Christopher Wong
Mrs. Bozabalian
Grade 9 Gifted English
December 8, 2014
The Little Cowardly Boy
Confronting a risky situation often results in an individual to do one of three things: braving through, cowering out, or pretending to withstand the dangers while hiding in a shell. Although, the optimal choice in our time today would perhaps be to brave through, back in World War 2, there was never this option. Involved the middle of the huge mess, the Jews were held in terrifying conditions, within those concentration camps. If one were to stumble upon one of these camps, imagine the true horror they would experience. In The Boy in The Striped Pajamas, John Boyne shows Bruno, the main character, conveying his cowardly side, through his many …show more content…
He always complains when things begin to go badly for him, as he values his own personal safety above everything else. For example, when Bruno falls off the swing, Pavel masterfully treats Bruno - tending to his wounds. Although he attempts to act brave, he keeps on worrying, “‘What’s going to happen then?’ asked Bruno, beginning to panic slightly, an emotion that might encourage tears. ‘I might bleed to death.’” (79). Even as Pavel carefully explains the situation, Bruno continues to show his weak, cowardly side, completely unable to deal with even a minor injury by himself. Later on, Bruno and Shmuel go out in order to explore the other side of the fence to hopefully find Shmuel's father. Although at first, Bruno acts brave and continues pretending to be a fearless explorer, as the rain continues to come down, Bruno starts getting less and less willing to keep on journeying. Eventually, he finally realizes the true danger of the situation, seeing how the camp really wasn’t the perfect exploring location he believed it to be, so he instantly stops caring about Shmuel, and instead begins fearing for himself. He attempts to withstand the dangers, but instead hides in his shell, “‘That’s it,’ he said to Shmuel. ‘I’m going to catch a cold out here. I have to go home.’” (211). Bruno, being completely unaware of the gas chambers, only manages to catch himself after falsely believing that he is being brought inside to be sheltered from the rain. Despite him trying his best to act brave at these crucial times, whenever he approaches a dangerous situation, Bruno easy becomes frightened, and acts selfishly, like a
Mrs. Bozabalian
Grade 9 Gifted English
December 8, 2014
The Little Cowardly Boy
Confronting a risky situation often results in an individual to do one of three things: braving through, cowering out, or pretending to withstand the dangers while hiding in a shell. Although, the optimal choice in our time today would perhaps be to brave through, back in World War 2, there was never this option. Involved the middle of the huge mess, the Jews were held in terrifying conditions, within those concentration camps. If one were to stumble upon one of these camps, imagine the true horror they would experience. In The Boy in The Striped Pajamas, John Boyne shows Bruno, the main character, conveying his cowardly side, through his many …show more content…
He always complains when things begin to go badly for him, as he values his own personal safety above everything else. For example, when Bruno falls off the swing, Pavel masterfully treats Bruno - tending to his wounds. Although he attempts to act brave, he keeps on worrying, “‘What’s going to happen then?’ asked Bruno, beginning to panic slightly, an emotion that might encourage tears. ‘I might bleed to death.’” (79). Even as Pavel carefully explains the situation, Bruno continues to show his weak, cowardly side, completely unable to deal with even a minor injury by himself. Later on, Bruno and Shmuel go out in order to explore the other side of the fence to hopefully find Shmuel's father. Although at first, Bruno acts brave and continues pretending to be a fearless explorer, as the rain continues to come down, Bruno starts getting less and less willing to keep on journeying. Eventually, he finally realizes the true danger of the situation, seeing how the camp really wasn’t the perfect exploring location he believed it to be, so he instantly stops caring about Shmuel, and instead begins fearing for himself. He attempts to withstand the dangers, but instead hides in his shell, “‘That’s it,’ he said to Shmuel. ‘I’m going to catch a cold out here. I have to go home.’” (211). Bruno, being completely unaware of the gas chambers, only manages to catch himself after falsely believing that he is being brought inside to be sheltered from the rain. Despite him trying his best to act brave at these crucial times, whenever he approaches a dangerous situation, Bruno easy becomes frightened, and acts selfishly, like a