In The Reader , Bernard Schlink effectively deals with a fundamental tension that seems to exist in legal and moral discourse – that being, the notions of individual and collective guilt – through exploring the methods in which second generation Germans attempted to come to terms with Germany’s Nazi past . For the second generation, coming to terms with Germany’s Nazi past meant coming to terms with their parents conduct . Even if the parents had not directly been involved in the atrocities committed in World War II, the second generation sanctimoniously condemn them for not judging those who were . Michael, who had not hitherto shared the feelings of condemnation as that of his generation – with his own family being blameless during World