The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Discussion Questions Ch1-2

1. Why doesn’t Bruno understand the nature of his father’s job?

2. How does Bruno’s mother feel about leaving the house in Berlin?

3. How does Bruno feel about his sister?

4. Why is Bruno reluctant to leave Berlin?

5. How does Bruno react to his new house?

6. How do Bruno and Maria react to the young soldier in the hall?.

7. Why do you think Bruno’s mother fails to tell her son the exact nature of his father’s
job?

8. Why do you think that looking out the window makes Bruno feel “very cold and
unsafe”?

9. In literature the point of view refers to the person telling the story. It can be narrated
by a character in the book or by the author. Sometimes even though the book is
narrated by the author, it focuses on the thoughts and feelings of only one character.
From this point of view, we observe the actions through the eyes of only one of the
characters in the story. Who is telling the story? On whose thoughts and feelings does
the narration focus? Why do you think the author chose this point of view?

10. In literature, the setting is the time and place in which a story occurs. Setting is
especially important in a historical novel such as this one. What is the setting of this
novel?

11. What details about the setting help make the characters’ times and lifestyles seem
real?

Discussion Questions Ch 3-5

1. How does Gretel feel about the new house?

2. Why does Gretel hesitate before looking out of Bruno’s window?

3. Why is Gretel surprised when she looks out the window?

4. How are the children on the other side of the fence treated by the soldiers?

5. How does Gretel react to the children on the other side of the fence?

6. How were the two trains headed eastward from the station in Berlin different?

7. How does Bruno’s father react to his son’s desire to go home?

8. Why is it so difficult for Bruno and Gretel to understand the true nature of Auschwitz?

9. How would you describe Bruno’s relationship with his father? Do you think the
Commandant is a good father?

10. What does Bruno’s father mean when he says that the people on the other side of
the fence are not people at all?

11. A simile is a figure of speech in which two unlike objects are compared using the
words “like” or “as.” For example: “As they [the Nazi soldiers] left they stood in a row like
toy soldiers.” What is being compared? What does the comparison suggest about Nazi
soldiers?

12. A flashback is a scene or series of scenes showing events that happened at an

Discussion Questions Ch 6-7

1. How does Maria react when Bruno calls his father stupid?

2. Why is Maria grateful to the Commandant?

3. What causes both Bruno and Gretel to feel uncomfortable with Lieutenant Kotler?

4. How does Pavel help Bruno after his accident?

5. Why is Bruno surprised to discover that Pavel is a doctor?

6. Maria says, “He has a lot kindness in his soul, truly he does, which makes me
wonder...” If she were to finish the sentence, what might she say?

7. Do you think that Bruno’s father could be as kind a man as Maria describes and still
be a Nazi officer?

8. Why is Maria so upset when Bruno keeps complaining that his father made a terrible
mistake in coming to Out- With?

9. Do you agree with Maria that Bruno should keep his criticism to himself? Why or why
not?

10. To what is Maria referring when she says that it is not up to her and Bruno to change
things? Why do Bruno and Maria both feel like crying after she makes this statement?

11. What does Pavel mean when he tells Bruno that he thinks he has always been at
Out-With?

12. Why does Bruno’s mother take credit for cleaning Bruno up after his fall? What does
this suggest about her?

13. A metaphor is a figure of speech in which a comparison between two unlike objects
is suggested or implied. For example: “If you ask me [Bruno], we’re all in the same boat.
And it’s leaking.” What two things are being compared? What does Bruno mean when
he makes this comparison?
 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Discussion Questions Ch 8-10

1. Why did the last play Bruno and Gretel performed with Grandmother end in disaster?

2. Why was Grandmother unimpressed with her son’s new uniform?

3. Why does Herr Liszt dislike storybooks?

4. Why does Bruno decide to explore to find out more about the people in the striped
pajamas?
5. Why does Bruno think that Shmuel’s face is strange?

6. When Bruno states that he and Shmuel are like twins, why does Shmuel reply, “A
little bit”?

7. What was the most likely cause of the argument between Bruno’s father and
Grandmother?

8. How do you think Bruno’s father would define the word patriot? How might
Grandmother’s definition of the word be different?

9. Is Shmuel as naïve as Bruno? Explain by citing evidence.

10. What is the purpose of the flashback in Chapter 8?

11. What is being compared in the following metaphor? “I [Grandmother] was merely the
blank wall to whom you [Grandfather] addressed your words? What does this reveal
about the relationship between Bruno’s grandparents?

