Władysław Szpilman is a Polish pianist and composer who writes The Pianist to detail his experiences in Warsaw during WWII. He is a fairly well-known musician working at Polish Radio at the time of the German invasion of Poland. As a Jew, he is forced to move into the Warsaw ghetto along with his parents and three siblings. When the radio broadcasting station is destroyed, Władysław continues to exercise his musical craft by playing in several of the cafes in the ghetto.He is a member of the “intelligentsia,” an intellectual and artistic class who remain separate from the less financially secure Jews in the ghetto. Though the Szpilmans are not extremely wealthy, Władysław’s status as a musician garners him some of this social status.

Towards the beginning of the memoir, Władysław has a strong sense of pride about his identity as a musician, intellectual, and Polish Jew. Though the Germans slowly chip away at the Jews’ rights and sense of humanity, Władysław tries his best to sidestep regulations and avoid compromising any of his pride in the face of the Germans. He has a strong will for self-preservation and the protection of his family.

As more and more Jews are sent to the camps, Władysław’s stoic character is shaken.