The Czech Dog and Ice Cold

The short stories "Ice Cold" and "The Czech Dog" present two characters, Babka and the Czech man, who share similarities and differences. In "Ice Cold," Babka loses her innocence at fifteen years old and she is emotionally scarred forever. At present, she is an immigrant in Canada who does not communicate to her family. However, in "The Czech Dog", the main character is dehumanized and loses all his dignity. The Czech man becomes an isolated …

…and isolated from the outside world. They were normal people who, because of their experiences during the war, had their lives altered and never the same again. They differ in their similarities by the way they talk about their past, the severity of the damage caused, and in the way they deal with the love they witness. The Czech man and Babka carry a great burden that most Americans or Canadians would never come across.