An Emotional Tsunami

The passage on page 38 of The Assault addresses the thin line between hate and love. Mulisch explores the distinction through dialogue. In the police station jail, the woman explains to Anton a poem that she wanted to write concerning the magical light of love. She then goes on to describe the difference between hate in the name of darkness and hate in the name of the light. To hate the Fascists is an act of love in that one is rejecting the evil in the world. At the same time however, the Fascists are the very representatives of hate. Mulisch's juxtaposition demonstrates the unique power of tremendous tragedy; Anton is being hit with a tidal wave of emotions that he struggles to deal with. Thus, Mulisch's examination of hate and love reveals the profound effect a combination of the two can have on a human being. Furthermore, Anton goes into denial which is evidenced when he says, "This was very like paradise," (51). He puts up a wall much like the rest of the world did when they knew the Holocaust was going on. Nobody wanted to be involved, so they pretended like it wasn't happening. Anton in acting like the horrible tragedy didn't happen, is enabling his emotional health to decline in the same way that people suffered when the Holocaust was neglected.