The authors use of past tense language shows that Werner has conceded on following his childhood dreams. Werner uses past tense language every time he discusses his previous dreams, phrases such as “I believe in you, Frau Elena used to say,” (Line 37). His use of words like used shows that he has accepted his fate of spending the rest of his life in the mines, and has given up on what used to be his main aspirations for his life. He further demonstrates his defeat when he says that, “It has been months since he last heard the Frenchmen on the shortwave.” (Line 29-30) The Frenchmen used to serve as his main sense of hope before the war. He taught him new things and inspired him to want to learn more. The idea that he no longer has this man in his life shows that he no longer has anyone to inspire him to work more in his dreams. He even talks about the other scientists in other areas he used to dream about (line 33), but when he uses the term used, we know he has completely and utterly accepted defeat. He believes he will never achieve his dreams, and there is no point in trying now.