Kish Mahoney Holocaust Literature
The Boy In The Striped Pajamas
In this story I found Bruno to be the most innocent of the characters in this book. As the young boy was 9 years old he saw the world through the sheltered eyes of a child. Though he was the son of one of Hitler's commanding officers, he was shielded from the true occurrences that were happening within the walls of his own home as well as what was happening just outside his door. The simplicity of his reasoning of why things occurred from that fact that he felt that his father did something to make the Fury mad and in turn he sent their family to Out With, to his not knowing what a Jew was. He was a 9 year old child trying to live his youth looking for a friend to adventure and play with. The innocence of the child is seen as he forms a friendship with Shmuel and is content sitting on the ground talking with his only friend at his new home at Out With (Auschwitz). Bruno is naive to the fact that Shmuel is a Jew, has no home, no safety, no food, no drink, no clothes, nor possessions, and the only family he had left was his father whom he also looses in the end of the story. Bruno does not see the cruelty that his father and the other soldiers have inflicted on his new best friend Shmuel and the others wearing the striped pajamas living on the opposite side of the fence. He has no idea that because Shmuel is a Jew that his father would forbid him to associate with this innocent child and his new best friend.
Bruno looks at his father with his innocent adoring eyes and sees only his father the Commandant, a man of pride and prestige. He does not know what his father does as the Commander or why he has received such a decorated uniform, nor does he seem to question it. He believes that everyone likes and respects his father, including Shmuel even thought his friend states that he hates the soldiers (195).
Though Bruno denies his friendship to Shmuel and Shmuel is badly beaten by Lieutenant Kotler, Shmuel forgives his friend. Bruno again shows the innocence of his youth and assumes that the reason for Shmuels battered and bruised face was from falling off a bicycle. Bruno is naive to the wrongs of his ways as well as the consequences of his own actions.
In the end of the book the innocence of the two boys truly shows through as Bruno donns a pair of the striped pajamas and crosses to Shmuels side of the fence in search of Shmuels father. As the camp prisoners are rounded up Bruno decides it is time for him to go home as he does not like it at the camp, but it is too late. Their own demise was just a head of them, as they held hands and were marched into the gas chamber, neither of the boys knew of their fate. Brunos last great adventure to search and find his friends father ended up being the death of him. Again the innocence of this 9 year old child shines through, as he did experience one adventure with Shmuel.
His family was broken after Bruno disappeared as there were no answers to his disappearance. His sister Gretel cried for her lost brother, his mother ended up staying in the house at Out With for several months in hopes of finding Bruno without success, and Brunos father did some adventuring of his own and formed a conclusion of what happened to Bruno, and he too became a broken man. In the end Brunos family experienced exactly what Shmuel felt when his father disappeared without a trace.
The last paragraph of The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas states, "Of course all of this happened a long time ago and nothing like that could ever happen again. Not in this day and age" (216). This is just another example of naivety and innocence. In conclusion I feel that neither the innocence of a child nor the ignorance of society is an excuse for the actions of the German people. I myself come from a long line of German heritage and I find it hard to believe that my ancestors partook in such a dark time in history. I feel as sorrowful to the millions of lives lost during the Holocaust as I did in the hours and days following the attack on America on September 11, 2001. All of America was forever changed due to the crazy thoughts and orders of Osama Bin-Laden, but as Americans we bonded together to help all of those in need no matter their race, age, religion, sex, or nationality. I wish the German people had done the same and I can only hope that the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
References:
The Boy In The Striped Pajamas. New York: David Flicking Books, 2008. Print.
Bruno looks at his father with his innocent adoring eyes and sees only his father the Commandant, a man of pride and prestige. He does not know what his father does as the Commander or why he has received such a decorated uniform, nor does he seem to question it. He believes that everyone likes and respects his father, including Shmuel even thought his friend states that he hates the soldiers (195).
Though Bruno denies his friendship to Shmuel and Shmuel is badly beaten by Lieutenant Kotler, Shmuel forgives his friend. Bruno again shows the innocence of his youth and assumes that the reason for Shmuels battered and bruised face was from falling off a bicycle. Bruno is naive to the wrongs of his ways as well as the consequences of his own actions.
In the end of the book the innocence of the two boys truly shows through as Bruno donns a pair of the striped pajamas and crosses to Shmuels side of the fence in search of Shmuels father. As the camp prisoners are rounded up Bruno decides it is time for him to go home as he does not like it at the camp, but it is too late. Their own demise was just a head of them, as they held hands and were marched into the gas chamber, neither of the boys knew of their fate. Brunos last great adventure to search and find his friends father ended up being the death of him. Again the innocence of this 9 year old child shines through, as he did experience one adventure with Shmuel.
His family was broken after Bruno disappeared as there were no answers to his disappearance. His sister Gretel cried for her lost brother, his mother ended up staying in the house at Out With for several months in hopes of finding Bruno without success, and Brunos father did some adventuring of his own and formed a conclusion of what happened to Bruno, and he too became a broken man. In the end Brunos family experienced exactly what Shmuel felt when his father disappeared without a trace.
The last paragraph of The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas states, "Of course all of this happened a long time ago and nothing like that could ever happen again. Not in this day and age" (216). This is just another example of naivety and innocence. In conclusion I feel that neither the innocence of a child nor the ignorance of society is an excuse for the actions of the German people. I myself come from a long line of German heritage and I find it hard to believe that my ancestors partook in such a dark time in history. I feel as sorrowful to the millions of lives lost during the Holocaust as I did in the hours and days following the attack on America on September 11, 2001. All of America was forever changed due to the crazy thoughts and orders of Osama Bin-Laden, but as Americans we bonded together to help all of those in need no matter their race, age, religion, sex, or nationality. I wish the German people had done the same and I can only hope that the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
References:
The Boy In The Striped Pajamas. New York: David Flicking Books, 2008. Print.
