Boy In The Striped Pajamas Childhood

As a child sees a fire flickering at the tip of a lighted candle, a feeling of deep curiosity and attraction grows within. As the child moves his/her hand closer to the flame, the beauty becomes enchanted as he/she sees the blooming light glow. This idea connects with the quote, “Childhood is measured out by sounds and smell and sights, before the dark hour of reason grows.” - John Betjeman. Looking deep into these words, one can argue that it most like signifies the innocence of a child. Childhood is filled with innocence and experiences that are untainted by the known reality of adulthood. Anything that a child may experience is like an inspiration, despite the horror that may be filled into that experience. These children only see the beauty
An example that shows this connection is when Gretel, Bruno’s older sister, was introduced to the ideas of the Nazi. At the beginning of the plot, she would play with her dolls most of the time. Even though she still knew about what the situation was like at that time, in Germany, her life was still that of a young girl. This way of living, later changes as Gretel is introduced to her tutor, Herr Liszt. His distinct ways of teaching about the history of Germany and the ways of the Nazi, initiates great interest and enthusiasm in Gretel toward the idea of learning. She no longer cared about her dolls and her previous childish life. She began to take things more seriously, and clearly understood everything that was around her. For example, when Pavel was beaten by Lieutenant Kotler, Gretel was able to explain how the Jew deserved to be beaten. Given these points, it’s clear how she didn’t see this in an innocent way since she was more mature. She saw it as if it was a responsibility for someone to beat up a Jew. Another part of the plot of “The Boy in Striped Pajamas,” that connects to the second part of John Betjeman’s quote is when Bruno went on a rescue mission with Shmuel to save his father. At the beginning of the plot, as previously explained, Bruno did not understand the seriousness of the situation, but rather saw it as a game. As the plot develops, Bruno begins to understand more and more about what was going on around him. He was told about new information he didn’t know before, and he witnessed the cruelty the Germans had on the Jews. Consequently, Bruno’s conceptual understanding became mature, similar to Gretel’s. This signifies the state in which Bruno transitioned away from his previous childish life. His responses clearly demonstrate this. For instance, unlike before, he began