daughter Renate
she was unsure of her identity. Was she German
Jewish or English?
However, Käthe had no firm religious belief and neither was she
submerged in the Jewish culture. How might she have made friends with English people?
Create
a short scene to show this.
A shared London experience
London was not an easy place to live in during World War II. Search for
details of London bombings.
Write a
letter from Käthe
to Renate about what it was like during the blitz and how she had shared this experience
with English people.
