The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.
In the novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne, the historical setting of Nazi Germany is of key importance. Although the novel is fictional having it set during a time period of such significance, such as Germany under the Nazi regime, gives a sense of reality to the book. This is important as this connects readers to the plot line as they understand the setting. This setting is interesting as it was a terrible point of history, filled with hatred, fear and bigotry. In this essay, I will be discussing the main points of the historical setting and the reasons this fits well with the book and how this historical setting came about. This historical setting had key relevance and was essential for the book.
The first reason for why the historical setting was so important is it added drama and tension to the story. The Nazi regime was fuelled by propaganda, fear and intolerance. Limits on Jews were continuously getting worse, eventually going as far as to put the Jewish people into labour camps and death camps (such as Auschwitz) leading to the unique terrible conditions under which this novel operates. This adds tension to the story as the conflict between the Jews and the Nazis builds. This conflict is interesting as the hatred directed towards Jews was nonsensical and uninformed, it was a way for Hitler to unify Germany by directing hatred towards minorities. The setting causes drama between characters as shown through
In the novel The Boy In The Striped Pajamas, the theme known as Finding Light In The Darkness is accurately represented throughout the book. Literary elements such as setting, mood, and characterization are used to expand the theme and further support it. To explain the setting, in the novel The Boy In The Striped Pajamas the main character, Bruno, is settled in a house that is near the death camp Auschwitz. This is a clear example of light in the darkness, moreso sporting the uncommon theme of “Good can be found in the evil.”
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne is a story that tells of the holocaust through the eyes of a child, Bruno, a boy who discovers a peculiar friend that lives a strange existence on the other side of the adjoining wire fence. The important ideas presented in the novel are cruelty, discrimination, and abusive power, the holocaust from a child’s perspective and the misinterpretations from a child who gradually discovers the world to be not as enjoyable as he thought. Using some of these ideas listed above the storyline of the book gradually becomes more evident and keeps you interested in the book to finding that the story is of the holocaust and how the Jews were once treated, last century.
For, in Berlin Bruno has quite a more normal and homely life with friends and family always at his fingertips, and all of his favourite places has, and all of which set in a vibrant and happy city. Whilst his life at Auschwitz is lesser than that, as he is unable to do even half of the things he could back in Berlin, making his time there very bleak to him. These sorts of feelings are felt all throughout the novel through Bruno again and again by his constant repetition of comparison about these locations. We see this setting and theme as being a way to highlight the feelings the Jews must have felt, being moved from their luscious life of being free to the tough and death ridden. Whilst the Germans have all of the riches and pleasure of a normal life, while the Jews are forced into a life of death and pressed labour. We the reader take this on to give further division of the races, making any action to break such a boundary to be very prominent and clear to their meaning.
John Boyne’s novel, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, is a touching story, based on real events that have happened in the past. Although it concerns aspects of human brutality, in the end it shows us that courage, loyalty and love are far more important themes in this story.
The novel was set in New York during the Second World War. Since the main characters are Jews, this period of time is very significant. Not only were the Jews persecuted during WWII, but New York was also close to a military base, which made it a prime target for bombing. Even the setting has an underlying sense of tension.
