Poem (School Life)

Sitting in class

Thinking of my past

I hear the school bell sound

And I slowly place my feet on the ground

Waddling slowly to class

All I hear

Is “Pull up your Socks “

And “do your tie up”

These restrictions

There becoming the teachers addictions

When the bell sounds

So does the teachers’ lounge

When the Kids cry

The teachers laugh and sigh

Then homework comes in

“It mostly ends up in the bin”

The subjects are bad

The teachers are always mad

This school is just such a drag?

The End

By Andrew Jerogin

Destiny- Shalini Akhil
The author presents an Indian girl who is starting to experience an obsession with a television series

The description Shalini is of her as a young child with a dream to be wonder-woman. Coming from India Shalini grew up like any other child watching Television shows and making up their own imagination. After watching her favorite super-hero (Wonder-woman) in action Shalini decided that it was her destiny to grow up and be like her.

However whenever Salini's grandmother was around she did not agree. Saying things like "your Indian you can't be wonder woman, she has different eyes and different colored skin". However to make continue with her journey in becoming a super hero Shalini's grandmother suggested that she should become an Indian Wonder Woman. This decision was a wise one as the Grandmother was trying to protect her grand daughter from trouble.

The Grand Mother had suggested this for two good reasons. The first one being that she didn't want her Grand Daughter to get bullied by others because of her Skin color, eyes and her dream to become Wonder Woman when she was nothing like the real thing. Then the second one being that the Grand Mother didn't want Shalini losing her Indian culture due to the fact that the real Wonder Woman wasn't Indian. These two reasons just show how hard it was for Indians to grow up in Australia.

So in the end Shalini's dream wasn't ruined but was slightly modified to fit her appearance and abilities that she showed in everyday life. The importance of this story is that even though we grow up in different cultures and have different appearances, we all still have the same dreams and the same "DESTINIES".

The Relative Advantages of Learning My Language Opinion

The author presents herself as a young Chinese girl  and her connection with her Grandfather.

The description of Amy Choi aged 12  being not particularly kind to her Grandfather just represents the difficulty that people who speak English have with Chinese people. Living in Australia the author spoke English all day at school, listened to English all night on TV and she didn't see the point of speaking Chinese in Australia.

After experiencing the death of her Grandfather, Amy found herself regretting that she ignored her Grandfather after he had died. She regrets not being able to communicate with her Grandfather and experiencing the way that he used to live in China. Continuing with this guilt the author is able to relate to the readers, everyone has difficulties communicating with there grandparents when they come from a different cultures and lifestyles but in the end we all have to learn and try to ensure that the next time an elderly relative wants to communicate we are not willing, but are able

So after the death of her grandfather Amy Choi begins to realize that her grandfather had the most commonest sense of kindness and now she wants to become involved with her families cultures and lifestyles in order to be able to communicate.

The importance of this story is that even though we speak in different tongues our hearts beat as one, meaning that even though Amy's grandfather speaks Chinese and she does not they should still be able to communicate with one another as a family not a culture.

Conversations with my Parents

1) It is ironic that the father has to become sick for the author to actually communicate
2) It was very brief
3) She never mentions that she loves them
4)  The family express their feelings for the child by reminiscing about memories about happy times and that they always try to call and listen to the child. They also pressure her to live like they did such as by buying Vietnamese groceries and talking about meals such as Banh Xeo

My First Kiss by Lian Low

1. How does the author describe Malaysia in regards to showing affection?

Malaysia does not allow homosexuals to show affection in public

2. What happens to the author when she hits puberty?

She begins to have feelings about popular girls and envies men flat chests

3. What is the author’s experience at school when she first arrives to Melbourne?

She is only approached by overseas-born Asians and not any white boys or girls

4. What is it that made the author feel that she wasn’t Australian even though she spoke English fluently?

The author is placed into a Second Language Class for people who do not speak English as their first language which is all of the overseas-born Asians like herself even though she can speak English fluently and easily.

5. What else was it about the author that further alienated her from her peers?

When ever the author starts to speak her peers can easily hear her Malaysian accent 

6. What does the use of description like ‘crash hot’ do to the audience’s perception of the author? 

7. What opportunity does university give the author? What is it about university which would allow her to express herself more freely? 

It gives the author a way to express her feelings through movies 

8. What role does creativity play for the author? Why do you think that creativity would be so important to her?

The role of creativity helps the author to express her feelings in the way of films. It helps her overcome the worries in life that she has such as being queer.

