“Borderlands are physically present wherever two or more cultures edge each other; where people of different races occupy the same territory, where under, lower, middle and upper classes touch, where the space between two individuals shrinks with intimacy.” Anzaldua
"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. "
Martin Luther King Jr.US black civil rights leader & clergyman (1929 - 1968)
FATHER BRESSANI CATHOLIC HIGH SCOOL: A SCHOOL FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND ADVANCED PLACEMENT CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Post #1 Initial Reactions - novel
Students are asked to post their initial reactions, comments, questions, opinions on "Boy in the Striped Pygamas.
I am curious to see how writer John Boyne will be showing WWII germany through the eyes of a child. When, on page page 24 and 25 the name out-with was mentioned, I could only assume they were indeed at Auschuwitz. I find myself wondering when bruno will realise how sinister the place where he now lives is. Is he a strong Nazi? Would he care about the people if he knew they were Jews? If he did care, what would happen if he found out the purpose of Auchuwitz? So far, the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has been an interesting read, with vivid descriptions of Bruno's world, and I am very eager to see what he discovers next.
After reading the selection I has several thoughts and problems. However the main theme that I realized throughout the first part of the book is that no one, including the reader seems to know what is actually happening. Since we know about the Holocaust, we figure it out, but Bruno has no clue what is really going on outside. The part that really upset me was how at the end of Chapter 5 Bruno says something that he thinks just means 'goodbye'. He says "Heil Hitler". His father taught him this but did not tell him what it meant. I believe that keeping the majority of the population in the dark is wrong. I find it especially immoral to teach kids to say good things about someone they don't even know and not even tell them what they are saying. They are not just being kept in the dark. They are being lied to by parents, friends and the government.
When I started reading the book 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' I noticed that Bruno and slightly his sister as well, seem naive to what is going on currently in their lives. They don't completely realize what their father is doing and who he is,why they moved from their home in Berlin , and in what area they currently live. Due to these factors I feel empathetic towards them, they had no say or explanation on their move, yet they know something is weird, wrong and lonely about their new home. Zachery's comment on how their home called Out-With may actually be Auchwitz and what goes on there,proves how much they dont know what is going on in their lives. When I spoke to Samantha Cesario earlier today she shared the same comment on how Out-With may actually be Auchwitz as well. I feel that this book also makes me feel slightly depressed to see World WarII through Bruno's eyes without him knowing, and realize the creulty and evil going on not far from Bruno's home. In the end I want to see if Bruno finally realizes what is going on with his father, their reason of moving, and what is going on at the camp he sees through his window. I also want to see the differences between the book which I've never read and the movie which I've watched a few years ago. 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' is a very emotional yet powerful book.
After reading the first bit of the novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas a sense of a dark setting is brought to the readers attention. More than likely the setting usually dictates the specific events that may occur through out the plot. For example, how a barrier creating a physical and delusive fence between Bruno and his family from what appears to be victims of the Holocaust. Bruno is not sure of it yet and still isn't aware of any significant differences. There are a couple of symbolic references found within the novel being the swastika of nazi trademark and David's star, a biblical symbol represented by the Jewish people. It seems as though an unhappy ending or grey future has yet to encounter Bruno, but in my mind, is bound to come. His ignorance towards the evident abberation of him and the people behind the fence may command his future in his new home. It agitated me to realize that Bruno's whole family had to sacrifice their personal and social lives for the sake of their father's job that requires taking the lives of innocent people. I understand it's business and may be necessary under their circumstances but I feel it would've been more appropriate if the children and wife would've been left behind in Germany. To sum it up, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, has been an interesting read with mixed emotions. I am eager to culminate the rest of the novel and curious to see what lies ahead for Bruno and his family.
As I read the first 50 or so pages, am I am dissapointed to say that this novel was not as extravagent as I had hoped for. There were many cases where I was dissapointed in the author's writing. For instance, when there was the description about the houses, old and new, i was surprisingly unable to get a clear image on what the author was trying to tell us. Another problem that had occured with me was that the book was written in the third person, so I would have preferred it if the author gave us a clearer thought on some of the other characters oppinions, thoughts or feelings. Another thing that shocked me is that I was told that I would feel Bruno's initial feelings; shock, betrayal, hurt, upsetting. However I felt non of these. Instead, I felt like I was being forced to read what is happeing. Another attributeI did not appriciate was how the time and place of the novel was not clear. It took me 5 chapters to figure out Bruno was German and that his father works for Hitlar. The last negative comment that I will make is that I found many run-on sentences. It is not an enjoyable read if your mind is trying to process too many words in one sentence. One part of the book I did enjoy was when the books details started to get significantly better and I found it easier to understand the plot and settings. One last comment I have is that I find Bruno's character very relatable in the mind of a nine year old boy who just suffered a hard move in the time of many changes. I hope that the rest of the book cotinues to pick up the pace (bad pun on my behalf) and I feel like I'm reading the book because I want to and not because I have to. Although, I would like to know how the author continues the story of the second world war in the perspective of a nine year old boy and wonder if the Jews (my guess is the people in the striped pajamas)will be freed by Bruno.I would also like to know if Bruno will learn the truth to the term "Heil Hitler".
To be honest, as I started reading the book I was confused. It seemed as if I had just opened the book and started reading on a random page. But after a while I began to understand the story better. I was not expecting much from the story, but I was shocked at how well it is portrayed through the eyes of a nine-year-old boy. The Holocaust was a time of sadness for majority of the world. Knowing that war is going on all around you is something that is very hard to live with. Viewing this time through someone who is not old enough to understand it is an interesting way to see war. On page 52, the end of chapter 6, you read Bruno saying "Heil Hitler". I was disturbed when I read that, because I could not believe that a boy like Bruno was told to say and honour a man he knew nothing about. And it is obvious in the first chapters that people aren't planning on telling him what's going on around him. It is like his own family is just expecting to go along with everything, without him knowing the reason why. This book is very interesting so far, and I am sure that throughout the rest of the novel, we will see how Bruno sees the world around him.
The book so far has brought out many of my emotions but there was one that was persistently present. Frustration. It frustrated me that Bruno’s mother did not provide her son with the one thing he truly deserved, answers to why his life was being completely changed in such a short time. It frustrated me that Bruno could look out two different windows in his own house and be confronted with completely opposite realities, a bright afternoon and a day full of misery. It frustrated me that Gretel looked at her own Father and thought, “he could never do any wrong,” (pg. 25). Meanwhile, the same day she asked, “Who would build such a nasty-looking place,” (pg. 32) and she did not know her father was somehow behind it. Finally, and especially, it frustrated me that Bruno asked a lot of questions to try and understand his father’s situation but instead of his father answering them, he simply laughed because Bruno did not already know the answers. Therefore, so far frustration has been one of my major emotions but hopefully as the story progresses new and happier emotions will be brought out.
Before reading the book, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I heard accounts of people who already know the story; these people described it in a way that seemed emotionally gripping. I however did not feel so much, even with my presumption on the matter. I'm sure this is only because it is the beginning of the story and it is surely building up to something greater. Although, there is one thing I am almost certain I will be feeling the entire story—“gray”. When reading the book, I kept picturing it in my head with an overall sense of dullness and an underlying tinge of gray. This is not because the story seemed dull or boring to me in any way, it was just the gloomy mood set by the author. Another preconception I had about the novel was that seeing the world at the time of the Holocaust through the eyes of a nine year old, German boy, would lack significant details. However, with his naive and curious nature, the reader can make inferences on the events taking place, further deepening the story. At the very beginning of the book, Bruno seemed to me as a snobby and ignorant boy. With further reading, however, I began to understand that he simply had no idea what was going on, and therefore could not begin to react appropriately to it. An example of this would be Bruno being taught by his father to salute other men with “Heil Hitler”; unfortunately he was left to interpret that how he wanted and was in a way being used by his father. I am eager to watch the story progress and see what Bruno encounters outside his new house, “Out-With”.
