THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS

THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS

BY JOHN BOYNE

Traditional criticism

Author John Boyne has said that he believes that the only way he could write about the Holocaust respectfully was through the eyes of a child. He does so masterfully in this novel, demonstrating how Bruno and Shmuel maintain the innocence of their childhood in spite of what is happening around them. Boyne acknowledges that the only people who can truly comprehend the horrors of the Holocaust are those who lived through it. Boyne's novel gives a voice to the victims, especially the millions of innocent children who perished at the hands of the Nazis.

Sociological criticism

What makes The Boy in the Striped Pajamas so effective is that rather than examining the big picture of the Holocaust and its atrocities, the novel instead focuses on individual relationships and gives readers an intimate portrait of two innocent boys seeking the same thing: friendship.

Interestingly, Boyne classifies The Boy in the Striped Pajamas as a fable, a story that bears a moral lesson. Readers consequently consider their own prejudices and actions, perhaps wondering if they have been guilty of mistreating others. Additionally, some may even consider what their role might have been in the Holocaust: bystander, resister, perpetrator, or victim. This is a fitting category for the novel as it imparts many lessons. Among these valuable lessons, perhaps the most significant is the final sentence which suggests that "nothing like that could ever happen again. Not in this day and age." It forces readers to confront the grim reality that hatred, discrimination, and intolerance remain potent forces in the world.

Archetypal criticism

The conflict here is person vs. society, in this case Nazi vs. Jews during the holocaust. The Nazi overpowered the Jews, took control and treated them horribly. The fence represents a barrier because it keeps them separated and forces them to keep their friendship as a secret. The striped pajamas could represent not freedom because when a person uses that type of clothes the first thought is that person is in jail or is a bad person, but in this case is a innocent child using it. The theme of this story is “friendship and love break through all barriers” because no matter what the circumstances were, Bruno and Shmuel made time for each other even they were Jews and German.