Lessons from My School Years


1. There is a stark contrast created in the opening of this story between what the narrator had been doing before entering school and what will be expected at school?   What is this contrast and what does it immediately create in the story? The contrast that is created at the beginning of the story is that which is juxtaposed with the true reality. The authors intensions and thoughts of school is to learn what he wants to learn when in reality it is to be obedient and to learn what is being taught. 

2. The author continues this theme of contrast at the start of the story. How does he do this in his description of his experience of Sydney’s North Shore? He describes the North Shore as being very different based on location. There is areas which are full of leafy green and solid brick houses which he doesn't like. His whole world revolves around this and the highway with is juxtaposed with the positives such as the library, the back lane and the park.

3. What was the father’s background in business before he opened the fruit shop? What has helped him become successful? The fathers background in business was non-existent, he had no background when he moved to Australia. To overcome this he used his personality and greeted all customer with a wide smile, asking them what they want and being very friendly and chatty.

4. The narrator’s description of his father is complex. What makes the father a complex character? The narrator's description of the father is very complex because the father has many different aspects about him. He is a happy, chatty, friendly man who strives to make people feel welcome in his shop. He also is a very hard diligent worker, having started a successful business in Australia with no english or business skills, and is very motivated as seen through the checking of account every night in order to make sure everything is good. This shows that he has many different character traits which make him a very complex person.

5. (91) How does the author describe his role in doing ‘things that counted’? His purpose within the family was to listen and watch what his siblings had to say about school in order to learn for himself what is acceptable and what isn't within schooling life. This to him was the only way of learning because he couldn't ask questions because they would be seen as insignificant. 

6. What experience does the author have at school while keeping to himself? What does he learn from this experience? The author experiences a bad situation at school by trying to keep to himself. He is centred out because of not only his difference is race (an asian in an australian environment) but because he keeps to himself and doesn't talk. He learns not to be afraid of the people around him but be nice and friendly.

7. How would you characterise the narrator’s tone in regards to the events that are occurring around him? The narrator would use a rather mono tone, that of a single note. He is seeing the world in one major way, that it is horrible. His expectations are very different to reality and this sets in a negative mood and a very one-sided view.

8. How does the narrator characterise the ways that one could ‘get the strap’ and ways that one could avoid it? The narrator characterises the way that one could 'get the strap' as being very easy to get and very hard to avoid it. Simple things that happen daily would get the strap such as mis-spelling a word in a spelling bee, getting an answer wrong, walking to fast or to slow, etc. There was very few ways to avoid the strap.

9. What event evokes a racist speech to the class by the teacher? The boy in the story could not swim and therefore, his sister wrote a note to excuse him from the swimming carnival. The teacher than reads it to the whole class, that stating "we all know these chinese people never contribute to anything".

10. What effect did the author’s experience with ‘Strap Happy Jack’ have on him?It made him think about the minority of the chinese people within the area and the fact that racist comments like "chinese people never contribute" not meaning much and having little effect on the population.

11. What was the one advantage school provided the author? One advantage that the author found was that as he went on through high school, some teachers noticed talents in him and one teacher for example told him that his test scores indicated a very valuable future for him.

12. What did the author do at his school? What was his motivation for doing it? What did he feel was lacking at school? The author started a workshop program, something that interested him and was something that he enjoyed. He was motivated to do something that he enjoyed (the motivation coming from interest that he set the boundaries for the program), and he felt that the school was lacking the ability for him to choose his own future.

13. What did the parents want their son to do at school? What did the author fear would happen by obeying his parents? The parents (mostly the mother) wanted their son to be a specific profession. The mother wanted her son to be a doctor, something that he feared and hated to do. She chose this because of her culture and her wanting of a doctor in the family. The author feared that he would end up having to follow a path that was based on the teachers decision, because he mother told him to learn what is begin taught and learn what you want after, which to him sounded like he would miss the opportunity to learn what he wants.

14. At school, what did the author learn about his own type of thinking and how to use it? He learn, by being at school, that his own type of thinking is very different to the next persons and that he has to follow his style in order to use it to its full potential.