For me this the third time reading "the boy in the striped pajamas", so I am overly familiar with the plot and the actual conclusion. However this time I noticed many different things that I had not payed attention to before. For example the name of the house that the family moves into "Out-With", I had not made a connection earlier to the name of the famous concentration camp Auchwitz in Poland. It was my previous misconception that the Place was actually called Out-with, but then I realized that Bruno kept mispronouncing the word and knew that they had arrived at the heart of the concentration camps, the most evil and the most known. Additionally, I have reflected on the author's use of the nine year old's perspective. I have come to the conclusion that Bruno's ignorance and naïveness further juxtaposes the complete evil of what was happening right underneath his nose. As the reader, I have to use my prior knowledge to fully understand the metaphor used in the story. There is one that really caused me to reflect deeply, and that is the use of labeling. In the story the two different labels were that of the swastika and the star of David. Labels are often used by people that need something to put their blame on, racial, gender... And that is what the Germans did, they used the Jewish people as their own personal scapegoat, blaming them for failures that were really caused by them. But when Bruno meets Shmuel, he does not see a difference in them and that is what led to their friendship. Maybe one needs to be different than the other to form a lasting friendship, to show how the other side is not really always greener.
As I came across the novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, written by John Boyne I felt very mixed emotions. Firstly, I was very bothered because I could see how upset Bruno was to be moving away from his neighbourhood on such short notice(not only without warning, but to such a gloomy and depressing place). I also find it interesting how some of my previously commenting classmates made the assumption that "out-with " was really Auchwitz and I completly agree with that position. So far, I am really enjoying how the author tells the story of holocaust through a little boys eyes in such a simple, yet straightforward way. I enjoy how the fence that Bruno sees might be a symbolic representation of the German and Jewish cultures' borderlands present at the time of World War two. All in all, this has been a great way to start off the semester- with a light but informative read that shares the views and ideas of holocaust through a naive, innocent nine year old boy and I look forward to continue reading and sharing my thoughts and ideas with my classmates.
When I first started reading the book, “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”, I was a bit surprised by the language that was being used by the author. It seemed very simple and quite repetitive at times. As I read on, I soon came to realize that this was because the story was being told from the perspective of a nine-year-old boy and everything began making a lot more sense. While I was reading the beginning of this book, there was one main feeling that was brewing inside me – anger. I was very angry about how Bruno’s mother and father spoke with him. When he asked them questions about all of the changes that were happening so quickly and so suddenly in his life, they responded as vaguely as they possibly could, steering around the truth completely. It really frustrated me that they would not tell Bruno anything about the entire situation, especially because when I ask questions, I hate when I get those types of responses. In addition, it frustrated and angered me a lot when Bruno and Gretel were trying to piece everything together and figure out where they were. On pages 33 to 35, they discussed how this could possibly be “the countryside”. I understand that they do not know any better, I mean, how could they if no one is willing to tell them anything, but they just seemed so naive and innocent at that point, and it bothered me. Honestly, I wished that I could walk into the room and just tell them everything about what was really going. I simply feel that they deserve to know the truth, but they are obviously not going to get it from their parents anytime soon. To conclude, I watched the movie based on this book a couple of years back so I know what happens, but I am curious as to how the author will develop the story through the plot, setting, and characters throughout the rest of the book.
Personally, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, thus far, is actually a very intriguing read. I like the fact that the book is written so that we can experience the events occurring to Bruno, so to speak. You cannot specifically identify, in the book, the emotions of Bruno (although they are evident), but you can understand what is happening. This eventually leads the reader to gradually piece together the events that unfold as Bruno cannot, since he is so innocent and frightened. It seems that John Boyle always wanted the reader to be one step ahead of Bruno and to expect circumstances that are yet to come. There are different clues that are directed to the fact that his father is a part of the Nazis, even though Bruno does not realize it because no one has told him the truth. The Fury was constantly in their home, referring to the Fuhrer (translating literally to 'leader' in German) and the red and black flags located on the limousine that picked up the family refers to the Swastika, a symbol which identified the Nazis. Out With adverts to the Auschwitz concentration camp, located in Poland, and “Heil Hitler,” which Bruno's father commands him to say, obviously does not mean, “Well, good-bye for now, have a pleasant afternoon.” Aside from the actual writing, I cannot imagine the curiosity of Bruno as he is so naive and simple. I pity the fact that he doesn't know why things are changing so suddenly, and no one is prepared to answer his essential questions. Honestly, the thought of continuing the book is chilling, since I can only imagine what will happen next, but I'm also wondering how the author will continue his foreseeing pattern.
I thought that from the few pages I have read, the book is admirable. The simplicity yet descriptive parts of the book were well put together and I marveled at the author's work because in my opinion, that is an extremely hard feat. The author was able to see the plot through a nine year old's eyes, weave it into words and make it very realistic.
Samantha Cesario had commented on how the book had a "gray" feel to it, I also agree. For some particular reason I imagine everything in black and white; perhaps it is because the setting was from a long time ago (film was not yet in colour) but also because the house was described as gloomy and haunted looking.
I was confused as to whether Bruno's family was German or Jewish. If he was Jewish, they could be running away to hide. Also, I was confused as to who the "Fury" was and why he would call himself that; fury is a negative adjective and not anything to be proud of. I had thought that it was Bruno nicknaming people who's name he did not like for example, him calling his sister a "Hopeless Case" with capitals. As I continued reading, I understood "Fury" was referring to "Fuhrer" instead and that since his father was a "soldier" they were German.
I found that Bruno, for a rich little boy, was polite and listened to his mother properly. His sister however has made me disgusted with her comments of how "filthy" they looked (pg 37) and how she is friends with her brother's bully. I grew more fond of Bruno when he stood up for them with an innocent statement such as saying how they could not take baths because they had no hot water (pg 38). Also, when Bruno had noticed that the soldier's hair was an unnatural colour of blonde, I suspected that the soldier could've dyed his hair blonde.
I felt sympathy for the mother because she clearly had not wanted to leave her home for extreme reasons, yet she stayed strong and put up with her children's countless questions as well. I wonder if she completely supported the idea of the Holocaust. When she was said that they should have never let the Fury come to dinner (pg 40) and Maria walked in on her, I was scared for her and grew weary of Maria. She could spread rumors of how Bruno's mother did not support the Fury.
I find that I am slightly afraid of Bruno's father. When Bruno was inside of his office questioning his father, I kept cringing and expecting his father to lose his cool and slap him. One thing that I noted was that the father had dark coloured hair, which was ironic because he was working for and supporting a man who was going to exterminate all people without blonde hair.
Reading my friend's comments, I realize that I have not really felt such strong emotions such as frustration or empathy for the children's naiveties instead, (being brutally honest) I found it amusing with my dry sense of humor. They had thought that a concentration camp was a farm. However, I do not think that they are completely clueless as everyone says. They have realized that this place was not safe, or completely good (pg 20). Even though I have said that the book was "good" it is not my taste and is very boring. I expected this because I have yet to come across the real "action". I hope that soon, the book will proceed into an interesting plot.
My response to the novel, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" written by John Boyne brought a sense of wonder and sadness to my mind when first commencing the novel. Previously knowing what this novel was about, had already prepared me for the emotional encounters that I would experience during the course of the read. Just by reading the first fifty pages of the book, it gives you an overall understanding of what is going on in Bruno's very naive childhood. He is faced with things that are un-usual to him because he is so used to his daily life which involves his friends, his school, his 'hopeless case' sister Gretel, servants and of course his two parents. When Bruno saw that the servants were packing his room up, he ultimately thought that he had done something wrong which is causing the family to send him away. Already there you can see that the family is indeed strict, and Bruno feels responsible for everything that happens. When Bruno's family left their abundant home in Berlin, and arrived at their new home, Bruno was surprised in a bad way. When Bruno tried to explain to Gretel what he had seen, Gretel came to the conclusion that they have moved to the country side, as stated on page 33. Just from these few points, I realized that the children do not have the slightest clue of what is really happening in the reality of the world around them. I thought that the author had an exquisite story line and really knew how to make the reader visualize what he is trying to explain. His sense of imagery really caught my attention because I was able to picture each scenario and scene in my mind. In my opinion, the only things I didn't like in the reading was how the author was very repetitive and often took a great deal of time to get to the point. Also, I thought that the reader could have used a much more improved vocabulary, but I understand that it was about a nine-year-old boy's encounters. Overall, the story so far has been a joy to read, and now that the background of the story has been said, I know that the story will be much more intense and interesting to read as Bruno will start gaining a realization of what is really happening.
