Introduction
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas depicts a fictional friendship set during World War II. Bruno, the eight-year-old son of a newly-promoted Nazi officer, moves with his family from a comfortable life in Berlin to a lonely existence in the countryside. An adventurous boy with nothing to do, Bruno ignores his mother’s instructions not to explore the back garden and takes off for a “farm” he has seen from his bedroom window. As he approaches a barbed wire fence, Bruno sees Shmuel, the boy in the striped pajamas, on the other side, and an unlikely and life-changing friendship develops.
Based on a fiction novel, the movie explores important real-life themes, such as experiences that gradually end an innocent perspective, the essence of friendship, acts of humanity even under horrific circumstances, the uses and abuses of obedience and conformity, and the development of prejudice and its destructive consequences. This guide provides discussion prompts and activity ideas that will allow youth to not only understand historical facts and issues, but to explore their application in today’s world.
This program guide is best used after viewing the Miramax movie and reading the book, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne. As a facilitator, your role is to create a supportive environ- ment that encourages the youth in your group to express their feelings and beliefs, and to engage in constructive dialogue with their peers. The Appendix (pg. 15) contains definitions and other resources that offer help in answering questions that may arise in discussion. Because of the sen- sitive nature of this movie and its themes, be prepared for the possibility of strong emotions that the questions and activities might elicit, particularly if they have family members who were af- fected by the Holocaust during World War II or genocide in other countries, such as Rwanda or Iraq. Encourage young people to act as advocates and take action to fight prejudice and discrimi- nation in their communities, country, and around the globe. Help them see that by understanding and acting on the lessons learned in this story, they can make a positive difference in the world.
Discussion topics
Exploring an innocent perspective
The story includes an interesting contrast of an innocent child’s perspective in a setting with circumstances far from innocent.This section explores the meaning and value of an innocent perspective and how it enables this story to unfold.
a) What do “innocent” and “naïve” mean when used to describe children?
b) How does the opening scene of Bruno and his friends represent their innocence?
c) Can adults be naïve? In what ways can they be naïve? What adults in the movie seemed naïve?
d) Can you give an example of a time when you were a young child and saw the world from a more innocent perspective? What are some examples of that? What experiences helped you see the world differently than what you initially thought?
e) Does Bruno and Gretel’s tutor take advantage of the children’s innocence in what he teaches them? How? What were these ideas? f) Although the story takes place during a tragic time in history, there are moments of humor in the story. One occurs when Bruno tells Pavel that he could not be a very good doctor because he had to “practice” it. How does this example and others in the movie demonstrate Bruno’s naïveté? Can you give other examples from the movie of misinterpretation as a result of innocence? What about in your own life? g) Although Bruno and his family have moved to a desolate place, Bruno continues to display his strong sense of adventure and creativity. What are some examples of this in the movie? Can you give an example from your own life when your sense of adventure and imagination allowed you to escape from a sad or painful situation?
h) What events and experiences lead Bruno to gradually give up some of his innocence and see things differently? i) Why was it so hard for him to believe that his father could be involved in hurtful acts?
j) Neither Bruno nor Shmuel really know going on at the concentration camp. Why is that, and what allows them to keep their innocence?
k) Why do you think the movie and book ended the way they did?
Your 4 answers to: innocent perspective discussion questions:
The essence of Friendship
Friendship is a central theme of this story, and this section explores the reasons, depths and meaning of friendship explored in this story.
a) Why do you think Bruno and Shmuel become friends and stay friends?
b) How do the friendships that Bruno has in Berlin at the beginning of the movie compare with his friendship with Shmuel?
c) Does the friendship between Bruno and Shmuel evolve in the story? How?
d) Why doesn’t Bruno try to protect his friend when Shmuel is attacked by Lieutenant Kotler?
e) Have you ever done something to a friend that made you feel bad or ashamed? How does shame and remorse figure into the friendship between Bruno and Shmuel? How does Bruno show his remorse?
f) Why does Shmuel forgive Bruno? How?
g) How is it possible for Bruno and Shmuel to have fun together and maintain their friendship in the midst of their circumstances? h) How does Bruno justify continuing his friendship with Shmuel despite what his father, sister, and tutor have said about Jews?
i) The barbed wire fence is a physical separation between Bruno and Shmuel. What other types of separation does the fence represent in this story?
j) How do Bruno and Shmuel demonstrate the essence of friendship despite their many differences? What are their differences?
k) How can people use the power of friendship to cross boundaries of race, religion, and culture?
