Did you have a Communist Party membership card?Oppenheimer · 2023 — Chapter 27 of 28 · 2'39" · C1
Kitty Testifies Before the Board, Explained: Haven't the slightest idea
Kitty takes the stand and refuses to be cornered. Asked about an old Party card, she answers "Haven't the slightest idea," then corrects her questioner's wording and insists Robert "never had anything to do with the Communist Party as such." Robb answers with a sneer.
What happens
Kitty is called to testify about her husband's politics. Robb presses her on an old Communist Party card, and she deflects each question, even correcting his phrasing. She says Robert never truly belonged to the Party, that he gave money for Spanish refugees from time to time, and refuses to be drawn further.
Listen for
Haven't the slightest ideaas suchhaving anything to do withfrom time to time
00:00 / 02:39Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Phrase of the scene
Haven't the slightest idea
一点概念都没有；完全不知道
律师反复追问党证的下落，基蒂用这句话表示自己毫无印象。
Haven't the slightest idea where it went.
Also in this scene
- as such
本身、严格意义上、就其本身而言
- having anything to do with
和……有任何关系
- from time to time
时不时地；偶尔，隔一阵就有一次
Everything marked in this scene
28 notes across 50 lines
I mean, presumably, the act of joining the Party required sending some money and receiving a card, no?gerund
I mean, presumably, the act of joining the Party required sending some money and receiving a card, no?It's just it was all so very long ago,stress
It's just it was all so very long ago,Long enough to have forgotten.Did you return the card or rip it up?relative clause
The card whose existence I've forgotten?Haven't the slightest idea.Can a distinction be made between Soviet Communism and Communism?Well, in the days when I was a member, I thought they were definitely two things.liaison
Well, in the days when I was a member, I thought they were definitely two things.I now no longer believe this.Believe the whole thing's linked together and spread all over the world,My mistake.Are you familiar with the fact your husband was making contributionsI knew that Robert gave money from time to time.flap
I knew that Robert gave money from time to time.Did you know this money was going into Communist Party channels?past perfect
your husband had not stopped having anything to do with the Communist Party?You can answer that any way you wish.Then why don't you answer it that way?Because Robert never had anything to do with the Communist Party as such.Because Robert never had anything to do with the Communist Party as such.I know he took an intellectual interest in Communist ideas...Intellectual Communists and your plain old regular Commie?Intellectual Communists and your plain old regular Commie?Well, I couldn't answer that one.Kitty Testifies Before the Board, explained
What's really going on
The scene is a duel in which the witness has better control than the prosecutor. Robb tries to pin Kitty down with a yes-or-no question, but she answers only what she chooses and corrects his words instead of defending herself. Her sharpest move is to refuse the phrase he feeds her, then replace it with one that is more exact: Robert gave money to Spanish refugees, and he was interested in Communist ideas, but he "never had anything to do with the Communist Party as such." That word, as such, is the whole defense. Robb tries to mock it with a jab about intellectual Communists versus a regular Commie, and gets nothing back. The scene shows loyalty that is not sentimental — clear, precise, and impossible to turn into a confession.
Theme
TrustKitty defends her husband with exact language, refusing to let a loaded phrase become a confession.
JusticeThe hearing's yes-or-no framing is turned back on the prosecutor by a witness who knows the words matter.
Listen for
- so very long ago — stress
- in the days when — liaison
- from time to time — flap
Because Robert never had anything to do with the Communist Party as such.Her precise defense: he may have been sympathetic, but he was never truly a member in the strict sense.
You can answer that any way you wish.A reminder that she is not trapped by the question's form, which she then uses against the prosecutor.
Well, in the days when I was a member, I thought they were definitely two things.Her careful admission about her own past belief, delivered as fact rather than confession.
Intellectual Communists and your plain old regular Commie?Robb's mocking question, meant to ridicule her distinction between ideas and membership.
Questions about this scene
Why does Kitty correct Robb's wording?
Because his phrase, having anything to do with the Communist Party, is vague enough to mean almost anything. She refuses it and gives a more exact version of the facts.
What does she admit about Robert?
She says he gave money to Spanish refugees and took an intellectual interest in Communist ideas, but insists he never truly belonged to the Party as such.
How does Robb try to provoke her?
He mocks her distinction by asking whether there are two kinds of Communists, intellectual ones and a regular Commie. Kitty says she cannot answer that.
Why is 'Haven't the slightest idea' important here?
It lets Kitty deny knowledge of the Party card without agreeing to the prosecutor's framing, keeping control of the exchange.
Oppenheimer · 28 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 28moral scruplesOppenheimer Is Cross-Examined
Chapter 1leaves a little to be desiredBohr Sends Oppenheimer to Göttingen
Chapter 2the man for the jobStrauss Offers Oppenheimer a Job
Chapter 3seek outRabi Meets Oppenheimer on a Train
Chapter 4a vicious cycleOppenheimer Starts His Quantum Seminar
Chapter 5wiggle roomPolitical Debate at a Party
Chapter 6wring your neckOppenheimer Names Los Alamos
Chapter 7from moneyOppenheimer Explains Empty Space
Chapter 8herd intoLawrence Shuts Down the Union
Chapter 9point takenGroves Offers Oppenheimer the Job
Chapter 10a point of no returnOppenheimer Asks Einstein About Doomsday
Chapter 11pass onChevalier Suggests Passing Secrets
Chapter 12the business at handTeller Pitches the H-Bomb
Chapter 13Thanks for nothingCondon Quits Los Alamos
Chapter 14drop in and outOppenheimer's Last Night With Jean
Chapter 15a cock-and-bull storyOppenheimer's Cock-and-Bull Story
Chapter 16took a wrong turnBohr Warns of the Aftermath
Chapter 17go down this roadThe GAC Debates the H-Bomb
Chapter 18a lot of latitudeThe Target Committee Debates the Bomb
Chapter 19gallows humorWaiting Out the Storm at Trinity
Chapter 20blood on my handsOppenheimer Meets President Truman
Chapter 21A man of convictionThe Fuchs Spy Case Comes Up
Chapter 22curse the name ofOppenheimer Refuses the Super Bomb
Chapter 23how the game is playedPlanning Oppenheimer's Downfall
Chapter 24MermaidsRabi Defends Oppenheimer
Chapter 25cuts both waysBorden Reads the Accusation Letter
Chapter 26made mincemeat out ofHill Blames Strauss at the Hearing
Watching · Chapter 27Haven't the slightest ideaKitty Testifies Before the Board
Chapter 28moral scruplesOppenheimer Is Cross-ExaminedChapter 27 of 28 · about 3 min to go