When I first began reading the novel “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” by author John Boyne, I was expecting a much more detailed and descriptive novel, a novel that would pull at my heart strings and make me feel dozens of emotions. However, the novel was not what I had expected in the slightest as it was a very simple story. However, this simplicity is what makes the novel such a compelling story. By examining the Holocaust, one of humanities greatest failures through the eyes of a young boy who knows nothing of what truly goes on in the world around him, we are able to see the Holocaust through a much different lens. As I read the novel and slowly became accustomed to Bruno’s world, the only emotion I could feel was despair. I could feel no other emotion because this is a story that is destined to end poorly. Bruno’s parents have kept him in the dark about everything, to the point where he no longer knows what is going on around him. This becomes evident in several circumstances; Bruno does not know where his family has moved, who the people on the other side of the fence are or even what his father does for a living. This lack of knowledge of what is really going on around him is disturbing to me because it leads me to believe that his parents would rather keep him isolated from reality then tell him what is really going on. They may believe that by not telling him anything and simply forcing him to abide by their rules he will benefit. However, I believe the very opposite will happen. The other aspect of the book that fills me with despair is the contrast between the innocence of Bruno and the vileness of the situation that he is in. All around him, people are being tortured, killed and imprisoned at the orders of his father and yet Bruno knows nothing of his surroundings. His lack of knowledge is truly amazing and saddening. In conclusion, although the first fifty pages of the novel were not quite like I was expecting them to be, they were still extremely interesting and moving. I look forward to finishing the novel and learning what will happen to Bruno and if the surrounding evil will contaminate or obliterate him.
This is the first time reading "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" so I am beginning to understand this book as I go along. My first impression of Bruno was that he was a spoiled little boy who constantly was pouting and who did not change, which is to be expected of a nine year old boy. He is stubborn and immature which often frustrates me, especially when he does not see eye to eye with his parents. He is also extremely inexperienced and naive. But as you get deeper into the story you start to understand that Bruno, along with his older sister, are just innocent children who are being revealed to a brand new world and are trying to comprehend this new mysterious place as well as they can. Bruno is just listening to his parents and just doing what he is being told. I look forward to continuing this tale of Bruno’s adventures and how he begins to learn bit by bit of what the Holocaust is and what it is about. The most powerful line was when Bruno salutes his father thinking it means “Well, goodbye for now, have a pleasant afternoon.” This demonstrates that Bruno is completely oblivious to the fact that there are people who are being tortured and murdered right beside his new “home”. He is just a young boy who is only listening to his parents and not understanding the meaning for it.
After reading and understanding the first fifty pages of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas", I have come to endless conclusions about Bruno's childhood. I have also been a child who has undergone the move from your childhood home to some strange place away from all your friends. So, I can relate to how Bruno feels. At the age of nine, the last thing you can ever imagine doing is moving away from your best friends with no say in the matter whatsoever. I feel terrible for Bruno. Not only does he have to endure the confusion of such an abrupt move, but he is also getting no response from his parents on the reasonings behind the move. Bruno has grown up learning how to respect people. Whether it was never interrupting his mother or giving their servant Maria nothing but the utmost respect, Bruno has grown into being a boy who has manners, which is uncommon amongst most German nine year olds in this time period. But, after giving everyone and anyone respect, it seems to me that Bruno gets none in return. His mother did seem to try to give Bruno some answers, but other than that she completely blew him off. And his father? I feel a sense of disgust towards him, for what he does for a living, but also for the way he treats Bruno and the rest of his family. The family seems broken, there's no trust and although there is respect shown in mannerisms, there is no respect shown at a personal level. Bruno is too naive to see that beyond the fence his window faces, there is a concentration camp for the Jewish. These people are all working, and from what Bruno and his sister Gretel can see, there are only men, who like Bruno said, are wearing striped pajamas. These people are being tortured in the backyard of their home and they are totally and completely blind to it. So far, this book strikes me as a very emotional read, and we've only read the first fifty pages. I'm excited and prepared to read onto the rest of Bruno's journey as he encounters the little boy who lives and works beyond the fence. Who knows, maybe Bruno will begin to get some of the answers, and respect he deserves.
"The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" – a book that can be read as simple and easy to understand, or can be interpreted for the deeper more complex themes that are embedded within the words. As I read the initial 5 chapters describing Bruno’s experience with his new home, I am flooded with ideas and feelings. Once I had reflected on what I had read, I was able to gather some of the reactions I had towards different characters. For instance, I became aware of my sadness for Bruno & his blindness to the changing world around him. Also, I felt the absence of morals in some of the events taking place. But more so than any other, the first and most evident reaction that I had was anger. I feel this anger towards Bruno’s father for not only from the side of him that a read sees, but also what I know about his job and the actions which he partakes in as a soldier. On one hand, anger arises from the solemn fact that Bruno’s father is a Nazi; knowing all the disturbing events that he partakes in, and what he stands for, I am faced with anger and confusion as to how he is able to live and be cognisant of his unjust ways towards others!
But with this all in mind, my primary interest in these first 50 pages lies in the statement on page 44, “It had been explained to him [Bruno] on many occasions just how busy father was and that he couldn’t be disturbed by silly things like saying hello to him all the time.” This insight onto the father’s character initiated my realization of how inhumane he really is. To argue that a small hello is too large of a task for a father to say to his son derives from selfishness and carelessness only. Furthermore, I cannot but think about what a simple greeting would mean to a boy like Bruno. It is important for Bruno to feel accepted and have a sense of belonging. Seeing that Bruno’s father doesn’t even make time to speak with him each day, he is the last person to provide him with acceptance. A hello is not just a word, but it is a sign of a father having love for his son. And to say that love is a small thing is invalid, for these small actions make up the sense of love that Bruno needs to feel. In the end, knowing that the father thinks of the small things in life as unimportant, and that he doesn’t see their power in shaping his son, proves to me that he is a person who does not understand righteousness and goodness. He doesn’t constitute of morals and values and does not value the small things that really do create important things in their outcome. Love is absent in the heart of Bruno’s father, and I am angry at him for allowing the wrong in himself to have consequences on his son. In conclusion, these are several of my thoughts on the beginning of "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas".