The Early Settlers

1) This title refers to the early European settlers that have arrived to the country and the later foreign settlers
2) It gives you the first idea that the Grandfather is from another country (declarative statement)
3) saying that they are a potential terrorist or each a foreign devil  many feel uneasy because
they are from other countries meaning that they are different from us
4) He juxtaposes the terrorist and the farmer
5) He speaks in his own language
6) It is ironic that immigrants are hated when they 'settle' because they once would have had to settle and that they all come from different backgrounds. They all have there descendants and all would have felt the hatred experience but now put the same pressure on other people

The Relative Advantages of Learning my Language by Amy Choi

1) An anecdote is basically a story inside another story and the author uses this to give the reader a better understanding about the story
2) The author thinks that the Chinese language should not be spoken in Australia because everyone speaks English. On TV shows and at her school everybody speaks English and as a result she began to lose memory of the Chinese language
3) The grandfather mistakes the house for being his which symbolises the similarity and uniformity of living standards within Australian culture. It also shows that all migrants are treated the same way seen through the Chinese background of the main family and the Pakistani background of the other family. It is ironic that they are both of Asian descendant and that they have similar looking houses. 
4) The death of her grandfather motivates her to get back into the Chinese culture
5) She is motivated to learn Chinese so that next time she meets one of her relatives she would understand what they were trying to explain to her, and she regrets not doing so for her grandfather.
The basic skill is communication

Pigs From Home

1.The author starts off talking about how much she hates pigs and how they are disgusting creatures who smell, which relates to the title, which has Pigs in it, it also gives you the effect that this story so far is very negative and will continue to be negative. 

2.That any good Vietnamese family is a self sustaining one, and that they are all good and very self dependant. 

3. The mother comes from a long line of hypochondriacs which means that she is constantly cautious of her health and other's health. This is humorous because she is eating natural plants which she believes to make herself healthier which is exactly what a hypochondriac would do.

4.This again shows how negative the family are towards certain animals, at the start of the story were Pigs, and now there is how brutally they killed the Pigeons. 

 5. She thinks they are foul untrustworthy things. “and she took a massive bit from the chickens buttock” “they barged in there thinking they were the top people
6.  'blowing raspberries on the bellies of babies' and 'feeding frenzy'
7. A pig is like an ocean is the simile used and it works because you can't turn you back on the ocean or you will get dumped by the wave and can't turn your back on a pig because it will bite you.

8.Tanning like a rotisserie as it shows that the Chinese are into cooking

9.  It means that the new world and the old world is divided as the old world would not think twice in killing an animal but the new world does not like it.

10. She is against this as the neighbours must be thinking that that family is crazy it is important as it makes her seem out of the story

11.They don't have pig any more because they have a friend that gives them all the pork that they can eat. As the last pig was unloved and died.

12. Not at all

13. She hates the pig but they mean a lot to her as it reminds her of their family so she likes to remember the pigs.

14.It does this because in her childhood she had a pig that defined her life.

15.It is saying that the pig is a battler. 

Introduction

1) Power-Points
2) She interprets this title because she thinks of her kind as smart and dweeby in a dynamic micro-soft-magnate sort of way
3) This title actually refers to Asians growing up in Australia, the author does not find this demeaning because she is Asian
4) Repetition because it is really positive and it is ironic because it is really discriminative
5) She felt that she wanted to be pretty like the girls in the teen fiction books, which gave her the idea of having plastic surgery. This is said to be essential to fitting into a culture because of your looks and personality which chooses your way of life in her view.
6) She turns to authors such as John Marsden and Robert Cormier instead because they right with raw honesty and real feelings about coming of age.
7) She uses "first" as her repetition representing all the first things that you did when you were growing up. This highlights the focus of the book because the title is "Growing up Asian in Australia".
8) The author uses the metaphor 'they are not distant observers, plucking the most garish fruit from the lowest-hanging branches of an exotic cultural tree. These writers are the tree, and they write from its roots'.
9) The author uses the quote 'Change only the name and this story is about you'. This shows that the author can relate to many of the things which the other authors have also had to deal with throughout their childhood. 
10) The battler, the legend and the pioneer are the themes used. it is ironic that she uses these terms because they are representing  Australian  character traits, whereas in non Australian countries these traits are portrayed as for battle and bad.
11) By saying 'model minority' the author is proposing that all Asians follow the same stereotype of working hard, education, money, career and are models to how to work hard but fit into the minority of Australia as well as fitting in the background. This can put pressure on young Asian-Australians because it pressures them to be stereotypical and fit the criteria of working hard and drifting into the background.
12) The author hopes that the readers will find out what it is like growing up Asian in Australia and the perspective they had on life


