“The devil has the people by the throat.”
Por qué es buena
It turns abstract suffering into one physical grip, so the hardship needs no adjectives.
Registro
literary
Úsala tú
The deadline has the whole team by the throat.
00:00 / 03:02
00:00 / 03:02
Annina Asks Rick About Renault, Explained
Casablanca · 1943
Capítulo 13 de 20 · 3'02"
A young Bulgarian wife asks Rick whether Captain Renault can be trusted, since he offered the couple exit visas their money can't buy. Rick hears the whole story and gives her a blunt piece of advice: go back to Bulgaria. 'The devil has the people by the throat,' she says of home, which is why she can't.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:14–1:40
Annina Asks Rick About Renault
86s - 1:47–2:08
❝ Monólogo · 6 frases Annina's plea
By hiding her own story inside a hypothetical, she makes the plea without confessing it.
20s
Annina Asks Rick About Renault, explained
What happens
Annina Brandel, a young underage wife, slips into Rick's café to ask what kind of man Captain Renault really is. She and her husband Jan have no money, yet Renault has offered them exit visas. When she asks whether he keeps his word, Rick tells her to go back to Bulgaria. Later, Ilsa and Victor arrive and ask for a table near Sam.
What's really going on
The exchange is a warning delivered in the form of a question. Annina doesn't quite say what Renault wants; she circles it, asking whether he can be trusted and whether he keeps his word. Rick, who knows exactly what the offer means, answers with the story's bleakest image of Europe—'The devil has the people by the throat'—and still tells her to go back rather than take the deal. His advice sounds cruel and is also the only protection he can offer without getting involved. When Ilsa and Victor arrive moments later, the café's two plots overlap: refugees needing papers, and the woman Rick can't help wanting to save.
Key lines & what they mean
- “The devil has the people by the throat.”
- Annina's image for life under the Nazis in Bulgaria: the people are trapped and can't break free, which is why the family fled.
- “In many ways I am so much older than he is.”
- She says she's had to grow up faster than her husband Jan, hinting that she is the one handling the hard, compromising decisions.
- “It was much more than we thought to get here.”
- Getting as far as Casablanca cost far more than they budgeted, leaving them with no money—exactly why Renault's offer is dangerous.
- “The geography may be a little difficult to arrange.”
- Rick's dry reply to the request to sit near Sam and far from Strasser: the café is small, so such an arrangement isn't easy.
Theme
- Survival — The young couple are trying to escape Europe, and Rick sends her back rather than see her pay Renault's price.
- Power — Renault uses the exit visas he controls as leverage over people who have nothing left to trade.
Qué aprendes en este capítulo
Puntos de enseñanza
Repasa justo después de verMi nivel5/7
A1–C2 es la escala MCER. Las tarjetas por encima del nivel elegido se atenúan y la reproducción no se pausa en ellas.
Puntos de lengua
Toca una tarjeta para saltar a ese momentoFrases de oro
Una gran frase en sí misma: por qué y cómo usarla“In many ways I am so much older than he is.”
Por qué es buena
She measures her hardship as an age gap, which makes her sadness sound like a plain fact.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
In many ways I am much older than my classmates.
“It was much more than we thought to get here.”
Por qué es buena
It never names the price, only says it was higher than expected, which leaves the cost to the listener.
Registro
Neutral
Úsala tú
It was much more than we thought to move the office.
“The geography may be a little difficult to arrange.”
Por qué es buena
He dresses a refusal in the language of geography, and the politeness is the joke.
Registro
Formal
Úsala tú
Sitting them together may be a little difficult to arrange.
Monólogo
Un personaje sostiene la escena: practícalo entero❝ Annina's plea
If someone loved you very much... ...so that your happiness was the only thing that she wanted in the world... ...and she did a bad thing to make certain of it... - ...could you forgive her? - Nobody ever loved me that much. And he never knew, and the girl kept this bad thing locked in her heart... ...that would be all right, wouldn't it?
By hiding her own story inside a hypothetical, she makes the plea without confessing it.
Siguiente · 14not in my departmentLa escena: Rick Refuses Victor's PleaIdeas clave
Lo que te llevas- A plea can be made without ever naming yourself.
- Trusting someone starts with whether their word holds.
- One physical image can carry a whole country's suffering.
- Polite questions often set up the bluntest answers.
Preguntas frecuentes
La pregunta, luego la fraseWhat does Renault want from Annina?
He's offered her and her husband exit visas even though they have no money, which means he wants something other than payment. The scene implies he expects Annina herself.
Why does Rick tell her to go back to Bulgaria?
It's his way of protecting her from a deal he knows is a trap. Refusing the visa keeps her from paying a price she can't afford.
What does "The devil has the people by the throat" mean?
It describes a people trapped and helpless under an oppressive regime. Annina uses it to explain why her family had to leave Bulgaria.
Why do Ilsa and Victor ask to sit far from Strasser?
Strasser is the German officer hunting Victor. Sitting close to him would draw attention, while sitting near Sam lets them keep the comfort of familiar music.
What kind of man does Rick say Renault is?
He says Renault is like any other man, only more so—meaning his appetites and his opportunism are simply stronger and more visible than most.