My initial feeling in response to “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” was shockingly physical. From the very beginning, the novel felt dark, not sinister, only depressing in an inescapable way. Personally, I found (and am still finding) the foreshadowing to be torturous. Perhaps it is not obvious through quotes or Bruno’s thoughts, but I have had this underlying instinct that this story will not have a “happily ever after”, maybe not even an “after” for certain characters. Now, before everyone starts rolling their eyes, I would like to point out that I understand this is a novel about the Holocaust, subsequently “happy endings” are virtually non-existent. The author, however, tricks you. The irony of using the mind of young boy to display the horrors of the Holocaust is deceiving in the most devastating way. It gives you, the reader, an ill-born sense of hope, because Bruno is just a young boy. One tries to rationalize that he might not befall some awful fate and it is all just Boyne’s ploy to build suspense and emotion. Then we are back to reality, and it’s like watching a bullet come at you in slow motion. Maybe you can Matrix-dodge it, maybe it’s all a dream; and for that unrealistically stretched-out moment in time you can entertain any fantasy you want…but we all know how that story ends (excuse my morbidity). That brings me (albeit in a roundabout way) back to my initial reaction. Even from the beginning, the simplicity of the book did not fool me. I felt unnerved in a way, like I was watching a horror movie and waiting for Bruno to open every proverbial closet door as I uselessly screamed “Don’t! The killer’s in there!” I honestly felt a pain in my chest, like a dark storm of sorrow and fury and frustration was brewing within me, growing more pronounced with each passing chapter. Overall, the Holocaust disgusts me. The fact that so many people were treated in such an inhumane manner is repulsive. Yet, knowing that Boyne used the beautiful simplicity and forgivable naivety of a nine-year-old boy to portray that particular blemish on the face of history, really, really, infuriates me. Here he is throwing in a new angle to see the Holocaust, as if people weren’t already convinced of the evil of it all, and from the point of view a German boy at that! I am sitting here getting agitated and angry and sad and annoyed, all for a piece of fiction. Then again you must think that is has to be a pretty powerful piece of fiction to illicit such emotions. Next you think, maybe it’s so damned powerful because somewhere in the back of your mind you know that a story like this could very well be true. Finally, you undoubtedly know that every moment you sit there reflecting on this book someone, somewhere out in this world, is staring out their own window at their very own fence. Sure it might not be you right now, but it could have been your Nonna on her way to Canada, or a little Jewish boy whose name you will never know, lost in that six million, or maybe it’s that person sitting next to you in homeroom. It doesn’t matter, though, because soon enough you won’t have to reflect, you’ll know. It’ll be your window and your fence someday, maybe it already has.
To be completely honest, while reading the fifty or so pages of the novel "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" the emotions that were most overwhelming in my heart were anger and frustration. I felt angry for Bruno, his mother and his sister that they were not able to make their own decisions about where they were moving to. It made me angry and frustrated that Bruno, although he was a young boy was not able to truly know or understand the reason for the move or the real purpose of his father's job. It truly made me mad that curious Bruno's questions about where they were and why the had to moved to 'Out-with" were not answered completely truthful. I completely understand that Bruno is still young and some topics are better not to be discussed with children but in this case I find it absolutely wrong to answer Bruno's questions in such incomplete ways. I believe that it would be better and less frustrating for Bruno if his family told him what was really going on. In my opinion, I believe that Bruno's father is a very stern and ignorant man who is only concerned about himself and the well-being of his job. There are many points in this reading where I felt this way about his father. One specific point was when Bruno said he never spoke to Maria(the family maid) the way his father spoke to her. He then proceeded to state that his father gave orders to her rather than ask her nicely. It did please me to see that Bruno did understand that the way his father spoke to her was wrong and he was to not do the same. Another point in the novel,that I felt completely discusted with the way Bruno's father acted was when bruno asked him who the people he could see from his window were. His father's response was "they aren't really people". With this comment and prior knowledge of what the novel was about-- the Holocaust, I was able to inference that the "not really people" were the Jewish people in the concentration camps. It also frustrates me that Bruno, a young child was forced to say 'Heil Hitler' and 'hail' a man who did such awful things to innocent people. This part of the novel bothers me so much because aside from the fact that Bruno is forced to say this phrase, he is not told the meaning. The young boy just assumes it is another way of saying 'goodbye'; little does he know that he is actually paying respect to a man that ruined and ended the lives of more than 6 million people. I strongly believe that if Bruno was not kept in the dark so much about this topic, he would refuse to say this phrase. Although this is truly just a novel, the author expresses the historic event in such a powerful way that pain is actually felt in my heart. As i read the novel, I picture in my head every Jewish person who suffered had a pair of eyes and behind that pair of eyes was a heart and soul that felt pain and at one time felt happiness. It sickens me to know that more than 6 million innocent Jewish pairs of eyes, PEOPLE were murdered for one reason-- because they were different.
The first thing I felt after reading the first pages of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" was disgust. Disgust because it is shocking that there are/were people out there that truly think that they are superior towards all or one specific group. In God's eyes, we are all equals. Anyone who does not believe this, is only trying to imitate the Lord. The story takes place in Germany, but the reality is, this could and may happen anywhere. That is what scares me. It is uncomfortable to think that kids just like me, typing at their computers as I am now, can be discriminated against in any way, shape or form. This is truly alarming. In the novel, Bruno is clueless about what the fenced area beside his home actually is. Thus, he is unable to form a independent belief on what is right. This means that other kids and people just like him were put in the dark, unable to do anything. It is proven that not many Germans knew exactly what Hitler's thoughts and ambitions were. For Bruno, he did not have the slightest clue as to what pain his kind was causing the Jews beyond those tall fences. The ways they were punished were brutal and uncivilized. Certainly not in any way I wish to die. The soldiers in the novel were even laughing at some of the kids in the concentration camp. This action is completely cruel and crude, especially as the children know that there is a high possibility that they are to pass very soon. Bruno was not even aware that his father was leading the charge of the concentration camp. Responsible for the many killings of the Jews. It must not be a good feeling at all to know that your own father is the reason of cruel killings. Overall, I believe that this novel very accurately captures the thought and feelings of people who were not aware of the actions of the Germans. It also captures the theme of the holocaust and shows us that the Jews felt nothing could ever be worse for them. And quite frankly, I don't think it could have ever became worse. The actions of the Germans were some of the most crude and alarming gestures throughout history and no one ever deserves to be discriminated in such a way.
My initial reaction to Bruno’s behavior in the beginning pages of the novel “The Boy in the Striped Pajama’s.” was that he was a spoiled little boy. I was picturing him to be the type of child who had to have everything his way. As the beginning progressed, it came to light that he wasn’t spoiled, he was simply naïve. The young boy simply hasn’t seen anything outside his little compound that consisted of school, home, and the market, all of which were located in Berlin. As I continued reading further into the book, I began to see that he was scared of leaving any familiarity that he had known. I felt sad for the boy, because he had to deal with being taken out of his natural surroundings and into a strange new place. At the same time, I didn’t feel for him, because the reader does realize that his father is a Nazi, a person who was making millions of Jews feel the way his son was feeling. I also found it ironic how Bruno refers to Hitler as “the Fury”. I found that “Fury” seemed to suit Hitler better than Der Fuhrer, because his blind hatred towards Jews caused him to act in a blind fury towards them. Using the term “the Fury” makes Bruno seem to have more insight than he actually does. Equally ironic is the term “Out-With” as a substitute for Auschwitz. The change in this name reminds me of “out with the old, in with the new” which I related to a change in government. How Hitler’s government changed the minds of the people by providing them with a scapegoat. This shows how easily people can be influenced into showing hate for different cultures, because their leaders are telling them too. It seems as though Nazi Germany was “the blind leading the blind,” because Hitler had no reason to hate Jews, and used them as a scapegoat through blind ignorance. His followers followed in this ignorance, believing that Hitler was helping them. The truly frightening realization is that these Nazis truly saw the murder of an entire culture as a necessity for the good of the Aryan people.
Zachary is correct: when will Bruno realize the truth? “Out-With” is our first clue that h is naive. As David correctly says, “Bruno has no clue what is really going on outside. “ I believe it is our responsibility as culturally responsive students to find out what is really going on. We need to learn, understand, and act. As Thomas correctly points out, “His lack of knowledge is truly amazing and saddening.” Matthew writes, “For Bruno, he did not have the slightest clue as to what pain his kind was causing the Jews beyond those tall fences.” Chiara mentions emotional, depressed, empathetic…right! These are common feelings elicited by the novel. We must learn, understand and tolerate differences if we are to make a difference in the world.
Bravo Erica. I agree, “ The irony of using the mind of young boy to display the horrors of the Holocaust is deceiving in the most devastating way. It gives you, the reader, an ill-born sense of hope, because Bruno is just a young boy. One tries to rationalize that he might not befall some awful fate and it is all just Boyne’s ploy to build suspense and emotion. Then we are back to reality,” It’s so interesting tell the story through different lenses. We are seeing the atrocities of the Holocaust narrated through the eyes of a child. Would the story have been different if it was told through the father’s eyes? Of course!