Linear plot: unbroken time
Non-linear plot: broken time
Vingnet: "short" story 


Pigs from home


1) The author starts the story with  strong statement which brings interest to the reader
2) The author thinks that any Vietnamese culture is a sustained one 
3) It is humorous because the mother has a flair for natural medicine when she considers herself unhealthy 
4) It continues the style in which the Vietnamese people lived in by slaughtering animals 
5)  The author dislikes the pigs very much and says that 'no pig is a friend of mine'
6) 'blowing raspberries on the bellies of babies' and 'feeding frenzy'
7)  A pig is like an ocean is the simile used and it works because you can't turn you back on the ocean or you will get dumped by the wave and can't turn your back on a pig because it will bite you.

Letters

Bruno to his Grandmother right before going on his final adventure (imagine she was still alive)


Hi Grandma


I really am missing you right now, as you know this is the last day before we move back to Berlin. Well not all of us, father says that he has to stay and do important work. He and Mama got into a fight last night and me and Gretel heard everything, now the next thing we know we are going back to our old home in Berlin. I don't really look forward to it, I have grown to this house in Out-With and im not sure I want to leave. I will miss the funny people in striped pyjamas and the way that they act, I will miss the swing tyre outside the front and most of all I will miss all the adventures I had and all of the discovery's I have found. To be honest I can't even remember the friends I had back in Berlin,  there names have slipped out of my memory and all I can think about is life in Out-With. But it will be good to be free again and not en-caged in Out-With with soldiers telling me what to do every time I see them and I do look forward to the fruit stalls and sliding down the banister, but i truly do want to stay at Out-With because it is where I belong.


Hope to see you soon Bruno


Write a letter from the mother to the father upon leaving to move back to Berlin without him


I know I must be hard for you to hear that we are moving back to Berlin, but you know the reason why. This just is not a place for children, Bruno is becoming suspicious, Grettle is changing into something I don't like and the way you respect the Jewish race is just horrible. The smell that drifts from the mountains is just terrible but you don't seem to notice. All you care about is Germany and how to win the war when you should be focusing on your family and what they want. Once we move back to Berlin i hope that our futures will become greater than what they are becoming, people are dying right next door and you think that that is right. This was just like the time you let poor old Pavel get thrown around the room only because he made a little mistake. I really do not like it here and i hope you actually know that. So basically what im trying to say is that i hope you will change your mind and come with us or you could stay in this unforgivable place and waste your life killing innocent people. I really hope you do come with us because then we can live the lives we dreamed of back in Berlin. 
I guess this is goodbye love  from your dearest wife  

Chapter 14

1) We get the feeling that Bruno is becoming less innocent and more ignorant because he is becoming jealous of what Shmuel gets to do when he gets all the things in the world
2) It starts raining which just re-minds us how sad the holocaust really was. Also at the same moment Pavel is becoming very weak and Shmuel is getting beaten inside the camp
3) He accidentally mentions Shmuel and how he doesn't get to see him because of the rain
4) Bruno is able to consider Gretel's feelings as he thinks that she too must feel bored at Auschwitz as all she has to do is rearrange her dolls when she would be able to play with her friends back in Berlin. He then feels that he should talk to Gretel as they are both bored.
5) He wants to feel good about himself because he found a friend while Gretel didn't. This is very selfish because Bruno is actually doing the wrong thing and he is also lying to his sister
6) Bruno begins to put the pieces together and recounts the stories in which Shmuel tells him and releases how sad Shmuel's story is about his grandfather and that he can't be found within the camp. He begins to lose his innocence and understand Shmuel's point of view rather than trying to relate his view with his own. He also becomes more sensitive to others feelings rather than his own and begins to realises to listen to others
7) It ironic and hypocritical that Gretel should say not to play with imaginary friends when she still plays with her dolls even though she is 13 years old

Chapter 13

1. How does the initial paragraph frame Bruno's state of mind? Bruno's entail change of mind is changing because of his focus on Shmuel and that he is spending so much time with him rather than complaining about leaving Berlin.

2. What does the question Bruno asks Maria show about his development? Bruno asks Maria about Pavel and if he really did use to be a doctor or is he a waiter for the family. By asking this it shows his development as a person and the separation between the standard nazi german and that he doesn't just ignore information put forward and is persistent and seeking the truth. he is also becoming more respectful and is learning more about the servants

3. What is important about Maria's reaction to Bruno's question? It is important to the story because for the first time gives another point of view of family and also shows more juxtaposition within the story (i.e. Kotler and Maria) and another division of the family.