John Boyne’s historical fable, The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, is an optimistic narration of World War Two set in the “Out-With” concentration camp. In the background of the war, the story details the life of male protagonist Bruno, who befriends the unlikeliest of strangers in his attempt to adjust to life at Out-With. In Boyne’s portrayal of this dictatorship, the characters' go through life controlled by the notion of fear, only escaping its grasp through the most dramatic of circumstances. The didactic text paints a picture of how “we don’t have a choice” when we are being controlled by our fear (p.8). Thus,
The examination of the Boy in the Striped Pajamas will examine the lives of the children growing up in a concentration camp. In order to accurately understand the introduction of the Jewish children living in a concentration camp, a brief summary of the movie
Through the study of the novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas by John Boyne, it is clear that the concerns and issues, as well as the style and structure of a text, are what determines the reader’s involvement. In addition, the issues of the past (particularly those about war) still remain concerns today. The issues amplified within The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas include detachment in family relationships which can lead to disastrous consequences, and the withholding of information from the youthful and innocent which can create dangerous situations. Along with these, is the main issue of the
World War II was a drastic war fought from 1939 to 1945 that affected society in many ways. Adolf Hitler’s attempts to take over the world by starting to attack neighboring countries triggered the start of this massive world war. Adolf Hitler became leader of Germany and this resulted in the country of Germany following the National Socialist Party or more commonly known as the Nazi Party. This party led the entire country to believe in many inhumane things that would go against the standards of humanity set forth by the public currently. The main idea that the Nazi party taught Germans of all ages is to treat Jewish people poorly. The Nazi party not only taught the adults that jews are unequal to all other citizens but they also taught the children living in the country. As a result of these views, the Germans closed and vandalised all businesses owned by jewish men, imprisoned jews, held many jews in concentration camps often being killed in gas chambers and mass murdering these jews. This situation in Germany is the main cause for all the conflicts within the book, “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”. John Boyne made this book take place during the World War II era. The protagonist in the story is a nine year old boy named Bruno who is the son of a very important figure in the German Military. Bruno’s father 's role in society is also a contributing factor in many of the conflicts that occur in the novel. The three main conflicts John Boyne writes about in “The Boy in the
“The Boy In the Striped Pyjamas” by John Boyne gives an insight to the holocaust and the rule of Nazi Germany in WW2, Boyne’s novel demonstrates Friendship through protagonist Bruno. Boyne writes about the an inhumane period, even if his book is a fable it still is based on the hardship that the jewish people suffered during this dark time. Throughout the Novel Bruno’s perspective on Friendship changes, he realises that you shouldn’t judge a friend by there appearance. The characters show intricate acts of friendship for life, friendship between young and old. Mateship between four “best friends for life” (karl, Daniel, Martin and Bruno) and the protagonist, Bruno, “crossing the fence” by entering an concentration and extermination camp for his jewish friend, Shmuel. The book is set on the German Polish border in about the year 1942 in the middle of Nazi Germany.
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is a movie based on the historical depiction of the Holocaust. The movie begins in Germany in the 1940’s where we see a family forced to move away due to the demands of the father’s new position of power at Auschwitz, and the family moves to a house outside of the camp. Bruno, the eight-year-old son spends most of his time outside exploring and discovers the boy in pajamas across the fence and they quickly become friends. Bruno finds time each day to sneak out to the fence and see his new young Jewish friend, Shmuel and he eventually crosses the fence to help his friend find his missing father. While this story is not 100% true, it does depict what life was like for those at the camp and the realities of the Holocaust as a historical event.
In many fictional works the setting can change the whole story in the blink of an eye. The Boy In The Striped Pajamas is a book set in WWII. However, the story is told through the eyes of a young, innocent german boy named Bruno. Bruno’s family lives in Berlin until Hitler orders Bruno’s father to move to Auschwitz to direct the camp. Bruno eventually meets and befriends one of the Jewish prisoners living in the camp. Specific parts of the setting such as the weather and the time period can heavily influence the mood, negatively or positively. Also, individual aspects of the character’s surroundings can provide the basis for important events and/or twists in the plot. Character's thoughts, actions, and feelings can be developed with help from the setting. The setting of a concentration camp negatively influences the mood, provides the basis for pivotal events in the plot, and develops the character’s thoughts and actions in The Boy In The Striped Pajamas.
John Boyne has created a sophisticated and meaningful novel “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas” through his portrayal of prejudice and discrimination. Throughout the text, he exposes society's perception, attitude and behavior towards different racial groups and people during the Holocaust in WW2. Bruno’s curious nature, captures the attention of the reader, and provides a platform from which to explore the atrocities of war. Bruno’s innocence shields him from the monstrosities of prejudice and discrimination, depicted by the attitude and behaviour of the people around him. In particular, Bruno bears witness to prejudice and discrimination propagated by Hitler, The Commandant and Lt Kotler.
They say that ignorance is bliss. That is somewhat true, as not understanding the atrocities in our world would surely make a happier person. However, innocence can also lead to calamity. The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne, is a coming of age story about Bruno, the son of a Nazi Commandant under Adolf Hitler. Bruno was initially very ignorant of what was happening in the world and was very immature about moving from Berlin. As the days went by, he got used to his new home and his thoughts were maturing, as he started thinking with logic and rationale. Bruno finally understands that he has to be a good person to everyone regardless what others might think. His character has strongly developed. Despite Bruno being unaware of his situation and his father being a Nazi, he matures from being childish and unsatisfied for moving to finally finding purpose in life by being a good human being.
John Boyne's book "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" invites the readers to embark on an imaginative journey at two levels. At the first level, Boyne himself embarks upon an imaginative journey that explores a possible scenario in relation to Auschwitz. Bruno is a 9 year old boy growing up in a loving, but typically authoritarian German family in the 1930?s. His father is a