I am curious to see how writer John Boyne will be showing WWII germany through the eyes of a child. When, on page page 24 and 25 the name out-with was mentioned, I could only assume they were indeed at Auschuwitz. I find myself wondering when bruno will realise how sinister the place where he now lives is. Is he a strong Nazi? Would he care about the people if he knew they were Jews? If he did care, what would happen if he found out the purpose of Auchuwitz? So far, the Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has been an interesting read, with vivid descriptions of Bruno's world, and I am very eager to see what he discovers next.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the selection I has several thoughts and problems. However the main theme that I realized throughout the first part of the book is that no one, including the reader seems to know what is actually happening. Since we know about the Holocaust, we figure it out, but Bruno has no clue what is really going on outside.
ReplyDeleteThe part that really upset me was how at the end of Chapter 5 Bruno says something that he thinks just means 'goodbye'. He says "Heil Hitler". His father taught him this but did not tell him what it meant. I believe that keeping the majority of the population in the dark is wrong. I find it especially immoral to teach kids to say good things about someone they don't even know and not even tell them what they are saying. They are not just being kept in the dark. They are being lied to by parents, friends and the government.
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ReplyDeleteWhen I started reading the book 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' I noticed that Bruno and slightly his sister as well, seem naive to what is going on currently in their lives. They don't completely realize what their father is doing and who he is,why they moved from their home in Berlin , and in what area they currently live. Due to these factors I feel empathetic towards them, they had no say or explanation on their move, yet they know something is weird, wrong and lonely about their new home. Zachery's comment on how their home called Out-With may actually be Auchwitz and what goes on there,proves how much they dont know what is going on in their lives. When I spoke to Samantha Cesario earlier today she shared the same comment on how Out-With may actually be Auchwitz as well. I feel that this book also makes me feel slightly depressed to see World WarII through Bruno's eyes without him knowing, and realize the creulty and evil going on not far from Bruno's home. In the end I want to see if Bruno finally realizes what is going on with his father, their reason of moving, and what is going on at the camp he sees through his window. I also want to see the differences between the book which I've never read and the movie which I've watched a few years ago. 'The Boy in the Striped Pajamas' is a very emotional yet powerful book.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading the first bit of the novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas a sense of a dark setting is brought to the readers attention. More than likely the setting usually dictates the specific events that may occur through out the plot. For example, how a barrier creating a physical and delusive fence between Bruno and his family from what appears to be victims of the Holocaust. Bruno is not sure of it yet and still isn't aware of any significant differences. There are a couple of symbolic references found within the novel being the swastika of nazi trademark and David's star, a biblical symbol represented by the Jewish people. It seems as though an unhappy ending or grey future has yet to encounter Bruno, but in my mind, is bound to come. His ignorance towards the evident abberation of him and the people behind the fence may command his future in his new home. It agitated me to realize that Bruno's whole family had to sacrifice their personal and social lives for the sake of their father's job that requires taking the lives of innocent people. I understand it's business and may be necessary under their circumstances but I feel it would've been more appropriate if the children and wife would've been left behind in Germany. To sum it up, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, has been an interesting read with mixed emotions. I am eager to culminate the rest of the novel and curious to see what lies ahead for Bruno and his family.
ReplyDeleteAs I read the first 50 or so pages, am I am dissapointed to say that this novel was not as extravagent as I had hoped for. There were many cases where I was dissapointed in the author's writing. For instance, when there was the description about the houses, old and new, i was surprisingly unable to get a clear image on what the author was trying to tell us. Another problem that had occured with me was that the book was written in the third person, so I would have preferred it if the author gave us a clearer thought on some of the other characters oppinions, thoughts or feelings. Another thing that shocked me is that I was told that I would feel Bruno's initial feelings; shock, betrayal, hurt, upsetting. However I felt non of these. Instead, I felt like I was being forced to read what is happeing. Another attributeI did not appriciate was how the time and place of the novel was not clear. It took me 5 chapters to figure out Bruno was German and that his father works for Hitlar. The last negative comment that I will make is that I found many run-on sentences. It is not an enjoyable read if your mind is trying to process too many words in one sentence. One part of the book I did enjoy was when the books details started to get significantly better and I found it easier to understand the plot and settings. One last comment I have is that I find Bruno's character very relatable in the mind of a nine year old boy who just suffered a hard move in the time of many changes. I hope that the rest of the book cotinues to pick up the pace (bad pun on my behalf) and I feel like I'm reading the book because I want to and not because I have to. Although, I would like to know how the author continues the story of the second world war in the perspective of a nine year old boy and wonder if the Jews (my guess is the people in the striped pajamas)will be freed by Bruno.I would also like to know if Bruno will learn the truth to the term "Heil Hitler".
ReplyDeleteTo be honest, as I started reading the book I was confused. It seemed as if I had just opened the book and started reading on a random page. But after a while I began to understand the story better. I was not expecting much from the story, but I was shocked at how well it is portrayed through the eyes of a nine-year-old boy. The Holocaust was a time of sadness for majority of the world. Knowing that war is going on all around you is something that is very hard to live with. Viewing this time through someone who is not old enough to understand it is an interesting way to see war. On page 52, the end of chapter 6, you read Bruno saying "Heil Hitler". I was disturbed when I read that, because I could not believe that a boy like Bruno was told to say and honour a man he knew nothing about. And it is obvious in the first chapters that people aren't planning on telling him what's going on around him. It is like his own family is just expecting to go along with everything, without him knowing the reason why. This book is very interesting so far, and I am sure that throughout the rest of the novel, we will see how Bruno sees the world around him.
ReplyDeleteThe book so far has brought out many of my emotions but there was one that was persistently present. Frustration. It frustrated me that Bruno’s mother did not provide her son with the one thing he truly deserved, answers to why his life was being completely changed in such a short time. It frustrated me that Bruno could look out two different windows in his own house and be confronted with completely opposite realities, a bright afternoon and a day full of misery. It frustrated me that Gretel looked at her own Father and thought, “he could never do any wrong,” (pg. 25). Meanwhile, the same day she asked, “Who would build such a nasty-looking place,” (pg. 32) and she did not know her father was somehow behind it. Finally, and especially, it frustrated me that Bruno asked a lot of questions to try and understand his father’s situation but instead of his father answering them, he simply laughed because Bruno did not already know the answers. Therefore, so far frustration has been one of my major emotions but hopefully as the story progresses new and happier emotions will be brought out.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading the book, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, I heard accounts of people who already know the story; these people described it in a way that seemed emotionally gripping. I however did not feel so much, even with my presumption on the matter. I'm sure this is only because it is the beginning of the story and it is surely building up to something greater. Although, there is one thing I am almost certain I will be feeling the entire story—“gray”. When reading the book, I kept picturing it in my head with an overall sense of dullness and an underlying tinge of gray. This is not because the story seemed dull or boring to me in any way, it was just the gloomy mood set by the author.
ReplyDeleteAnother preconception I had about the novel was that seeing the world at the time of the Holocaust through the eyes of a nine year old, German boy, would lack significant details. However, with his naive and curious nature, the reader can make inferences on the events taking place, further deepening the story. At the very beginning of the book, Bruno seemed to me as a snobby and ignorant boy. With further reading, however, I began to understand that he simply had no idea what was going on, and therefore could not begin to react appropriately to it. An example of this would be Bruno being taught by his father to salute other men with “Heil Hitler”; unfortunately he was left to interpret that how he wanted and was in a way being used by his father.
I am eager to watch the story progress and see what Bruno encounters outside his new house, “Out-With”.
For me this the third time reading "the boy in the striped pajamas", so I am overly familiar with the plot and the actual conclusion. However this time I noticed many different things that I had not payed attention to before. For example the name of the house that the family moves into "Out-With", I had not made a connection earlier to the name of the famous concentration camp Auchwitz in Poland. It was my previous misconception that the Place was actually called Out-with, but then I realized that Bruno kept mispronouncing the word and knew that they had arrived at the heart of the concentration camps, the most evil and the most known. Additionally, I have reflected on the author's use of the nine year old's perspective. I have come to the conclusion that Bruno's ignorance and naïveness further juxtaposes the complete evil of what was happening right underneath his nose.