4. Why does Bruno want to tell Shmuel about Pavel? What does this highlight about Bruno's understanding of what is going on? Bruno wants to tell Shmuel about Pavel because they both wear the same clothing which ,may interpret a link between them. This also highlights that Bruno has to understand some factors about the jews and that they had jobs before they arrived there.

5. What do the boys argue about? Who does Bruno defend? Who is right/wrong? Why? Shmuel and Bruno begin to argue about the soldiers and whether or not they are good or bad. Bruno does think that some soldiers are bad, but also good because he thinks his father is good. Shmuel however thinks that all the soldiers are bad. I believe that they both are right because they would be some good soldiers that Shmuel may have not meet (not assigned to deal with the jews) but there is undoubtedly bad soldiers. Also, the point of view is heavily based upon there nationality as well for example, a proud Nazi thinks they are good and that the Holocaust is good as opposed to a jews point of view.

6. Shmuel says 'You don't know what it's like here.' and Bruno reacts by saying 'You don't have any sisters, do you?' He says this to avoid an answer to Shmuel. What does this show about Bruno's understanding of what is happening? Bruno is beginning to understand the darkness behind the fence and wants to hold on to the innocence he has but it is beginning to fade. This also shows that he is getting more information, a key aspect which is hid for most Germans to conceal the darkness of the camps. He also doesn't want to get involved with his father and his work because he also suspects his dad is involved.

7. What connection do the boys have regarding Lt. Kotler? The boys connections to Lt. Kotler is that both believe that he is a bully and a mean person. They are also frightened of him a and that he is a generally bad man.

8. What has changed in the the way Bruno sees Pavel? Bruno begins to notice Pavel as a person and everything he does around the house such as waitering for the family, rather a  'slave'. He also, rather than looking past him and never notice him, begins to notice everything he does in detail. He also begins to view Pavel over a week to week basis.

9. What important words are used to describe the way the father eats and addresses Bruno? What makes them important? How do they relate to the scene and the father as a character? Bruno's father's way of eating is described as 'attacking a leg of lamb' which shows the way in which he approaches factors in his life. Not only did he 'attack' his food but he also pointed with a knife and shrugged his shoulders which are both considered in-polite. This shows the authority of Bruno's father and that he is has no rules within there household.

10. We learn Lt. Kotler's first name - 'Kurt'. What is it about the sounds in his full name that are important? 'Kurt Kotler' By giving the name 'Kurt' to Lt. Kotler it adds upon the metaphor of him being the perfect Nazi German as he already has blonde hair, blue eyes and now has a alliterate name.
11. What do we learn about Kotler's father? What is Bruno's father's reaction/suggestion regarding Kotler's father leaving Germany for Switzerland?  We learn a very important fact about Kotler which is that his father is a teacher who moved out of Germany to Switzerland in 1938. Bruno's father's reaction is that he feels insulted and that Kotler's father would leave Germany and even during a time of her uprising.

12. What happens to break the tension at the dinner table? What does Kotler do and what are everyone's reactions? What does Bruno decide regarding disagreeing with anyone anymore after seeing what happens to Kotler? What does this relate to historically in regards to the Nazis?' A wine bottle is dropped by Pavel which breaks the tension at the table. Most of the wine is spilt over Kotler and he gets very angry at Bruno which causes Gretel to go white and Bruno to start to cry. Bruno then decides that he not disagree with anyone or complain to anyone anymore. He does this because he thinks that he would get yelled at like Pavel by Kotler or similar and decides better keep his mouth shut. This historically relates to the Nazis and there contempt with power over the Jews and that even other Germans fear powerful military based Nazis.

Chapter 11+12

What are the main themes of the novel so far?

What are the main techniques?

Think of 5 important questions for each of these two chapters about how important motifs and themes play a role in each chapter.

Chapter 11

Has the use of juxtaposition between Hitler and his assistant changed your view on the Germans?

How and why is the motif of juxtaposition used throughout chapter 11?

What effect does alliteration have when the author is describing the guests?

Why is dramatic irony and irony used throughout chapter 11?

Why do we feel more innocence towards Bruno whilst reading this chapter?

Chapter 12

Why does the use of juxtaposition in this chapter result in more innocence towards Bruno and Shmuel?

