Setting

The Cellist of Sarajevo took place in the town of Sarajevo around the 1990's. The novel was based around true events that had hit the town during the siege, and examines the lives of three fictional characters living within the town, during the siege.

 This picture shows The Town of Sarajevo during the siege. It shows where the people on the hills are attacking the citizens as well as where the citizens themselves are trapped. Aside from this it shows the bridges that Kenan must struggle to cross when he is fetching water for his family from the brewery.

Some Interesting Quotes

"A weapon does not decide whether or not to kill. A weapon is a manifestation of a decision that has already been made" (Galloway 96)

        This is a very interesting quote in the novel. It was said when Arrow is setting up too protect the cellist. It is stating that people are making a choice to kill. Guns aren't to be blamed, when really the person who is shooting the gun is to be blamed, they made the decision to do so. The weapon is just the proof of the decision that you made. This quote shows the true intentions of how Arrow feels, she understands her job, but she made the decision to do so.

"What the Cellist wants isn't to change, or to set things right again, but to stop things from getting worse." (Galloway126)

    This quote falls back to the cellist acting as a symbol of hope. This is important because it is so

true. No one can erase the past, and most people don't want to take initiative, so instead people forgot the mistakes. Most people settle with the fight just stopping, they don't have to be friends, they just have to act civil towards each other. In Dragan’s opinion, this is what the cellist is trying to show.

“The final notes of the cellist reach him, and he smiles. His eyes open, and a small hole erupts
between them.  The back of his head disintegrates and the grey viscus of his brain slaps into the wall behind.” (Galloway 154)

    While the cellist plays his cello in the crater, Arrow is looking for a sniper. During this section of the novel, the cellist is watching the sniper, waiting for him to fire. She can’t seem to decide why he
won’t take out the cellist. He didn't even see it coming, her emotions when it was over showed this. She didn't mind that she shot him, she knew she did her job. But she knew why he didn't shoot the cellist, and that she got lucky. He was listening to the music. Before this, Arrow was having a moral dilemma, she could not decide whether she should kill him or not.