Glossary

This is my Glossary for the Boy in Striped Pajamas. These six terms stood out to be as significant, striking and has a deeper meaning in the context of the story. Each of them can have questionable meanings, which are good for thinking and pondering about their meanings. Those meanings will be explained in the following section. Each word will be followed by an example. 

1.Superior: The word "Superior" can have a number of meanings depending on the context of the subject.
It is usually an adjective, but it can be a noun. It can mean:
a. higher in station, rank, degree, importance, etc.: a superior officer

b.above the average in excellence, merit, intelligence, etc.: superior math students..

c. of higher grade or quality: superior merchandise.

d. greater in quantity or amount: superior numbers

e. showing a consciousness or feeling of being better than or above others 

I believe the choice e) is the correct choice, because Bruno was led to believe throughout the story, that Germany was the best place in the world, and other countries, in this case Poland, were not as good as it.

Synonyms include: unrivaled,  first-rate, haughty,  arrogant,  snobbish

2. Appropriate: Appropriate, like the first term, can also have many meaning depending on the type of subject. It can be interpreted as:

a. suitable or fitting for a particular purpose, person, occasion, etc.: an appropriate example; an appropriate dress.

b. belonging to or peculiar to a person; proper: Each played his appropriate part. 

Synonyms include: befitting, apt, meet, felicitous, suited, proper, due, becoming

I believe choice a. was suited, because the context of the text was "appropriate" dinner conversation. In that scenario, I would think the definition would be as stated above.

3.Chaos: Chaos is never a good thing. It can be a bad thing, or a worse thing. Here are some definitions:

a. a state of utter confusion or disorder; a total lack of organization or order.

b. any confused, disorderly mass: a chaos of meaningless phrases.

the infinity of space or formless matter supposed to have preceded the existence of the ordered universe.

Synonyms include:disarray, jumble, turmoil, tumult.

I think choice a. was proper, because it explains the word in context better than the other definition. The context was chaos, as in unexpected disorder and confusion, as it happened when Pavel spilled wine of Lieutenant Kotler's lap.

4. Civilized: Civilized can mean different things to different people. I will try to cover the whole meaning of the English word, in context to different people's perspective.

a. having an advanced or humane culture, society, etc

b. polite; well-bred; refined.

c. of or pertaining to civilized people: The civilized world must fight ignorance.

d. easy to manage or control; well organized or ordered: The car is quiet and civilized, even in sharp turns.

Synonyms include: educated, learned, instructed, polished, sophisticated. 

This time around, I chose two definitions, as I believed that they suited the context well. The sentence was about Bruno and his sister talking like civilized people, as opposed to fighting and arguing as uncivilized people. The word in contrast to the sentence can mean either easy to manage, or having an advanced human culture or personality.

5. Feel: Though this would count as making the job of the glossary much harder for me, I believe it would make it much more interesting. 
a. To undergo the experience of: felt my interest rising; felt great joy.

b. To be aware of; sense: felt the anger of the crowd.

c. To be physically or emotionally affected by

Synonyms include: perceive, sense, examine, intuition
The suitable choice for me is choice c) because Shmuel was saying how he doesn't feel anything anymore. I perceive this to be choice c) because he is basically saying that the bad conditions in the concentration camp has led him not to feel any emotions of sadness or any physical beatings that was inflicted upon him.

Blog Section Two

Like Section 1, I put together a overview of what I will be doing, based on the assignment sheet.

Glossary
I will include at least five words/terms/expressions that I either found in the text, or used to describe it at any point over the project.
For each word, provide a definition (created by you) that illustrates the meaning of the word in the context of the novel.
For each word, provide an example of how it is used in the context of the novel. The example must demonstrate the definition of the word.

Peer Responses
I will respond to at least two peer's blogs (Severin & Daniel) one one task in section one, reflecting on what each has posted/written. Each response will be at least 2 paragraphs and must demonstrate critical thinking and be directly related to what the person has posted. I will use evidence from the text

Picture of Character -- Made By Me



One of Gretel's "Monster" friends

 This picture depicts one of Gretel's best friends, in the eyes of Bruno. This particular friend is the one who teased Bruno, by calling him six instead of nine. Bruno always remembered her as the mean friend that Gretel had, due to the fact that no child likes to be teased, and that is the reason the picture is seemingly not good-looking. (Or maybe due to the fact that I am not a very good drawer).

Throughout the months at Aushcwitz, Gretel missed her, and her other two friends dearly, while Bruno resented them greatly. Also, she is the result why Bruno does stretching exersizes every night, hoping for a miraculous growth spurt. She made an impact on Bruno's life, because he took those insults to heart, and thought himself to be short, throughout the stay at Aushwitz.

Map/Charts

This First chart  is a diagram that explains the makeup of a concentration camp, back in 1945. This has a particular role in the story, because the main character spends his time in and outside the walls of a concentration camp throughout the duration of the story.