Your 4 answers to: the essence of friendship discussion questions:
The Holocaust
When World War I ended in 1919, the Treaty of Versailles stripped Germany of its pride and economic stability. This was a time of high unemployment and economic chaos in Germany, conditions that were ripe for Adolph Hitler and his National Socialist German Worker’s Party—the Nazi Party—to rise to power.
Using the Jews as a scapegoat, Hitler roused the German people with a viciously anti-Semitic program and a plan to build a superior German “master race.” From the time he became the absolute dictator of Germany, Hitler carried out a methodical perse- cution of the Jewish people. His “final solution to the Jewish question” was extermination in death camps, also known as concentration camps. This sad time in history is referred to as the Holocaust. During the period that Hitler was in power (1933–1945), six million of Europe’s nine million Jews were murdered by the Nazis.
Terrorism against Jews was carried out by the SS, ruthless police units of the Nazi Party. Jews were forced to wear the Star of David so they could be easily identified. Special units began mass shootings that claimed about two million lives, but these were too slow to suit the Nazis. After putting up with horrible conditions in ghettos, such as the Kraków ghetto in Poland, Jews were finally crowded into freight cars and transported to concentration camps. One of the most notorious of these was Auschwitz, which was both a death and labor camp, with a small percentage of the people kept alive as slave labor. At Auschwitz, 2,000 people at a time could be killed in the large gas chambers, and almost 5,000 bodies could be burned in the oven in one day.
On June 6, 1944, Allied forces landed in Normandy, France, in the D-day invasion. Slowly the concentration camps were liberated. The Soviet troops liberated Auschwitz on January 27, 1945. By that time, an estimated two million persons, includ- ing one and a half million Jews, had been murdered there.
Pre-reading activity
In the Anticipation Guide that follows, write T in the “Before Reading” column if the statement is true in your opinion. Write F if you feel the statement is false. After completing the book, mark your answers again in the “After Reading” column to see if your opinion has changed.
Statements Before Reading After Reading
1. It is difficult to adjust to living in a new place.
2. When you see someone being mistreated, you should always try to help.
3. Sometimes it is better not to know if something horrible is going on around you.
4. It is difficult for children to see the faults of their parents.
5. A person can be kind to some people and cruel to others.
6. Betrayal of a friend is unforgivable.
7. People are more alike than they are different.
8. It is possible to judge someone even before you get to know that person as an individual.
Chapter one and two
Vocabulary:
Synonyms are words with similar meanings. Draw a line from each word in column A to its synonym in column B. Then use the words in column A to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
1. chaos 2. frustration 3. dismissively 4. presumed 5. desolate 6. restrictions 7. foreseeable 8. priorities
a. indifferently b. limitations c. immediate d. annoyance e. preferences f. disorder g. lifeless h. supposed
1. The man was Presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
2. Your Priorities are wrong if you choose to watch television instead of finishing your report.
3. Happy with the community and its schools, my family intends to live here for the Foreseeable future.
4. The severe hurricane left the town in a state of chaos.
5. There are so many Restrictions on the use of the playground that no one wants to come here anymore.
6. After trying in vain to solve the math problem, the student shook her head in Frustration.
7. The busy saleswoman waved the children off dismissively when they asked her lots of questions.
8. The astronaut took a walk on the rocky, desolate surface of the moon.
Answers:
Questions:
1. Why doesn’t Bruno understand the nature of his father’s job? He is too young.
2. How does Bruno’s mother feel about leaving the house in Berlin? Bruno’s mother didn’t want to leave their nice house and life in Berlin. They are going to a much more isolated place. Bruno’s mother is proud of her lifestyle and it is about to change dramatically.
3. How does Bruno feel about his sister? Bruno does not like her sister because she is a hopeless case and caused nothing but trouble for him.
4. Why is Bruno reluctant to leave Berlin? because he didn’t want to leave his friends and school.
5. How does Bruno react to his new house? He reacts by putting his hands out to his side a making his mouth like an “O”.
6. How do Bruno and Maria react to the young soldier in the hall? Bruno is confused about the man in the hallway and is wondering why he was in his father’s room. Maria seems respectful to him but doesn’t show much emotion.
Questions for Discussion:
1. Why do you think Bruno’s mother fails to tell her son the exact nature of his
father’s job? She is possibly protecting Bruno by not telling him the true nature of his father’s job. She may think he is too young
2. Do you think Bruno’s mother could have done anything to make the move
easier for her son?
3. In your opinion, could Bruno’s mother have convinced her husband not to
leave Berlin? No mom can not convince dad because it’s during war.
4. Why do you think that looking out the window makes Bruno feel “very cold and
unsafe”? Bruno doesn’t understand their status as prisoners, but he does see that there is something wrong.