ReplyDeleteAs the reader, I have to use my prior knowledge to fully understand the metaphor used in the story. There is one that really caused me to reflect deeply, and that is the use of labeling. In the story the two different labels were that of the swastika and the star of David. Labels are often used by people that need something to put their blame on, racial, gender... And that is what the Germans did, they used the Jewish people as their own personal scapegoat, blaming them for failures that were really caused by them. But when Bruno meets Shmuel, he does not see a difference in them and that is what led to their friendship. Maybe one needs to be different than the other to form a lasting friendship, to show how the other side is not really always greener.
As I came across the novel, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, written by John Boyne I felt very mixed emotions. Firstly, I was very bothered because I could see how upset Bruno was to be moving away from his neighbourhood on such short notice(not only without warning, but to such a gloomy and depressing place). I also find it interesting how some of my previously commenting classmates made the assumption that "out-with " was really Auchwitz and I completly agree with that position. So far, I am really enjoying how the author tells the story of holocaust through a little boys eyes in such a simple, yet straightforward way. I enjoy how the fence that Bruno sees might be a symbolic representation of the German and Jewish cultures' borderlands present at the time of World War two. All in all, this has been a great way to start off the semester- with a light but informative read that shares the views and ideas of holocaust through a naive, innocent nine year old boy and I look forward to continue reading and sharing my thoughts and ideas with my classmates.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first started reading the book, “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas”, I was a bit surprised by the language that was being used by the author. It seemed very simple and quite repetitive at times. As I read on, I soon came to realize that this was because the story was being told from the perspective of a nine-year-old boy and everything began making a lot more sense.
ReplyDeleteWhile I was reading the beginning of this book, there was one main feeling that was brewing inside me – anger. I was very angry about how Bruno’s mother and father spoke with him. When he asked them questions about all of the changes that were happening so quickly and so suddenly in his life, they responded as vaguely as they possibly could, steering around the truth completely. It really frustrated me that they would not tell Bruno anything about the entire situation, especially because when I ask questions, I hate when I get those types of responses. In addition, it frustrated and angered me a lot when Bruno and Gretel were trying to piece everything together and figure out where they were. On pages 33 to 35, they discussed how this could possibly be “the countryside”. I understand that they do not know any better, I mean, how could they if no one is willing to tell them anything, but they just seemed so naive and innocent at that point, and it bothered me. Honestly, I wished that I could walk into the room and just tell them everything about what was really going. I simply feel that they deserve to know the truth, but they are obviously not going to get it from their parents anytime soon. To conclude, I watched the movie based on this book a couple of years back so I know what happens, but I am curious as to how the author will develop the story through the plot, setting, and characters throughout the rest of the book.
Personally, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, thus far, is actually a very intriguing read. I like the fact that the book is written so that we can experience the events occurring to Bruno, so to speak. You cannot specifically identify, in the book, the emotions of Bruno (although they are evident), but you can understand what is happening. This eventually leads the reader to gradually piece together the events that unfold as Bruno cannot, since he is so innocent and frightened. It seems that John Boyle always wanted the reader to be one step ahead of Bruno and to expect circumstances that are yet to come. There are different clues that are directed to the fact that his father is a part of the Nazis, even though Bruno does not realize it because no one has told him the truth. The Fury was constantly in their home, referring to the Fuhrer (translating literally to 'leader' in German) and the red and black flags located on the limousine that picked up the family refers to the Swastika, a symbol which identified the Nazis. Out With adverts to the Auschwitz concentration camp, located in Poland, and “Heil Hitler,” which Bruno's father commands him to say, obviously does not mean, “Well, good-bye for now, have a pleasant afternoon.” Aside from the actual writing, I cannot imagine the curiosity of Bruno as he is so naive and simple. I pity the fact that he doesn't know why things are changing so suddenly, and no one is prepared to answer his essential questions. Honestly, the thought of continuing the book is chilling, since I can only imagine what will happen next, but I'm also wondering how the author will continue his foreseeing pattern.
ReplyDeleteI thought that from the few pages I have read, the book is admirable. The simplicity yet descriptive parts of the book were well put together and I marveled at the author's work because in my opinion, that is an extremely hard feat. The author was able to see the plot through a nine year old's eyes, weave it into words and make it very realistic.
ReplyDeleteSamantha Cesario had commented on how the book had a "gray" feel to it, I also agree. For some particular reason I imagine everything in black and white; perhaps it is because the setting was from a long time ago (film was not yet in colour) but also because the house was described as gloomy and haunted looking.
I was confused as to whether Bruno's family was German or Jewish. If he was Jewish, they could be running away to hide. Also, I was confused as to who the "Fury" was and why he would call himself that; fury is a negative adjective and not anything to be proud of. I had thought that it was Bruno nicknaming people who's name he did not like for example, him calling his sister a "Hopeless Case" with capitals. As I continued reading, I understood "Fury" was referring to "Fuhrer" instead and that since his father was a "soldier" they were German.
I found that Bruno, for a rich little boy, was polite and listened to his mother properly. His sister however has made me disgusted with her comments of how "filthy" they looked (pg 37) and how she is friends with her brother's bully. I grew more fond of Bruno when he stood up for them with an innocent statement such as saying how they could not take baths because they had no hot water (pg 38). Also, when Bruno had noticed that the soldier's hair was an unnatural colour of blonde, I suspected that the soldier could've dyed his hair blonde.
I felt sympathy for the mother because she clearly had not wanted to leave her home for extreme reasons, yet she stayed strong and put up with her children's countless questions as well. I wonder if she completely supported the idea of the Holocaust. When she was said that they should have never let the Fury come to dinner (pg 40) and Maria walked in on her, I was scared for her and grew weary of Maria. She could spread rumors of how Bruno's mother did not support the Fury.
I find that I am slightly afraid of Bruno's father. When Bruno was inside of his office questioning his father, I kept cringing and expecting his father to lose his cool and slap him. One thing that I noted was that the father had dark coloured hair, which was ironic because he was working for and supporting a man who was going to exterminate all people without blonde hair.
Reading my friend's comments, I realize that I have not really felt such strong emotions such as frustration or empathy for the children's naiveties instead, (being brutally honest) I found it amusing with my dry sense of humor. They had thought that a concentration camp was a farm. However, I do not think that they are completely clueless as everyone says. They have realized that this place was not safe, or completely good (pg 20).
Even though I have said that the book was "good" it is not my taste and is very boring. I expected this because I have yet to come across the real "action". I hope that soon, the book will proceed into an interesting plot.
My response to the novel, "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" written by John Boyne brought a sense of wonder and sadness to my mind when first commencing the novel. Previously knowing what this novel was about, had already prepared me for the emotional encounters that I would experience during the course of the read.
ReplyDeleteJust by reading the first fifty pages of the book, it gives you an overall understanding of what is going on in Bruno's very naive childhood. He is faced with things that are un-usual to him because he is so used to his daily life which involves his friends, his school, his 'hopeless case' sister Gretel, servants and of course his two parents. When Bruno saw that the servants were packing his room up, he ultimately thought that he had done something wrong which is causing the family to send him away. Already there you can see that the family is indeed strict, and Bruno feels responsible for everything that happens. When Bruno's family left their abundant home in Berlin, and arrived at their new home, Bruno was surprised in a bad way. When Bruno tried to explain to Gretel what he had seen, Gretel came to the conclusion that they have moved to the country side, as stated on page 33. Just from these few points, I realized that the children do not have the slightest clue of what is really happening in the reality of the world around them.