How has irony been used in the quote from Bruno "what they don't know wont hurt them"?

How does the use of dramatic irony play a big role in this chapter?

 

Chapter 10

1) The reason for the 'dot' to 'boy' shows the insignificance of the people within the concentration camp in the beginning of the book. When Bruno first discovers the concentration camp, the people are referred to as a group, and when he meets Shumel he gets a more one on one confrontation with him. This also shows the ignorance of the Germans and how they view the Jews as insignificant 'dots' as opposed to Bruno's view of them as people and him viewing Shumel as a boy
2) There is juxtaposition between the Germans and the Jews, and by having the same birthday it allows more exacting juxtaposition and allows a more 'true' contrast. Bruno and Shumel have the same birthday and they have two very different sides of the holocaust. It shows the difference in lifestyle of the two groups in the holocaust.
3) Bruno and Shmuel argue about which of their home towns is nicer to live in, in Bruno's case Berlin and Shmuel's case Poland. Bruno wants to stop the argument because he doesn't want to fight and argue with his new friend and instead changes the subject to exploration.
4) Bruno's last question is that he understands that they are different in the way they dress but where do they come from and why are they on the opposing sides of the fence. Shmuel thinks that Bruno is ignorant and not very intelligent because he can't comprehend what is going on and what his 'kind' is doing to him.

Chapter 9

1) Kotler is portrayed as being mean, disrespectful and arrogant because there is no-one better than him. He is also portrayed as being very balanced and stiff because he is a Nazi. He is portrayed this way because that was what Nazis were. They were disrespectful and thought that that they were the best
2) Herr List is trying to change Bruno from reading fairy tales to reading history and learning about where he came from from past generations
3) Bruno begins to notice that the people  who come inside and outside the house all where special uniforms that represent importance. He also notices that the people inside the camp all where striped pyjamas. Soon later Bruno starts to realise that their is indeed a difference between the soldiers and the people in the striped pyjamas. He discovers that the soldiers are in charge.
4) He begins to notice that the soldiers are in charge and that the people in the striped pyjamas are not. he also begins to notice that the people in the striped pyjamas are very nice and respectful while the soldiers are very rude and disrespectful. (This is called juxtaposition)

Chapter 7

How is the mother's defence of Herr Roller entirely ironic?

It is ironic how she is defending a man who had gotten serious injury which made him crazy from the great war when there are thousands of Jews getting serious injuries right next door.

What role does Kotler represent historically in the novel? (think beyond being a soldier)

Kotler represents how the Nazis treated everyone else. Kotler is shown yelling at the Jews and beating them if they did anything wrong only to represent what had happened during the Holocaust.

What character is Kotler juxtaposed with in this chapter? What effect does it have on understanding each of these characters?

Kotler is Juxtaposed with Pavel. The difference between them was that Kotler was mean, rude and overall had no respect for others while Pavel is represented as old, kind and very respectful. This just tells us how cruel the Nazis were to the Jews who had done nothing wrong. It also shows us more innocence that the Jews had during the Holocaust.

How would you compare the interaction Bruno has with Pavel to all the other interactions Bruno has had with adults?

Bruno knows nothing about Pavel so the conversation is very awkward because they have never spoken before. While with the other servants Bruno had self-confidence because he has spoken to them before and has been with them for a long time.

Why is juxtaposition a key technique employed in Holocaust texts? How has it been used in The Boy in the Striped PJ's?

Juxtaposition is a key technique because overall there were two sides, their were the Nazis and then there were the Jews. It was kind of like bad vs innocent during the holocaust and that is where all of the Juxtaposition has come from. It has come from the two sides during the holocaust and how they differ. it has been used in the book through the eyes of a young boy called Bruno and as the book progresses he notice the more and more difference between the two sides of the fence which we would call Juxtaposition.

Chapter 6

• On pg 60 Bruno reveals a radical shift in his perspective and understanding of Maria. What is this radical shift? What does this show is developing in Bruno?
• Bruno realises that the servants and maids actually had lives that they lived in before they came to work for his father. It also shows that Bruno is starting to develop respect for others even though they are lower class than him.

