John Boyne’s novel “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas”, published in 2006, explores life in Europe during World War 2, while also discussing significant topics such as prejudice and the dangers of countries led by dictators. Throughout the novel, Boyne uses dramatic and situational irony for deliberate effect to position readers to reflect on the senselessness of discrimination and its devastating consequences. Boyne’s recurring use of dramatic irony not only creates tension throughout the book, but also conveys the author’s tone in relation to topics such as blind animosity towards others. During a brief conversation between Bruno and his Father, the reader receives a deeper understanding of the author’s confusion as to why people would be so cruel as to treat Jewish people as less than human beings. Boyne cleverly produces a sense of perplexity in the reader’s mind, as just as Bruno is “unsure what Father meant by that [the Jews not being people]” (page 52), so is the majority of the audience. This use of dramatic irony further proves the author’s opinion in regards to the utter absurdity of the Holocaust and the disturbing fact that …show more content…
As Bruno enters the concentration camp with Shmuel, he realises that Shmuel’s living conditions, which have previously been a mystery to both Bruno and the reader, have “no grown-ups sitting on rocking chairs … no children playing games in groups … no café like there had been back in Berlin” (page 207) and, similarly to the audience, is horrified. In this scene, the author utilises situational irony in order to create a deplorable atmosphere, accompanied with an ominous and eerie mood, which advances the directly positions the reader to contemplate the atrocities of the concentration camp. The impacts of hatred are made clear to the audience in the form of a surprising plot twist that Bruno is on the receiving end
Has it ever dawned upon you how a twelve year old boy might have experienced the Holocaust? In the memoir Night by Elie Wiesel, Mr. Wiesel told his story, leaving us with an astonishing and vehement view to what it was like to be sent to a concentration camp at the young age of twelve. To enhance the powerful effect of the book, a multitude of motifs were utilized, although one was undeniably conspicuous: The dehumanization of the Jews. The book was a full chronicle of one young man’s experience of the Holocaust, which included multifarious occurrences of the horrors Jewish prisoners were put through, ultimately removing the essence of their humanity. Symbolism was incorporated into this motif, in which Mr. Wiesel showed how one’s eyes not
For the novel study, I read The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas which is a holocaust based novel written by John Boyne. I believe that the statement above means many things, but I think that mostly it means that some people no matter what the situation still find time for others, and that it wouldn’t matter what race or religion they were.
John Boyne’s book “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas” is set in the area bordering Nazi Germany and Poland in the 1940s. The story concern a young German boy named Bruno, his family and the unlikely friendship he has between another boy named Schmuel, imprisoned in Auschwitz.
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
In The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, Bruno’s attitudes and actions are mainly shaped by three people, Pavel, Father and Shmuel. They shape Bruno’s attitudes and actions mainly through deep conversation. Boyne made Pavel shape Bruno’s attitude towards the people on the other side of the fence. Boyne also made Father shape Bruno’s actions to go and explore the fence. Boyne decided to make Shmuel shape Bruno’s attitude of how he felt about Shmuel upon first meeting him.
John Boyne has created a sophisticated and meaningful novel in The Boy in the Striped
In the fable Boy in the Striped Pajamas the author is John Boyne, John made many characters but he made 3 most unique characters out of the book there names are Bruno, Bruno father, Shmuel. Bruno is a brave spirit he adventurous and he is a great explorer, Bruno father is a tall man he is very evil, Shmuel is a very happy boy but he is depressed because the soldiers are torturing his people. The book is based off of real life event such as the holocaust and World War 2, world war2 started in 1939 and ended in late 1945 and the holocaust started in 1933 and ended in early 1945. Bruno is a 9 year old boy he is very clueless about why he has to move to a strange place
The movie “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” is about two boys. The boys have different lives. The German boy has things he wants and things he needs while, the other boy is Jewish and lives in a concentration camp and doesn’t get what he wants, he doesn’t get food or drinks. Bruno is the boy who lives in a house and his father has a job. Shmuel is the other boy that lives in the German concentration camp and his father died.
A boy, Shumel the same age as Bruno is sitting by the fence, and Bruno introduces himself. They soon became good friends and Bruno soon has the curiosity to explore the camp inside. Bruno wants to explore the camp he calls "out-with", but is actually the "Auschwitz camp". This shows his innocence as he does not know the world around him. His family simply wants to hide the fact they are living by a concentration camp from Bruno, but his curiosity takes the better of him.
The story presents themes of friendship and blindly following authority, which readers later discover affect the story’s plot. Although both tellings mainly take place in Auschwitz, small changes in the setting details greatly affect the ending of the novel and film. Finally, though people find it easy to fall in love with many of the characters, Mother’s transformation between the novel and film is most impressive. Even though the movie and the book differ the story of The Boy In the Striped Pajamas is a wonderful fictional telling of a young boy’s life in World War II. “And that is the end of the story about Bruno and his family. Of course, all this happened a long time ago and nothing like that could ever happen again. Not in this day and age”(Boyne
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a novel by John Boyne. This novel is set during World War 2 and explores themes such as prejudice, racism, war, innocence and friendship. What sets it apart from other novels is that it uses a third person limited point of view, and mostly depicts events as they are seen by a young and naïve boy. This was one of the main narrative conventions that engaged me in this novel.
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.
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
John Boyne’s novel,“ The Boy In Striped Pyjamas” illustrates the horrific implications of the Holocaust, through the perspective of a young boy called Bruno. Innocence is reflected, as he is the central protagonist. As the novel unfolds it is evident he is not aware of being in the centre of evil during this dark period in history. The novel explores Bruno's curiosity about exploration which consequently leads to him discovering a friendly source of company in a odd place, that lacks humanity. His childhood purity is oblivious of the atrocities committed by those closest to him, and the conflict provoked by his father, the commandant which is impossible to ignore.
‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ is about two little boys who become the most unlikely of friends during the Holocaust. Shmuel, a young Jewish boy, lives in a concentration camp holding Jewish people from different areas on one side of the fence. Bruno, a young German boy, lives in a two-storey house on the other side of the fence with his family. The fence is a figurative and literal line of division. It symbolises the differences between the two boys and the loss of freedom and innocence both from the German and Jewish people due to Hilter’s regime surrounding the Holocaust, a time in history where around six million Jewish people were killed because they were blamed for Germany’s demise during the First World War.