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“It's so unfair, I don't see why I have to be stuck over here on this side of the fence where there's no one to talk to and no one to play with and you get to have dozens of friends are probably playing for hours every day"
Even though it unfolds almost entirely through a child's eyes, and contains no onscreen violence, The Boy in the Striped Pajamas packs as devastating a
punch as an adult-oriented drama about the subject. Its concluding five
minutes are almost impossible to watch.
PREDOMINANT CULTURE
In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, the main element being incorporated throughout the film essentially displays hatred, although it is not, as the example being shown. The contrast of good and evil is the most persuasive theme of the film. As previously mentioned In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, the dominant group is the Nazi Party, which has risen to power in Germany partly due to its openness of unfounded principles. Nazism was founded on the principle that Jews were racially inferior hence the future of
Germany depended on the destruction of the Jewish race.
In addition to the Nazi vs Jews conflict, it was convenient for the Nazi to target Jewish people and those who were deemed as “outsiders.” At the same time, contingency could also be seen in the lack of solidarity and lack of community that resulted in the Holocaust.
The theme of betrayal also is shown throughout the film, as Bruno’s father, like all of the Nazis, is depicted as treacherous and disloyal.
The film creates a plotline of consequences, prejudices and dominant assumptions that are continually overturned by protagonist Bruno. As viewers, we simultaneously sympathize with and admire the children who, although unaware of the horrors occurring behind the fence, understands the fundamental value of human life.
AND CONTEXT
CONNECTING WITH THE
AUDIENCE
VISUALS SHOWING CULTURE
Taking everything into account regarding the culture and context from The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, you can clearly understand the timeframe in which it was set during World War two ( a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945, through related conflicts began earlier ).
As previously mentioned before, culture can be defined in many ways hence historical, social and political context is understood throughout the film based on the era is was set. Not only does The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas display two different words of unconditional environments but it outlines the innocence and ignorance the director wanted to portray to the audience. The effectiveness that The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas gives audiences an authentic experience of the culture and context can be implied through the aspect that lines may divide us but hope will unite us.
The film, overall breaks the stereotypes we have of how people were during World War II especially the Germans. Through the eyes of an eight year old the audience is captured by the unique perspective on how prejudice, hatred and violence affect innocent people. The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas will leave you thinking deep.
And then the room went very dark and somehow, despite the chaos that followed, Bruno found
that he was still holding Shmuel’s hand in his own and nothing in the world would have persuaded him to let it go.
(Boyne 2006: 213)
CREATIVE REPRESENTATION
The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was a genocide in which approximately six million Jews were killed by Adolf Hitler's Nazi regime and its collaborators.
THE HOLOCAUST
The boy named Bruno was filled with curiosity.
He soon left Berlin with his family.
The dark grey "home" did not contain any light.
Instead, it was filled with sorrow and fright.
He searched and searched until he finally found joy
For, behind the wired fence, there was a small boy.
With the touch of their hands, a bond was made,
And right at that fence, their friendship stayed.
For months they talked at the edge of the lawn
But they took a wrong turn, and then they were gone.
Inside Auschwitz, they saw a life of gloom,
Then, they were pushed and shoved inside of a tomb.
They walked in a line, along the concrete floor,
And left their pajamas outside of the door.
Inside the tomb, they all gave a shout,
Then, there was silence, for the lights went out.
- Haley Lambert : POEM
Mark Herman and John Boyne
- The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas Interview