If you take a closer look at the picture, you will see that there are barbed fences, showed with a asterisk(*) with a long fence running through the middle. I believe this is where Bruno had his first encounter with Shmuel. This has a significant impact on the story, because the whole story was based on two boys from different sides of the fence, working together to help solve their problems.

Journal Entry-Bruno

Why? Why do we have to move out of Berlin? I won't get to see Karl, Martin or Daniel, and they are my three best friends for life! Things couldn't possibly get any worse. Or so I thought.

A picture of me

Yesterday, I found Maria packing up my clothes, even the stuff I stored in the back, that was mine, and that wasn't anyone else's business. I complained to Mother, and she replied back with frustration. Seems like I wasn't getting any sympathy there. I then realized there was nothing left that I could do about it.

I am going to miss Berlin, especially our big five-floor house with the long banister that you could slide off of. I would also miss the area around our house, where there were always people to chat with, and kids to play with. I would always miss the center of town, where there were stalls filled to the brim with fruits and vegetables, and the funny people laughing loudly, and drinking frothy drinks. But most of all, I would miss Karl and Martin and Daniel, my three best friends for life.


Maria shut off all the lights in the house. We would be leaving our huge house in Berlin to somewhere far away. I try to think positive thoughts, but couldn't think of any. Now that I think about it, this place must be the best place ever, if we were going to leave Berlin for it. I took a quick glance back at Berlin, and boarded the train to our new home. I hope Karl and Daniel and Martin are going to miss me as much as I am going to miss them.  Mother, the Hopeless Case, and I board the train with heavy hearts. I wonder If I am going to like it there.

Reflections on the Journal 

I chose this character, Bruno, because I believe that the time-frame would be best portrayed by Bruno. The thoughts and feelings that Bruno showed in this time-frame would greatly affect the outcome of this story, due to the fact that he wouldn't have met Shmuel if he wasn't missing Karl, Martin or Daniel so much. Also, I believe he had some important things to say in regards to the situation, and it would not be right if they weren't portrayed.
The time-frame is at the start of the story, at the part when Bruno is moving out of his old house into the new one. I chose this particular time-frame, because any child would have hard-feeling about moving into a far-away new house.

Shmuel's Journal

A picture of me

This place is horrible. Even worse than the train we took to get here. Sometimes I wish we can just pack up and go home. The soldiers are terrible, because they keep hitting me, and my Mother. Yesterday, my Father was taken on another march, but this time, he never came back. My Mother and I wept tears of sadness and grief for him, for it will not be the same without him.

I need to do something about it. Its a good thing I still have Bruno, my best friend ever. Bruno is a German boy from the other side of the fence, who has kindly brought me food, and talked to me everyday, for the past months. We talked about everything, even about how Papa went missing. I wish he can help me somehow.

Last night Bruno told me some sad news -- He was going back to his old home in Berlin. Oh, how I wish I can go back home, back to our old watch shop, where Papa used to make these beautiful watches for us. Anyways, Bruno told me that his parents decided that they were going back to Berlin, so we wouldn't be seeing each other anymore. That makes me happy for Bruno, in a sense of getting out of this horrible place, but sad, due to the fact that I wont be seeing him anymore. Things would be much different without Bruno to comfort me each and every day.

Bruno, the other day, came up with a wonderful idea. It would give us our final chance to explore and play together for once. It would also give me a chance to go look for Papa, without being afraid, with Bruno there to comfort me. If we found Papa, maybe I wouldn't be as sad as to Bruno's departure. Our adventure would begin first thing tomorrow! I can't wait!

Reflections on the Journal 

I chose Shmuel as my first journal entry, because I believe that if he had a journal, he would have some important things to say. I also think that he is an important part of the story. The friendship between Bruno and Shmuel is the basic foundation of the story's plot, and it would be wrong not to showcase it in a journal.

The time frame of the journal is when the night after Bruno proposed that they would explore the camp, and find Shmuel's father. This stood out to me because Bruno would get his first impressions of the Camp, and about Shmuel's life on the other side of the fence.

Quotations

This is section 1, task 1: Quotations. In this section I will choose and explain four of the most dominant quotes in the story.

"Ah,those people," said Father, nodding his head. "Those people...well there not people at all, Bruno" p.53 (The Boy In Striped Pajamas)
This quote perfectly describes the prejudice and discrimination the Jews were under. Furthermore, the Germans refuse to even acknowledge them as even human, just because they come from a different culture and religion.
Bruno, being a naive little nine year old, was curious as to who the mysterious "beings" were, if not human. This is a perfect example of a child "inheriting" his father's hate and prejudice towards a specific culture. Fortunately, Bruno is a little naive, as stated before, so his father's prejudice was then converted to curiosity and wonder

"When I make mistakes I get punished," insisted Bruno, irritated by the fact that the rules that applies to children never seemed to apply to adults. "Stupid Father," he muttered under his breath. p.59 (The Boy In Striped Pajamas)
This comment explicitly states Bruno's feelings throughout the whole story.Bruno's father has made a huge mistake of moving to Auschwitz, and Maria, the maid, has said that Bruno has to live with those mistakes. The statement above clearly shows how some parents set several restrictions on a child's behavior, and or attire, and respond by breaking those rules in a major way. One prime example is how Bruno must not talk to Pavel and Maria in a rude way, as it is acceptable for Father to say to Maria, "You take your hands off my things", or to be rude and or inconsiderate to Pavel's feelings. Overall, I think this statement depicts the parents as hypocritical, due to the facts stated above.

