Discussion Topic
The point of view in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
Summary:
The point of view in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is third-person limited. The narrative is primarily seen through the eyes of Bruno, an eight-year-old boy, allowing readers to understand his innocent and naive perspective on the events unfolding around him, particularly the Holocaust and his friendship with Shmuel, a boy in a concentration camp.
What is the point of view in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas?
The point of view is a third person style of narration. Yet, it is focused on Bruno's vantage point. This allows Boyne to be able to tell the story of what happens through Bruno's eyes, but also be allowed to freely move into other characters' thoughts and mindsets that allow the reader to understand how unique Bruno is and the state of affairs that surrounds him. The main concept of this style of narration lies in the closing sentence of the narrative:
...nothing like that could ever happen again. Not in this day and age.
This statement holds a level of irony in that the reader would no doubt want to agree with Boyne's statement. Reading it after experiencing what Bruno and Shmuel experience walking hand in hand is a hopeful sentiment with which one can only hope to concur. Yet, in reflecting about the political and personal cruelty that...
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has taken place since the Holocaust, one recognizes that this is regrettably not the case. In order for Boyne to be able to drive home this point, he has to present the story of Bruno in a manner that will allow the reader to understand Bruno's experience, but also allow the reader to accept and ruminate upon the theme that the Holocaust is a unique instant in human history for to deny that it will happen again is as wrong as saying it happen again. In order for Boyne's own point of view to be conveyed, he has to retain this third person narrative with an emphasis to Bruno's own perception throughout the novel.
I think that "the point" in Boyne's work is multifold. On one hand, he seeks to provide a child's view towards the Holocaust. The Holocaust is a time period of such intense cruelty and violation of human trust that to place focus on it from the frame of reference of a child is extremely powerful. Boyne is able to bring this out through Bruno's characterization. From his beliefs on right and wrong to his mispronunciation of "Auschwitz" and "The Fuhrer" ("Out- With" and "The Fury"), we see the Holocaust through his eyes and this allows us to fully understand the inhumanity of the Holocaust and its inversion of human values from a child's point of view.
Another "point" in the book is to bring out a level of humanity in the German people. It is a difficult task to humanize a nation that has to bear the moral responsibility for one of the worst crimes ever perpetrated in human history. In all honesty, how does one bring out the humanity in a people that voted Hitler into office and zealously supported him when he made no concealment of his overall purpose of extermination? Boyne is able to bring out the element of the German population that either did not support Hitler and were silenced because of it or the part of the population that was ambivalent about what was happening and found themselves unable to say anything about it for different reasons. For example, Bruno's grandmother speaks out against Bruno's father for his involvement in the Nazi party, insulting him and his "costume." Bruno's sister comes to represent the part of the German population that supported the Nazis because of their social status and "popularity." Yet, when faced with the atrocity of Bruno's death, she is inconsolable with sadness. Bruno's father comes to reverse his position on what is happening when he experiences its cost firsthand when his child is a victim. In this, Boyne does not excuse the Germans, but he brings about a transcendent level of humanity whereby true understanding and a sense of moral reconciliation can occur. This is a difficult thing to do and Boyne accomplishes it well.
Finally, the notion of transcendence and permanence in a time period of brutal contingency is another "point" to the work. Boyne points out that friendship and loyalty are universal qualities, ones that have to be embraced in the worst of times for this speaks to their essential qualities to human consciousness. Bruno crosses the fence and wants to go back home. Yet, Shmuel reminds him of his promise, and Bruno stands by his word. In a time period where so few honored the bonds between themselves and others, Bruno and Shmuel are the exceptions in proving the importance of universal qualities regardless of circumstance. Bruno's last words to Shmuel while in the gas chamber are that Shmuel is his “best friend for life.” In the moment of unspeakable horror and terror, when the metallic clang is the last thing heard except for the screams of the naked bodies all around, Bruno speaks words of comfort to his friend. This is where the ultimate "point" of the work lies. In the moments where all the lights of humanity seem to be extinguished, individuals can be their own lights that illuminate the darkness.
What is the point of view of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas?
John Boyne's book The Boy in the Striped Pajamas is written in the third person point of view. This means that there is an omniscient narrator describing what happens. Boyne focuses mostly on writing about what happens to Bruno, the nine-year-old boy whose father is the commander of the camps at Auschwitz. A clear example of this point of view is evident when the narrator explains
Bruno narrowed his eyes and wished he were taller … .
Here the reader does not hear Bruno think this himself with words like “I wish I was taller,” but rather hears an unnamed third party describing what Bruno thinks.
When Boyne writes from Bruno’s eyes, the world is still limited despite the use of the third person. Bruno is just a child, so his understanding of the world and its complexities are not entirely accurate. However, Boyne does occasionally switch to other perspectives, like to that of Bruno’s father at the end. This, then, would be considered third person omniscient point of view, because the narrator does not focus on the perspective of just one person. When Boyne switches perspectives like this, the reader sees other perspectives on the situation and develops a more complete understanding of its intensity and implications.
Overall, using the third person point of view allows Boyne to show the story of those living during the Holocaust in a clear and accessible manner. The reader begins to really understand the characters and relate to how human their emotions are.