All The Light We Cannot See: The Role of Radio in Werner Pfennig’s Life

‘All the Light We Cannot See: An Overview’

‘All the Light We Cannot See’ written by Anthony Doerr (2014) is a novel set during WWII, following the lives of two protagonists. The first being a blind girl, Marie-Laure Leblanc, living inside Nazi-occupied France and the other being an orphaned boy living in Germany, Werner Pfennig. While living inside the orphanage with his sister, Werner discovers a broken radio. This radio becomes a profound and pivotal moment in Werner Pfennig's life, which causes a significant change in the way he contemplates and interprets the world, subsequently altering his actions throughout the book.

'All The Light We Cannot See: The Role of Radio in Werner Pfennig’s Life'

At the beginning of the novel, Werner is depicted as being driven by his passion to understand the world around him. When Werner finds the radio, he falls in love with the concept of it: “A mouth against a microphone in some faraway yet simultaneous evening - the sorcery of it holds him rapt” (Doerr, 2014, p. 30). The radio allowed Werner to expand his knowledge and understanding of physics. Through listening to the Frenchman’s soothing voice, Werner’s curiosity was sparked, and the radio essentially provided the pathway for him to attend the school in Schulpforta.

During Werner’s time at the school based in Schulpforta and working for the private German force fixated on hunting and extinguishing nemesis radio transmitters, he was able to find comfort and security when he was near radios. “To see them all the way out here soothes him, as though he has turned and found an old friend floating beside him in the middle of the sea” (Doerr, 2014, p. 178). This quote describes the emotional attachment that young Werner felt towards radios. In the midst of such extreme and unfamiliar circumstances, Werner was able to hang onto the familiarity of his innate understanding of mechanics. The radio served as a symbol of hope and a connection to a world beyond the chaos of war.

Towards the end of Werner’s short-lived but incredible lifetime, he finally was able to break free from the hold that the Nazi German ideology had over his actions. “Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever” (Doerr, 2014, p. 391). This particular quote is mentioned four times throughout the novel and was spoken by the Frenchman when Werner first found the radio. The repetition of this significant quote allows readers to notice that Werner struggled with trying to interpret its meaning. The exposure Werner had with the outside world, transported through wave frequencies and delivered through radios, allows him to see through the propaganda and critically think through the manipulation of the German Nazis. By saving Marie-Laure’s life, Werner demonstrated that he finally understood what the Frenchman said many years earlier. This act of courage and clarity showed the transformative power of the radio in Werner's life, guiding him towards his own moral awakening.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this novel allows readers to view the role and effect that radios had in Werner Pfennig’s lifetime. This essay dissects merely three out of many instances where Werner has been affected by the broken radio. The radio allowed him to attain understanding, which provided incredible opportunity, creating a change in his outlook on the world, and finally in turn, allowing him to grow in his beliefs and values as an individual. The radio was not just a device for communication; it was a catalyst for personal growth and change, highlighting the profound impact that seemingly simple objects can have on our lives.

References

Doerr, A. (2014). All the Light We Cannot See. Scribner.