I thought that the author had an exquisite story line and really knew how to make the reader visualize what he is trying to explain. His sense of imagery really caught my attention because I was able to picture each scenario and scene in my mind. In my opinion, the only things I didn't like in the reading was how the author was very repetitive and often took a great deal of time to get to the point. Also, I thought that the reader could have used a much more improved vocabulary, but I understand that it was about a nine-year-old boy's encounters. Overall, the story so far has been a joy to read, and now that the background of the story has been said, I know that the story will be much more intense and interesting to read as Bruno will start gaining a realization of what is really happening.
When I first began reading the novel “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” by author John Boyne, I was expecting a much more detailed and descriptive novel, a novel that would pull at my heart strings and make me feel dozens of emotions. However, the novel was not what I had expected in the slightest as it was a very simple story. However, this simplicity is what makes the novel such a compelling story. By examining the Holocaust, one of humanities greatest failures through the eyes of a young boy who knows nothing of what truly goes on in the world around him, we are able to see the Holocaust through a much different lens. As I read the novel and slowly became accustomed to Bruno’s world, the only emotion I could feel was despair. I could feel no other emotion because this is a story that is destined to end poorly. Bruno’s parents have kept him in the dark about everything, to the point where he no longer knows what is going on around him. This becomes evident in several circumstances; Bruno does not know where his family has moved, who the people on the other side of the fence are or even what his father does for a living. This lack of knowledge of what is really going on around him is disturbing to me because it leads me to believe that his parents would rather keep him isolated from reality then tell him what is really going on. They may believe that by not telling him anything and simply forcing him to abide by their rules he will benefit. However, I believe the very opposite will happen. The other aspect of the book that fills me with despair is the contrast between the innocence of Bruno and the vileness of the situation that he is in. All around him, people are being tortured, killed and imprisoned at the orders of his father and yet Bruno knows nothing of his surroundings. His lack of knowledge is truly amazing and saddening. In conclusion, although the first fifty pages of the novel were not quite like I was expecting them to be, they were still extremely interesting and moving. I look forward to finishing the novel and learning what will happen to Bruno and if the surrounding evil will contaminate or obliterate him.
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time reading "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" so I am beginning to understand this book as I go along. My first impression of Bruno was that he was a spoiled little boy who constantly was pouting and who did not change, which is to be expected of a nine year old boy. He is stubborn and immature which often frustrates me, especially when he does not see eye to eye with his parents. He is also extremely inexperienced and naive. But as you get deeper into the story you start to understand that Bruno, along with his older sister, are just innocent children who are being revealed to a brand new world and are trying to comprehend this new mysterious place as well as they can. Bruno is just listening to his parents and just doing what he is being told. I look forward to continuing this tale of Bruno’s adventures and how he begins to learn bit by bit of what the Holocaust is and what it is about. The most powerful line was when Bruno salutes his father thinking it means “Well, goodbye for now, have a pleasant afternoon.” This demonstrates that Bruno is completely oblivious to the fact that there are people who are being tortured and murdered right beside his new “home”. He is just a young boy who is only listening to his parents and not understanding the meaning for it.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading and understanding the first fifty pages of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas", I have come to endless conclusions about Bruno's childhood. I have also been a child who has undergone the move from your childhood home to some strange place away from all your friends. So, I can relate to how Bruno feels. At the age of nine, the last thing you can ever imagine doing is moving away from your best friends with no say in the matter whatsoever. I feel terrible for Bruno. Not only does he have to endure the confusion of such an abrupt move, but he is also getting no response from his parents on the reasonings behind the move. Bruno has grown up learning how to respect people. Whether it was never interrupting his mother or giving their servant Maria nothing but the utmost respect, Bruno has grown into being a boy who has manners, which is uncommon amongst most German nine year olds in this time period. But, after giving everyone and anyone respect, it seems to me that Bruno gets none in return. His mother did seem to try to give Bruno some answers, but other than that she completely blew him off. And his father? I feel a sense of disgust towards him, for what he does for a living, but also for the way he treats Bruno and the rest of his family. The family seems broken, there's no trust and although there is respect shown in mannerisms, there is no respect shown at a personal level. Bruno is too naive to see that beyond the fence his window faces, there is a concentration camp for the Jewish. These people are all working, and from what Bruno and his sister Gretel can see, there are only men, who like Bruno said, are wearing striped pajamas. These people are being tortured in the backyard of their home and they are totally and completely blind to it. So far, this book strikes me as a very emotional read, and we've only read the first fifty pages. I'm excited and prepared to read onto the rest of Bruno's journey as he encounters the little boy who lives and works beyond the fence. Who knows, maybe Bruno will begin to get some of the answers, and respect he deserves.
ReplyDelete"The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas" – a book that can be read as simple and easy to understand, or can be interpreted for the deeper more complex themes that are embedded within the words. As I read the initial 5 chapters describing Bruno’s experience with his new home, I am flooded with ideas and feelings. Once I had reflected on what I had read, I was able to gather some of the reactions I had towards different characters. For instance, I became aware of my sadness for Bruno & his blindness to the changing world around him. Also, I felt the absence of morals in some of the events taking place. But more so than any other, the first and most evident reaction that I had was anger. I feel this anger towards Bruno’s father for not only from the side of him that a read sees, but also what I know about his job and the actions which he partakes in as a soldier. On one hand, anger arises from the solemn fact that Bruno’s father is a Nazi; knowing all the disturbing events that he partakes in, and what he stands for, I am faced with anger and confusion as to how he is able to live and be cognisant of his unjust ways towards others!
ReplyDeleteBut with this all in mind, my primary interest in these first 50 pages lies in the statement on page 44, “It had been explained to him [Bruno] on many occasions just how busy father was and that he couldn’t be disturbed by silly things like saying hello to him all the time.” This insight onto the father’s character initiated my realization of how inhumane he really is. To argue that a small hello is too large of a task for a father to say to his son derives from selfishness and carelessness only. Furthermore, I cannot but think about what a simple greeting would mean to a boy like Bruno. It is important for Bruno to feel accepted and have a sense of belonging. Seeing that Bruno’s father doesn’t even make time to speak with him each day, he is the last person to provide him with acceptance. A hello is not just a word, but it is a sign of a father having love for his son. And to say that love is a small thing is invalid, for these small actions make up the sense of love that Bruno needs to feel. In the end, knowing that the father thinks of the small things in life as unimportant, and that he doesn’t see their power in shaping his son, proves to me that he is a person who does not understand righteousness and goodness. He doesn’t constitute of morals and values and does not value the small things that really do create important things in their outcome. Love is absent in the heart of Bruno’s father, and I am angry at him for allowing the wrong in himself to have consequences on his son. In conclusion, these are several of my thoughts on the beginning of "The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas".
My initial feeling in response to “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” was shockingly physical. From the very beginning, the novel felt dark, not sinister, only depressing in an inescapable way. Personally, I found (and am still finding) the foreshadowing to be torturous. Perhaps it is not obvious through quotes or Bruno’s thoughts, but I have had this underlying instinct that this story will not have a “happily ever after”, maybe not even an “after” for certain characters. Now, before everyone starts rolling their eyes, I would like to point out that I understand this is a novel about the Holocaust, subsequently “happy endings” are virtually non-existent. The author, however, tricks you. The irony of using the mind of young boy to display the horrors of the Holocaust is deceiving in the most devastating way. It gives you, the reader, an ill-born sense of hope, because Bruno is just a young boy. One tries to rationalize that he might not befall some awful fate and it is all just Boyne’s ploy to build suspense and emotion. Then we are back to reality, and it’s like watching a bullet come at you in slow motion. Maybe you can Matrix-dodge it, maybe it’s all a dream; and for that unrealistically stretched-out moment in time you can entertain any fantasy you want…but we all know how that story ends (excuse my morbidity). That brings me (albeit in a roundabout way) back to my initial reaction. Even from the beginning, the simplicity of the book did not fool me. I felt unnerved in a way, like I was watching a horror movie and waiting for Bruno to open every proverbial closet door as I uselessly screamed “Don’t! The killer’s in there!” I honestly felt a pain in my chest, like a dark storm of sorrow and fury and frustration was brewing within me, growing more pronounced with each passing chapter. Overall, the Holocaust disgusts me. The fact that so many people were treated in such an inhumane manner is repulsive. Yet, knowing that Boyne used the beautiful simplicity and forgivable naivety of a nine-year-old boy to portray that particular blemish on the face of history, really, really, infuriates me. Here he is throwing in a new angle to see the Holocaust, as if people weren’t already convinced of the evil of it all, and from the point of view a German boy at that! I am sitting here getting agitated and angry and sad and annoyed, all for a piece of fiction. Then again you must think that is has to be a pretty powerful piece of fiction to illicit such emotions. Next you think, maybe it’s so damned powerful because somewhere in the back of your mind you know that a story like this could very well be true. Finally, you undoubtedly know that every moment you sit there reflecting on this book someone, somewhere out in this world, is staring out their own window at their very own fence. Sure it might not be you right now, but it could have been your Nonna on her way to Canada, or a little Jewish boy whose name you will never know, lost in that six million, or maybe it’s that person sitting next to you in homeroom. It doesn’t matter, though, because soon enough you won’t have to reflect, you’ll know. It’ll be your window and your fence someday, maybe it already has.
