Why do you think Rachel puts up with Feter Fritz and continues to go out of her way to maintain his affections?

Rachel’s uncle, Feter Fritz, in an important character in Rachel’s life. Yet he is often manipulative and self-serving in his behavior toward her. Why do you think she puts up with him and continues to go out of her way to maintain his affections?

Obviously, Feter is Rachel’s only remaining relative in the United States. And he is her only connection to her childhood. So it would be difficult to let go of him.

Rachel's uncle, Peter Fritz is Rachel's last surviving relative. She wants to believe he will do the right thing, but he repeatedly disappoints her.

As BJHB has pointed out, Feter is the only blood relative that Rachel has left. Unlike Aaron, Feter also understands what Rachel has been through and witnessed. Cutting ties with him, despite his many faults, would be impossible for her.

We tend to cling to that we know--whether that is a person, beliefs, or objects.

It's interesting because even though Feter is a total jerk, he's also the person who helps her survive (at great cost) and also brings her to America. They would clearly be bonded by their experience in addition to being relatives.

He is her connection to her old life (awful as it was) and her heritage. He is her only surviving relative and is in some ways responsible for her survival, came with her to America, and helped her survive in a new country.

Her uncle is her only connection to her life before and after the horrors in Germany. A lifeline, even a toxic one, is better than none. Plus, he would be the only person she presently knows who could understand the reason she did what she did.

As others have said Feter is her connection to her life she left behind and yest he is far from perfect he is the reason for her survival and did serve as her guiding light when she first arrived here.

Feter Fritz was her uncle. He rescued her and brought her with him to America, escaping from the horrors she had experienced in Berlin. Of course, she would wish to maintain his affection and would go out of her way to do so.

Her uncle is her only family left alive after the war. Her only connection to family. He brought her to America, he saved her life.

I agree with Maggie. He is her only living family, her only connection to her earlier life, and was her lifeline to and in America.

I agree with all the answers above. He is her last connection to the horrors of Germany and to her Mother.

I'm not sure I agree that she does always go out of her way. She gets pretty ticked at him about the painting, and seems to cut him off, at least for a while.

I agree with everyone. He is her only connection to her mother and Germany. She gets pretty irritated with him too.

He was a relative and they went through a lot as a family. I think she felt an obligation to respect her uncle because of her mother.

I agree with other posts. He is her only surviving relative and she feels she needs to maintain a relationship with him. He was very helpful to her by getting her to America.
I am still not sure he was a good person or not. As I was reading, I got the feeling he was always looking out for himself before anyone else.

He connects Rachel to her past, he is her only living relative and he is also a survivor.

I agree with everyone else. He was the only person she knew that totally understood what she went through in the war plus he was her only surviving blood relative.

I agree with everyone else too! Even though her uncle aggravated her to no end, he was her only living relative and they shared the horrific experience of the Nazis and the war. And her uncle was also her only connection to her mother, for whom Rachel also had mixed feelings. I've known many people who maintain their relationship with a sibling/relative, etc. who only causes them grief, for whatever their reasons.

I think Rachel continued to put up with Feter Fritz's behavior for several reasons: 1) He was her last surviving relative; 2) She was raised in a family that emphasized loyalty and family ties; and 3) She felt compassion and empathy for his situation.

Family is family...even if your relative can be a jerk sometimes, I think loyalty many times keeps family members close.

He wasn't perfect, but he was family. He survived along with her and he alone in the world knows what she went through. She lost so much she needed to hang on to what she could.