12. Bruno thinks it is unfair that Shmuel has many friends while he has none. What does
this observation reflect about Bruno?
 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Chapters 11-13

1. Why did Bruno think the Fury was the rudest guest he had ever witnessed?

2. How did the blonde woman show consideration for the children?

3. Reread pages 119-120. What extra ground rules does Bruno’s father establish before
the Fury’s visit?

4. What do the fragments of conversation between Bruno’s parents the night of the
Fury’s visit reveal about the move to Out-With?

5. How does Bruno reveal that he has no understanding of Shmuel’s situation?

6. Why doesn’t Bruno tell his parents about Shmuel?

7. How do Bruno and Shmuel disagree about soldiers?

8. Why is it impossible for Bruno to understand what is going on around him, even when
Shmuel tries to explain it to him? Do you think this is believable?

9. On page 137, Bruno and Maria talk about Pavel. Maria tells him some information
that she has heard from Pavel about his life. Based on the text, what do you think that
Maria told Bruno about Pavel?

10. Why does Bruno foresee that catastrophe is going to strike on the night Lieutenant
Kotler comes to dinner?

11. Why is Lieutenant Kotler reluctant to talk about his father? How does this arouse the
Commandant’s suspicions?

12. Why do you think that Bruno’s father is concerned about Lieutenant Kotler’s family
history?

13. The author leaves Pavel’s punishment up to the reader’s imagination rather than
describing in detail what Lieutenant Kotler does to him. What is the effect of this?

14. How does Bruno come out with the realization that he had better not disagree with
anyone about anything at Out-With?
 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

15. Why does the author use flashback in Chapter 11 to show what occurred when the
Fury came to dinner? How would the effect have been different if this incident came at
the very beginning of the book?

16. Although Bruno feels that Shmuel is like his twin, the boys are different in many
ways. Use a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the two characters.
 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Chapters 14-15

1. Why does Bruno pretend that he has an imaginary friend?

2. How does talking about Shmuel to Gretel help Bruno understand his friend?

3. What signs reveal that Lieutenant Kotler is getting very close to Bruno’s mother?

4. Why is Shmuel at Bruno’s house?

5. How does Bruno inadvertently get Shmuel into trouble?

6. Why does Bruno fail to tell Lieutenant Kotler that he gave Shmuel the chicken?

7. Bruno says many things that demonstrate he does not understand at all how bad the
conditions are at the concentration camp. Why do you think that Shmuel does not try
harder to correct Bruno?

8. Is there any justification in Bruno denying his friendship with Shmuel?

9. Why does Shmuel forgive Bruno so easily for betraying him? What does this suggest
about Shmuel?

11. Mood is the overall atmosphere of a literary work. Happiness, sadness, terror or
tranquility—mood can be any strong feeling or emotion that the author creates through
language. Read the following passage:
“You will finish polishing all the glasses,” said Lieutenant Kotler in a very quiet voice
now, so quiet that
Bruno almost couldn’t hear him. It was as if all his anger had just changed into
something else. Not quite the opposite, but something unexpected and dreadful. “And
then I will come to collect you and bring you back to the camp, where we will have a
discussion about what happens to boys who steal. This is understood, yes?”
What mood is set by the passage? Underline the words that help create the mood.
 The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Chapters 16-18

1. Why is Bruno happier about his life at Out-With?

2. Why does Bruno have a hard time understanding Gretel’s explanation for the fence?

3. How does Bruno come to look more like Shmuel?

4. How does the Commandant become convinced that his wife should take the children
back to Berlin?

5. Why is Shmuel particularly unhappy when he shows up at the fence after being
absent for two days?

6. How does Bruno plan to get into the camp unnoticed?

7. Why does Bruno’s plan to visit the camp seem “very sensible” to the two boys?

8. Why does Gretel give up her dolls and replace them with maps?

9. Why is Gretel unable to answer some of Bruno’s questions? Do you think that
Bruno’s parents should give their children more information about Out-With?

10. An author’s purpose may be to inform, entertain, or persuade the reader, or to

Chapters 19-20

1. How does the weather threaten Bruno’s plans?

2. Why do the boys want to embrace when Bruno first appears on Shmuel’s side of the
fence?

3. How does the reality of the camp differ from the way Bruno imagined it?

4. Why doesn’t Bruno leave when he sees what the camp is really like?

5. How is Bruno prevented from going home?

6. How does Bruno come to hold Shmuel’s hand in the airtight room?

7. How do the members of Bruno’s family react to his disappearance?

8. How does the Commandant come to the horrible realization of what happened to his
son?

9. What has most likely happened to Shmuel’s father?

10. Why would nothing in the world have persuaded Bruno to let go of Shmuel’s hand at
the end of Chapter 19?

11. Who do you think is most responsible for Bruno’s death?

12. Foreshadowing refers to clues that the author gives to suggest events that will occur
later in the book. What events in the novel foreshadow Bruno’s fate?