ReplyDeleteTo be completely honest, while reading the fifty or so pages of the novel "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" the emotions that were most overwhelming in my heart were anger and frustration. I felt angry for Bruno, his mother and his sister that they were not able to make their own decisions about where they were moving to. It made me angry and frustrated that Bruno, although he was a young boy was not able to truly know or understand the reason for the move or the real purpose of his father's job. It truly made me mad that curious Bruno's questions about where they were and why the had to moved to 'Out-with" were not answered completely truthful. I completely understand that Bruno is still young and some topics are better not to be discussed with children but in this case I find it absolutely wrong to answer Bruno's questions in such incomplete ways. I believe that it would be better and less frustrating for Bruno if his family told him what was really going on.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, I believe that Bruno's father is a very stern and ignorant man who is only concerned about himself and the well-being of his job. There are many points in this reading where I felt this way about his father. One specific point was when Bruno said he never spoke to Maria(the family maid) the way his father spoke to her. He then proceeded to state that his father gave orders to her rather than ask her nicely. It did please me to see that Bruno did understand that the way his father spoke to her was wrong and he was to not do the same. Another point in the novel,that I felt completely discusted with the way Bruno's father acted was when bruno asked him who the people he could see from his window were. His father's response was "they aren't really people". With this comment and prior knowledge of what the novel was about-- the Holocaust, I was able to inference that the "not really people" were the Jewish people in the concentration camps.
It also frustrates me that Bruno, a young child was forced to say 'Heil Hitler' and 'hail' a man who did such awful things to innocent people. This part of the novel bothers me so much because aside from the fact that Bruno is forced to say this phrase, he is not told the meaning. The young boy just assumes it is another way of saying 'goodbye'; little does he know that he is actually paying respect to a man that ruined and ended the lives of more than 6 million people. I strongly believe that if Bruno was not kept in the dark so much about this topic, he would refuse to say this phrase.
Although this is truly just a novel, the author expresses the historic event in such a powerful way that pain is actually felt in my heart. As i read the novel, I picture in my head every Jewish person who suffered had a pair of eyes and behind that pair of eyes was a heart and soul that felt pain and at one time felt happiness. It sickens me to know that more than 6 million innocent Jewish pairs of eyes, PEOPLE were murdered for one reason-- because they were different.
The first thing I felt after reading the first pages of "The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" was disgust. Disgust because it is shocking that there are/were people out there that truly think that they are superior towards all or one specific group. In God's eyes, we are all equals. Anyone who does not believe this, is only trying to imitate the Lord. The story takes place in Germany, but the reality is, this could and may happen anywhere. That is what scares me. It is uncomfortable to think that kids just like me, typing at their computers as I am now, can be discriminated against in any way, shape or form. This is truly alarming. In the novel, Bruno is clueless about what the fenced area beside his home actually is. Thus, he is unable to form a independent belief on what is right. This means that other kids and people just like him were put in the dark, unable to do anything. It is proven that not many Germans knew exactly what Hitler's thoughts and ambitions were. For Bruno, he did not have the slightest clue as to what pain his kind was causing the Jews beyond those tall fences. The ways they were punished were brutal and uncivilized. Certainly not in any way I wish to die. The soldiers in the novel were even laughing at some of the kids in the concentration camp. This action is completely cruel and crude, especially as the children know that there is a high possibility that they are to pass very soon. Bruno was not even aware that his father was leading the charge of the concentration camp. Responsible for the many killings of the Jews. It must not be a good feeling at all to know that your own father is the reason of cruel killings. Overall, I believe that this novel very accurately captures the thought and feelings of people who were not aware of the actions of the Germans. It also captures the theme of the holocaust and shows us that the Jews felt nothing could ever be worse for them. And quite frankly, I don't think it could have ever became worse. The actions of the Germans were some of the most crude and alarming gestures throughout history and no one ever deserves to be discriminated in such a way.
ReplyDeleteMy initial reaction to Bruno’s behavior in the beginning pages of the novel “The Boy in the Striped Pajama’s.” was that he was a spoiled little boy. I was picturing him to be the type of child who had to have everything his way. As the beginning progressed, it came to light that he wasn’t spoiled, he was simply naïve. The young boy simply hasn’t seen anything outside his little compound that consisted of school, home, and the market, all of which were located in Berlin. As I continued reading further into the book, I began to see that he was scared of leaving any familiarity that he had known. I felt sad for the boy, because he had to deal with being taken out of his natural surroundings and into a strange new place. At the same time, I didn’t feel for him, because the reader does realize that his father is a Nazi, a person who was making millions of Jews feel the way his son was feeling.
ReplyDeleteI also found it ironic how Bruno refers to Hitler as “the Fury”. I found that “Fury” seemed to suit Hitler better than Der Fuhrer, because his blind hatred towards Jews caused him to act in a blind fury towards them. Using the term “the Fury” makes Bruno seem to have more insight than he actually does. Equally ironic is the term “Out-With” as a substitute for Auschwitz. The change in this name reminds me of “out with the old, in with the new” which I related to a change in government. How Hitler’s government changed the minds of the people by providing them with a scapegoat. This shows how easily people can be influenced into showing hate for different cultures, because their leaders are telling them too. It seems as though Nazi Germany was “the blind leading the blind,” because Hitler had no reason to hate Jews, and used them as a scapegoat through blind ignorance. His followers followed in this ignorance, believing that Hitler was helping them. The truly frightening realization is that these Nazis truly saw the murder of an entire culture as a necessity for the good of the Aryan people.
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ReplyDeleteZachary is correct: when will Bruno realize the truth? “Out-With” is our first clue that h is naive. As David correctly says, “Bruno has no clue what is really going on outside. “ I believe it is our responsibility as culturally responsive students to find out what is really going on. We need to learn, understand, and act. As Thomas correctly points out, “His lack of knowledge is truly amazing and saddening.” Matthew writes, “For Bruno, he did not have the slightest clue as to what pain his kind was causing the Jews beyond those tall fences.” Chiara mentions emotional, depressed, empathetic…right! These are common feelings elicited by the novel. We must learn, understand and tolerate differences if we are to make a difference in the world.
Bravo Erica. I agree, “ The irony of using the mind of young boy to display the horrors of the Holocaust is deceiving in the most devastating way. It gives you, the reader, an ill-born sense of hope, because Bruno is just a young boy. One tries to rationalize that he might not befall some awful fate and it is all just Boyne’s ploy to build suspense and emotion. Then we are back to reality,” It’s so interesting tell the story through different lenses. We are seeing the atrocities of the Holocaust narrated through the eyes of a child. Would the story have been different if it was told through the father’s eyes? Of course!
Interesting blogging everyone. Congratulations!