The reader learns about Gitl’s exact physical appearance in chapter 4 of The Devil’s Arithmetic. Hannah has turned around to find herself in a small cottage and sees a woman before her. The woman (we find out a bit later) is Gitl. Gitl is dressed in a dark-colored skirt. Gitl has an apron on and wears a kerchief on her head. Gitl speaks in Yiddish, so Hannah is amazed that she is able to understand because Hannah has never really been able to understand that particular language of the Jewish faith. As Gitl first speaks to Hannah (and asks if Shmuel is coming), Gitl is standing at a table set fairly low to the ground while she roughly pounds and kneads bread dough. Gitl is obviously busy with her domestic duties in her cottage while she waits for Shmuel to arrive home. Later in the story, Gitl will look quite different with her head shaved, a number on her arm, and a ragged uniform when she is taken to the concentration camp with Hannah. Through it all (and no matter how her appearance changes), Gitl is always a symbol of both wisdom and hope in The Devil’s Arithmetic.
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