Personal code: gws076

Rationale

The written assignment is based on John Boyne´s The Boy in the Striped

Pyjamas, which is based on the life of a 9 years old child called Bruno. His life revolves

around the Second World War, because his father was commander of the German

army, they moved from Berlin to Auschwitz due to his father´s job. Their new house

was smaller than their house in Berlin, also they don´t have neighbors, so Bruno gets

desperate and starts exploring the garden of the house where he finds a fence and at

the other side a child using a striped pyjama called Shmuel, with whom he attaches a

strong friendship.

For this task, I will use three diary entries written by Bruno because this kind of

writing shows what Bruno thinks regarding to the change of city and house; how is his

relationship with his father and Shmuel his only friend in Auschwitz. The aim of the

diary entry is to show how the environment, the family and friends influenced in the

behavior and thinking of a child.

The following diary entries allow us to know what Bruno thinks about the radical

change in his life, and how his diary became his only friend until he knows Shmuel,

here he will write his questions and problems, even if an answer is not possible. Here

I can show the personality of Bruno and understand the situation he was living.

Rationale word count: 236

Task:

February 20, 1942

Dear Diary,

Today my life changed because my parents decided to move from Berlin to

Auschwitz. The day I moved, I found Maria packing all my things, I got confused. My

mother was nervous when I asked her what was going on, but finally she explained

that we need to move because of my father´s job. He had to do a special job for his

boss, but she never told me what type of job. I didn´t like the idea of moving, what

should I do with school? And what about my best friends? I felt horrible, sad and angry,

because I had many plans with them after school this summer holidays, and they will

be broken because my mom only told me to say goodbye, and I can´t visit them

because my new house is far away from Berlin. I think that Karl, Daniel and Martin are

sad too in this moment, I will miss them so much, but I have to be strong, because I

don´t want to make my mom feel sad because of me. That was my day.

Have good night dear diary.

February 28, 1942

Dear diary,

The new house is a desolated place, there isn´t any houses around mine, so it

means that there is no kids to play with me, and I think that I will be alone for a very

long time, I miss my house of Berlin and everything it had around. It was everything

that a boy like me needs, like friends and places where I could play. Now I feel so lonely
that it is a scaring situation for me. I love to go exploring and in the new house I don´t

have any place to explore, except my house.

Today, I asked Pavel, an old Jewish man who works for the family to help me

make a swing. When we were finding the materials for the swing, we get into a room

and there was a window and through it I saw a forest, I get interested in that place, so

I waited until the soldiers and my family were distracted and I went there. I was running

in the forest when I saw a fence separating the forest and a countryside with something

that looked like houses. There was a small wall at the other side and behind there a

boy with his head shaved and wearing a striped pyjama. I approached to the fence and

started to walk to him, his name was Shmuel he is also nine years old. I was jealous of

him because he only had to wear a striped pyjama while I had to wear different clothes

every day, however we started to be friends.

Thanks for been my confident

March 10, 1942

Dear Diary

Today Shmuel told me that his father had disappeared so I offered my help to

find him, and that is why tomorrow he will give me a pyjama to be able to go to the

other side and both will search for to his dad. I have to plan it very well. That was my

day.

Have good night dear diary.

Task word count: 527

 Bibliography

Boyne, J. (2007). The Boy in the Stripped Pyjamas. Oxford: Oxford University Press.