Literary Device: Point of view
In literature, the point of view refers to the person telling the story. It can be narrated by a character in the book or by the author. Sometimes even though the book is narrated by the author, it focuses on the thoughts and feelings of only one character. From this point of view, we observe the actions through the eyes of only one of the characters in the story.
1. Who is telling the story? third-person narrator.
2. On whose thoughts and feelings does the narration focus? Why do you think the author chose this point of view? By showing the reader a narrator who is suffering deep emotional and mental problems
Chapter 3 to 5
Questions:
1. How does Gretel feel about the new house?Gretel doesn’t like the new house, but out of respect for her father, she plans to make the best of it.
2. Why does Gretel hesitate before looking out of Bruno’s window? Gretel look out bruno’s window because he said so because find child’s dads .
3. Why is Gretel surprised when she looks out the window? because she sees the smoke stacks and the concentration camp.
4. How are the children on the other side of the fence treated by the soldiers? The soldiers shout at the children, causing some of them to cry.
5. How does Gretel react to the children on the other side of the fence?she thinks they are in bad shape
6. How were the two trains headed eastward from the station in Berlin different?Bruno’s train was comfortable with few people, while the train on the other track was crowded and uncomfortable
7. How does Bruno’s father react to his son’s desire to go home?Bruno’s father tells his son that “Out-With” is their new home now and insists that he becomes accustomed to the idea
Questions for Discussion:
1. Do you think that Bruno and his sister Gretel have a normal relationship or one
that is made more difficult by the times in which they live?
2. Why do you think it is so difficult for Bruno and Gretel to understand the true
nature of Auschwitz? They have been sheltered from hearing about places like Auschwitz. They don’t even know that their father’s job is connected to it. They have never experienced anything like it
3. How would you describe Bruno’s relationship with his father? Do you think that the Commandant is a good father?Bruno loves and respects his father, but he is somewhat afraid of him. He walks slowly toward his office and hesitates before going in.
4. How do you know when to keep your mouth shut and when to follow orders?
Is there ever a time when someone should not follow orders?You should know when to keep your mouth shut depending on who you are talking to and how you think they make react. In my opinion, if you don not feel comfortable bout following the orders than don’t do it.
5. What do you think Bruno’s father means when he says that the people on the
other side of the fence are not people at all?Bruno’s father dresses very powerful. This symbolizes that father doesn’t think the Jews at Aushwitz were “people” and Bruno was acting like one.
Literary Devices:
Simile—A simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike objects are compared using the words “like” or “as.” For example:
As they [the Nazi soldiers] left they stood in a
row together like toy soldiers . . . .
1. What is being compared? The Nazi soldiers are compared to toy soldiers.
2. What does the comparison suggest about the Nazi soldiers? This comparison suggests that they are just following orders and have no originality in thought or deed.
Chapter 6 and 7
Vocabulary:
Draw a line from each word on the left to its definition on the right. Then use the numbered words to fill in the blanks in the sentences below.
Column A Column B
1. enforced 2. reverberated 3. engaged 4. incredulous 5. escapade 6. diversion 7. distaste 8. irritable
a. reckless adventure or prank b. dislike c. caused to be carried out d. amusement e. easily annoyed f. echoed g. took part h. showing a lack of belief
1.D
2. F
3. G
4. H
5. A
6. C
7. B
8. E
1. Playing video games is my favorite enforced_________________.
2. Most people are ______distaste______________ when they hear stories about flying
saucers.
3. After the rain spoiled her plans, my sister was ______irritable______________ for the
entire day.
4. After reading the book, the students _____engaged_____________ in a lively
discussion about the characters.
5. The police officer _______reverberated_____________ the law against speeding by giving
the driver a ticket.
6. My little brother’s latest ________escapade____________ ended with a ball breaking a
bedroom window.
7. The guide’s call ____________________ in the cave.
8. Many people have a(n) ____________________ for snakes.
Questions for Discussion:
1. How would you finish Maria’s sentence, “He has a lot of kindness in his soul,
truly he does, which makes me wonder . . .”? about him
2. Do you think that Bruno’s father could be as kind a man as Maria describes
and still be a Nazi officer?Bruno’s father may be kind to some , but he is still a Nazi officer. People aren’t completely good or evil, so it is possible for him to be both.
3. Why is Maria so upset when Bruno keeps complaining that his father made a
terrible mistake in coming to Out-With?Maria is upset when Bruno complains about his father’s mistake in coming to Out-With because she knows he has been kind to her and her family and she feels she owes him gratitude.