• Compare how Bruno and Gretel treat Maria.
• Bruno treats Maria as a friend and he talks to her every so often and asks for her opinion. He treats Maria the same respect that anyone had. He is also very kind to her and every so often he may raise his voice at her. On the other hand though Gretel treats Maria as her slave by yelling at her and asking her to run a bath for her. She isn't very nice to her and she doesn't respect her one bit. 
• (pg 65) What is Maria's advice to Bruno about 'keeping safe'? Why do you think that she gives this advice? Do you think that it is good or bad advice?
• She says that Bruno should not express his feeling about the house any more. She advises him to not say what he thinks out loud. She gives this advice because she respects Bruno's father and all that he has done for her. She also doesn't want to see Bruno getting into any more trouble. this is very good advice because it was about time that Bruno should be learning some more manners in order to keep out of trouble. 
• (65-6) What is Bruno's reaction to his new thoughts/feelings? Why do you think that he reacts this way?
• Bruno starts to realise how rude he was actually being. He argued and cried but still he did not get his way. He now realised that it was time to accept where he was and instead of hating life he should enjoy it. I think he reacts this way when he is guilty for saying such horrible things to Maria, his Father and his Mother.

Holocaust Poetry #2

Homeland
Lois E. Olena

It was Christmas eve
and there was no room in the inn,
the Oswiecim inn,
so the Arrow Cross
took the children,
barefooted
and in their nighties,
out to the Danube
and filled their little bellies
not with bread
but bullets
flipping them
like tiddlywinks
into the congealing, icy river below.

It was the Red Danube
that night,
choking on the blood
of orphan Jews
whose little Blue faces
floated downstream
touring even all of Europe
until they washed up
on the shores of Eretz Yisrael (Jewish homeland)
and came back to life,
their little blue and white
bodies
raised high,
flapping in the wind.
How is imagery used in this poem?
 
Discuss the effect of the simile in this poem.
How is alliteration used in the poem? What is the effect?
How does the author juxtapose the innocence of the children to the cruelty they experienced?
What is meant by 'touring all of Europe'?

1) The imagery is used greatly throughout the poem. In the quote 'filled their little bellies not with bread but bullets' you can just see in your mind the way the Jews were treated by the Nazis and you can tell that they were not treated in a good way. This was how imagery was used in the poem.

2) The simile used in the poem is 'like tiddlywinks into congealing, icy river below'. The effect of the simile just makes the children more innocent and it is telling us that they did nothing wrong to deserve the pain and blood which was spilt.

3) 'Bread but Bullets' is the alliteration and it helps convey imagery and can stress timing. The use of alliteration helps make a line more memorable and gives the effect the poet intended, sad,loud, happy, evil, etc.

4) The author uses juxtaposition when they say ‘choking on the blood of orphan Jews’. You can see the pain that the Jews experienced when they say choking on the blood because straight away you think of pain and suffering. While on the other hand when it says orphan Jews you feel this sense of innocence as they were orphans and did nothing wrong to deserve such cruelty.

5) It means that they were taken all over Europe to get to their concentration camps where they were held and treated badly.

Chapter 5

1- We only learn about the father in chapter 5 because Bruno is hardly ever allowed to see him. His father has been known only to been in his study which is known to Bruno as the 'out of bounds' area. Also at the start the father doesn't really do much as we were only learning about Bruno.
2- Well when the mother says this line she says it in and angry tone. She believes that they are only leaving because of the Fury when they came to dinner. For some reason we get the idea that when the fury came to dinner everything change. We also notice that the fury are the 'bad guys' in the story by the way the mother speaks which also tells us that the fury can do some harm.
3- Bruno's father speaks to him as if he were a soldier. He respects the way Bruno feels about moving but there is nothing he can do about it. He also gets very annoyed with Bruno when Bruno continues to ask him obvious questions and every time Bruno leaves his father he is told to say the words 'Heil Hitler' even though Bruno thinks that it means 'well goodbye for now' when we know it really doesn't.
4- Bruno thinks that the whole world is a mystery and a game. Bruno believes the world should all be the same as what it was in Berlin with large houses and shops. However when Bruno leaves Berlin he soon finds out that he is wrong. He also thinks that the world was made for exploring. On the other hand though brunt's Father treats the world as if it were a world war. Bruno's father thinks that Germany is the greatest country on earth and should be the most powerful. he also treats the world as if it were his soldiers with balance and discipline.
5) Bruno's father rationalise every concern Bruno's has by saying 'I want to go home' is no problem because 'home is where the family is' and that his family is all here so there is nothing to worry about. However this is does not make sense to Bruno because he wants to go back to Berlin and he feels his father is ignoring what he is saying.
6) Bruno's father says to make the best out of the situation because that is what his father told him to do and that he always listened to him. This is ironic because he is telling Bruno to so the right things but he works for the Nazis and is killing people for a living.
7) I think that he does care about Bruno but has his priorities wrong, work first, family second. This is because he did not take into consideration the feelings his family and focused more on impressing Hitler.
8) I don't think that he does understand the saying 'Heil Hitler' because the reader knows what it means and he explains his meaning of the phase. This is an example of dramatic irony because the reader knows more than the character.
9) The use of juxtaposition is used in Bruno's description of boarding the train because he is put in a very spacious carriage with only a few people whilst the 'low class' are squeezed into a closed in space. This shows the difference between the big area of Bruno's house and the confined space of the concentration camp.
10) Bruno thinks that he is out of line by saying anything to the Jews although by him thinking of saying the Jews means that he is a compassionate person. However this does represent the greater German population because it shows that they are either too arrogant to help others or too scared to help others.