"Well because Germany is the greatest of all countries," Bruno replied, remembering something that he overheard Father discussing with Grandfather on numerous occasions. "We're superior." p.112 (The Boy In Striped Pajamas)
Bruno, being a child, has overheard a number of things from his Father, due to him having a "booming" clear voice, which can be easily comprehended. This statement is the basic foundation of racism of any form -- superiority. The worst part is, Bruno has made this statement during his conversation with Shmuel, in an attempt to sound clever. However, being a kind, good-natured boy, he immediately apologized to Shmuel, and continued his friendship with his "inferior" pal.

"I know we're not," said Bruno in frustration. "I'm asking you, if we're not Jews, what are we instead?
"We're the opposite," said Gretel, answering quickly and sounding a lot more satisfied with the answer. "Yes. That's it. We're the Opposite" p.183 The Boy In Striped Pajamas)
Bruno seems to be learning a lot more about the other side of the fence and about the people in the striped pajamas i.e. Jews. Gretel's definition of the Jews shows the corruption that the teachings of their father's generation have influenced upon them. Furthermore, her definition of Opposite was simple, yet terrible. Instead of acknowledging as human beings, she belittles them and regards them as the opposite of human, in essence, monsters or savages. Unlike Gretel, Bruno never liked history, and the teachings of Herr Liszt, the family tutor, and never payed attention, so he would not know anything about the subject. Overall, this comment showcases the horrible teachings and morals that the Germans have influenced upon their children at that time.

References/ Work Cited List

This is my References list for my blog based on The Boy in Striped Pajamas. The books and websites I used are as follows:

The Boy in Striped Pajamas(John Boyne) <2006>

http://www.visualhollywood.com/movies_2008/boy_in_striped_pyjamas/front.jpg (Picture of Shmuel)

http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/ar/sobibor/images/sobidiag.jpg(Map of camp)

http://i.realone.com/assets/rn/img/4/4/0/8/24518044-24518048-large.jpg ( Picture of Bruno)

http://dictionary.com -- Definitions for Glossary

Section 1- Novel Study Overview

In order to not to confuse any readers, and to make it easy to comprehend what I have wrote, I will go through the next three blog posts and the information they will contain.

Out of the six options for the novel study, I have chosen three blog post types. They are the following:

Quotations. My first blog post about the boy in striped pajamas, will be a series of dominant(in my opinion) quotations in the story. Each will be followed by connections such as text to self, text to world and text to text, and a two paragraph explanation as to why I chose it.

Journal Entries: My second blog post will contain Journal Entries in role as two characters from The Boy In Striped Pajamas (John Boyne) In role as a character in the book, I will write their innermost thoughts and feelings.

For my last part in section 1, I will post two pictures, maps, and/or charts representing any pressing issue within the story that needs to be addressed. One will be created by me, and it will include factual information from the story. A two paragraph reflection will follow suit

That is all for section 1 of my novel study of The Boy In Striped Pajamas (John Boyne). Happy Reading!

About the Book and the Authour

About the Author

John Boyne was born in Dublin, Ireland, in 1971, and studied English Literature at Trinity College, Dublin, and creative writing at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, where he was awarded the Curtis Brown prize.

His early writing consisted mostly of short stories and he published a number of them.His 2006 novel, THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS, was made into an award-winning Mira-max film. The novel itself won 2 Irish Book Awards, the Bisto Book of the Year, and was shortlisted or won a host of international awards. Amongst other accolades, it spent more than 80 weeks at #1 in Ireland, topped the New York Times Bestseller List, and was the bestselling book in Spain in both 2007 and 2008. Worldwide, it has sold more than 5 million copies.

About the Story

Nine year-old Bruno knows nothing of the Final Solution or the Holocaust. He is oblivious to the appalling cruelties being inflicted on the people of Europe by his country.

All he knows is that he has been moved from a comfortable home in Berlin to a house in a desolate area where there is nothing to do and no one to play with. Until he meets Shmuel, a boy who lives a strange parallel existence on the other side of the adjoining wire fence and who, like the other people there, wears a uniform of striped pajamas.

Bruno's friendship with Shmuel will take him from innocence to revelation. And in exploring what he is unwittingly a part of, he will inevitably become subsumed by the terrible process.