Tiny journey for 7 years
The protagonist “had not meant to take the journey seriously or commit himself deeply to it; but to get it over quickly, since it had to be made, to return as he had gone, and to take up his life at the point where, for the moment, he had had to lay it down. ” This journey must have taken place for 3 weeks. But Hans ’ fate ironically “ lengthens” it to 7 years. Thus the author shows that everything does not always happen as we wish, and these failures in the usual course of life always change it greatly, or even completely.
Learned patient
When Joachim describes to Hans all the details of his illness in too scientific language, Hans answers “How learned you’ve got. ” Thus he shows that he doesn’t actually thinks so: Joachim’s words don’t impress him and it’s not necessary to know smart words, it’s more vital to do something with the illness itself.
A hospital where people get ill
The author ironically describes the sanatorium: when people come there, they don’t get cured, they get ill even more than before. This irony comes up with question, is this hospital is a “true” hospital? After this the reader understands that this irony actually helps him/her to “dig deeper” and find out that the author means the Europe under the image of this sanatorium.
