Student Question
In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, who is Herr Lizst?
Quick answer:
In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Herr Liszt is Bruno and Gretel's private tutor. He focuses on teaching history and geography with a strong emphasis on Nazi ideology and the "great wrongdoings" Germany suffered after WWI. Despite Bruno's boredom with these subjects, Gretel enjoys the lessons, which reflect the Nazi efforts to indoctrinate youth.
In Boyne's celebrated novel The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, Herr Liszt is Bruno and Gretel's private tutor, who is particularly fond of history and geography. Bruno mentions that Herr Liszt is a relatively nice man but there is a look in his eyes that suggests he is filled with pent-up anger. When Bruno mentions that he enjoys art and reading, Herr responds by telling him that possessing a strong understanding of the social sciences is significantly more important than studying the arts. Herr also elaborates on the importance of the Fatherland and aims to teach Bruno and Gretel about the "great wrongdoings" that their country has suffered in the past. Although Bruno finds Herr Liszt's geography and history classes boring, Gretel seems to enjoy them and it pleases Herr to watch her concentrate on the maps in her room as she moves pins to different locations.
Herr Liszt represents the Nazi education efforts to indoctrinate the youth and teach them about their country's history. A significant amount of Herr's history lessons explain the "wrongdoings" Germany suffered after WWI. Following WWI, the German economy was devastated and the Treaty of Versailles made Germany financially responsible for paying the damages and losses of the war. In addition to crumbling Germany's economy, they were forced to give up land to France, completely disarm, and pay reparations. Overall, Herr Liszt is Bruno and Gretel's private tutor, who teaches them history and geography while they are at Out-With.
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