Tuesday, October 1, 2013

In "The Interlopers," what is the catalyst that causes Ulrich von Gradwitz to change?

If we look at the story, we can see that it is the rather
unfortunate situation that Ulrich von Gradwitz finds himself in that leads to his change
of heart. The way in which a tree crashes down on both of them, trapping them and
pinning them to the floor seems to change everything. For Ulrich von Gradwitz, his
change comes about when he manages to free his arm and get to his wine flask so that he
can drink some of it. Notice what he thinks as he has something to
drink:



...the
wine was warming and reviving to the wounded man, and he looked across with something
like a throb of pity to where his enemy lay, just keeping the groans of pain and
weariness from crossing his
lips.



It is therefore when
Ulrich is able to drink and to appreciate the benefits of a bit of wine that causes him
to look at his enemy and to feel pity for him in his plight. Being trapped in a
compromising position with his enemy is therefore the catalyst that causes Ulrich von
Gradwitz to change his views regarding his adversary.

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