Characters
Bruno
Dear Papa,
I’m scared because I don’t know where you are. You have just disappeared and I’m very worried. Anyways, I didn’t tell you before because I thought you would get angry, but I have met a new friend. Actually, he is my best friend. My best friend for life. Everyday, I go to the end of the fence, the one which you say separates us from the bad people. Well on the other side of this fence I found another boy who is nine, just like me, and is even born on the same day as me! His name is Bruno, but I’ve never heard of anyone called like him. How about you? Anyways, this boy looks different than me. He is fatter and he has a lot of hair. Also he says that he comes from Berlin. Bruno is very curious, and he wants to become an explorer when he grows up. He is a very sweet and caring boy, as he brings me food all the time. Sometimes I think he is quite naive, because he doesn’t understand much about my side of the fence. He thinks that it is fun as there are a lot of people, but he doesn’t know that we fight a lot over here, and sometimes people disappear and never come back. Anyways I really like this boy, and I am soon going to tell him that we can’t find you.
Lots of love,
Shmuel
Dear Papa,
I’m scared because I don’t know where you are. You have just disappeared and I’m very worried. Anyways, I didn’t tell you before because I thought you would get angry, but I have met a new friend. Actually, he is my best friend. My best friend for life. Everyday, I go to the end of the fence, the one which you say separates us from the bad people. Well on the other side of this fence I found another boy who is nine, just like me, and is even born on the same day as me! His name is Bruno, but I’ve never heard of anyone called like him. How about you? Anyways, this boy looks different than me. He is fatter and he has a lot of hair. Also he says that he comes from Berlin. Bruno is very curious, and he wants to become an explorer when he grows up. He is a very sweet and caring boy, as he brings me food all the time. Sometimes I think he is quite naive, because he doesn’t understand much about my side of the fence. He thinks that it is fun as there are a lot of people, but he doesn’t know that we fight a lot over here, and sometimes people disappear and never come back. Anyways I really like this boy, and I am soon going to tell him that we can’t find you.
Lots of love,
Shmuel
Shmuel
Gretel
Gretel is Bruno's twelve-year-old sister who loves to play with dolls and rearrange them on her shelf. Gretel is very rude, sarcastic and bossy, especially to her brother Bruno. She tries to act more maturely than she actually is which annoys her brother very much. He calls her“Hopeless Case.” Gretel always follows the rules and believes almost everything anyone tells her. She doesn't have any friends at Out-With so she spends her time talking with Lieutenant Kotler .
Gretel is Bruno's twelve-year-old sister who loves to play with dolls and rearrange them on her shelf. Gretel is very rude, sarcastic and bossy, especially to her brother Bruno. She tries to act more maturely than she actually is which annoys her brother very much. He calls her“Hopeless Case.” Gretel always follows the rules and believes almost everything anyone tells her. She doesn't have any friends at Out-With so she spends her time talking with Lieutenant Kotler .
Bruno's Father
Ralph is a proud man who the Fuhrer has confided with an important job and his wholly committed to the task. He is a good father and has a lot of kindness in his soul, which makes people wonder how he can do the things he do. He sometimes displays the childlike need to show off and be accepted.
Ralph is a proud man who the Fuhrer has confided with an important job and his wholly committed to the task. He is a good father and has a lot of kindness in his soul, which makes people wonder how he can do the things he do. He sometimes displays the childlike need to show off and be accepted.
Bruno's Mother
Bruno’s mother is a minor character in this novel. She loves her children, and her husband despite the fact that she doesn’t really like respect his job. Also it’s quite obvious that she doesn’t agree with the cruelty. Before moving to Poland, she says something that really stood out to me. “We don’t have the luxury of thinking.” I think this quote is very strong. With this sentence the Mother is showing that she had no choice in this sudden decision of moving. The Father obliged all the family to move, and did not leave any space for their own opinions. This shows how much difference of power there is between the Father and the Mother. This quote reflects also to the theme of obedience and conformity. This applies to Bruno’s family but also to the people who lived during the Holocaust. It shows what kind of power people were dealing with during that time. Nazi soldiers did not tolerate defiance. For example, if Jews failed to obey commands or did anything unpleasing as considered by the Nazi soldiers, it would result in severe punishment. Sometimes, the punishment would be bad enough to the point where one has to be killed. People had no choice but to do as they were told; there were no exceptions.
Bruno’s mother is a minor character in this novel. She loves her children, and her husband despite the fact that she doesn’t really like respect his job. Also it’s quite obvious that she doesn’t agree with the cruelty. Before moving to Poland, she says something that really stood out to me. “We don’t have the luxury of thinking.” I think this quote is very strong. With this sentence the Mother is showing that she had no choice in this sudden decision of moving. The Father obliged all the family to move, and did not leave any space for their own opinions. This shows how much difference of power there is between the Father and the Mother. This quote reflects also to the theme of obedience and conformity. This applies to Bruno’s family but also to the people who lived during the Holocaust. It shows what kind of power people were dealing with during that time. Nazi soldiers did not tolerate defiance. For example, if Jews failed to obey commands or did anything unpleasing as considered by the Nazi soldiers, it would result in severe punishment. Sometimes, the punishment would be bad enough to the point where one has to be killed. People had no choice but to do as they were told; there were no exceptions.
Lieutenant Kotler
Lieutenant Kotler is an important symbol of “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas”, as he represents all the Nazi soldiers. He is a perfect German soldier, both physically and mentally. Lieutenant Kotler is a lieutenant in the Nazi Army who spends a great deal of time with the Hoess Family. He is 19 years old and very boastful. Lieutenant Kotler enjoys talking with Gretel and he is greatly disliked by Bruno. The was he treats Pavel is an example of how he treats the rest of the people at the Concentration Camps, people he considers inferiors. He is also a symbol of how no one was safe during the Holocaust. Everyone might have a hidden past, just like Kotler had with his father.
Lieutenant Kotler is an important symbol of “The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas”, as he represents all the Nazi soldiers. He is a perfect German soldier, both physically and mentally. Lieutenant Kotler is a lieutenant in the Nazi Army who spends a great deal of time with the Hoess Family. He is 19 years old and very boastful. Lieutenant Kotler enjoys talking with Gretel and he is greatly disliked by Bruno. The was he treats Pavel is an example of how he treats the rest of the people at the Concentration Camps, people he considers inferiors. He is also a symbol of how no one was safe during the Holocaust. Everyone might have a hidden past, just like Kotler had with his father.
Pavel
Pavel is the cook of the Hoess family and he is a Jew sent everyday to work from the Concentration Camp. He is a symbol of all the other Jewish people in the Concentration Camps, and how much they suffered. You can see by his attitude that he is very patient, as he doesn’t treat Bruno’s family disrespectfully. I thought. Kotler’s behaviour towards him was disgusting, not only because of the age difference, but also because it showed violent and unthoughtful some people were during that time
Pavel is the cook of the Hoess family and he is a Jew sent everyday to work from the Concentration Camp. He is a symbol of all the other Jewish people in the Concentration Camps, and how much they suffered. You can see by his attitude that he is very patient, as he doesn’t treat Bruno’s family disrespectfully. I thought. Kotler’s behaviour towards him was disgusting, not only because of the age difference, but also because it showed violent and unthoughtful some people were during that time