Boy in the Striped PJ's Chapter 4

• (pg 31) How does the author continue to use juxtaposition in regards to the two housing situations? (the Jews and Bruno's family)

 The author uses juxtaposition to compare Bruno's house to the Jewish camp; Bruno's house had perfectly cut, colorful and blooming flowers below his window followed by a a well paved pathway with a nice wooden bench with a plaque on it. The camp had everlasting barbed wire that was taller than their house with twirls of barbed wire along the top. the fence was held up by wooden posts. There was no greenery after the barbed wire fence instead there was a sandy material along the ground and there was only low huts that were run down and big square shaped buildings.

• What is it about the children that makes it difficult to understand exactly what they see through the window and just how bad it is?

They are only very young, too young to know what it really is. They do not believe in such a dark place and so many people being killed. They have not seen what is really happening to them and only what they look like. They do not want to believe in something worse than what they see so they say that they're in the countryside.

• Summarise how Gretel describes what she sees.

" This must be it. It's the countryside " " everywhere they looked they could see people, tall, short, old, young all moving around " " Gretel could see hundreds of people, but there were so many huts before them, and the camp spread out so much further than they could possibly see, that it looked as though there must be thousands out there."

• What does Gretel attempt to do when she sees the Concentration Camp? How does she attempt to understand what she sees?

She becomes even sadder and mostly confused because she doesn't understand why they are  being shouted at  and why they are all wearing the same thing and have never showered. She attempts to understand this by suggesting that they are all rehearsing for something. She thinks they are all just neighbours. She attempts to make Bruno think that its just the countryside.

• Is her attempt successful? Does she convince Bruno that she understands? What does she eventually give in to? What does she say/or not say? (pg 32)

 she doesn't convince Bruno well enough to make him think it is the countryside because Bruno still asks her why there aren't any sheep.  She eventually says how nasty looking the place is because of the conditions of the people and how low the huts were but then jumps to the conclusion that they are in the countryside.

• What can't the children do when they see the Concentration Camp that the adults seem to be able to do? Which group can understand what they see? Why do you think that this is the case?

The children can not understand what they are seeing where as the adults can. This is because they are older and knew why they were going to the new house and have a part in the camp.

• How does the author use understatement through the children's description of the Concentration Camp?

The author uses understatement through the children's description by making them think that it isn't bad and that they are just in the countryside working.