Holocaust Imagery - Hitler at a Nazi Rally

How are vectors used in this image? What effect does it have?      

The vectors are used to show the balance of the Nazis and never the ending amount of soldiers to the sides of Hitler                                                   
Describe the composition of the image and what is tells us about the Nazis and Hitler?

The focal point in this picture is Hitler and on either side of him stands his soldiers. Even though there are more Nazis than Hitler he still seems the most powerful. Also by the way the soldiers are facing you can tell that Hitler is obviously the most powerful.
How is symmetry used? What effect does it have?

Symmetry is used on either side of Hitler. This has a huge effect as the balance between each side represents the power of which the Nazis had. The Symmetry makes the soldiers and Hitler look indestructible
What effect does this picture being in black and white have?

The use of black and white makes the photograph look old, terrifying, powerful and for some reason it symbolizes that they were dark times and that power was held within these soldiers and Hitler. Without the colour all the happiness is drained from the picture. It makes the photo more serious.The white of the people represents innocence whilst the black of the Soldiers and Hitler represents evil.
Discuss the use of line in this image. What effect does it have?

The use of lines in the image make the soldiers look balanced and powerful. They also make the picture more dark and more horrible

Chapter 4

1- The author uses juxtaposition when he compares the wonderful garden outside of their house to the concentration camp
2- The thing that makes it difficult for Gretel and Bruno to understand what is outside the house is that they are confused. Gretel and Bruno don't actually know where they are and they come up with the craziest ideas because of there wide imagination because they are kids
3- She thinks that they are on the country side and the people they see are farmers
4- When she saw the concentration camp she narrowed her eyes and forced her brain to understand. But the thing was that even her brain didn't know what she was looking at. then she tried to prove her point but it didn't really work
5- Her attempt is unsuccessful and she doesn't convince Bruno one bit. She eventually gives in saying that it is not the country side and she decides that she doesn't want to go because of the clothes that the Jews wear and the condition they live in
6- The difference between what the children think and the adults think is that the adults know and understand what's going on while the children have no clue on anything that is happening beneath their eyes. The one thing that the children know is that they should stay clear of what ever was out their. This is the case because of what the Jews are wearing and what they are doing. Also the big fence around the camp suggests a no-go zone and should be stayed clear of
7- The children see it as a place where people live and enjoy themselves when it is actually a huge concentration camp where people are mistreated

Reponse

Holocaust

by Barbara Sonek

We played, we laughed
we were loved.
We were ripped from the arms of our
parents and thrown into the fire.
We were nothing more than children.
We had a future. We were going to be lawyers, rabbis, wives, teachers, mothers. We had dreams, then we had no hope. We were taken away in the dead of night like cattle in cars, no air to breathe smothering, crying, starving, dying. Separated from the world to be no more. From the ashes, hear our plea. This atrocity to mankind can not happen again. Remember us, 
for we were the children whose dreams and lives were stolen away.


My Response


We watched

We cried

And we felt your pain

We were made to accept this terrible fate

We watched as blood was spilt

And we couldn't do anything to help

As your dreams were taken away

Death was upon you like untimely frost 

But the loss that you have experienced has made our lives even better. For we can be teachers, lawyers and parents, and we can follow our dreams into the foreseeable future and for that we thank you

From the Ashes hear our sorrow

For We are the children of the modern day and we will remember you

Chapter 3

1- They don't really like each other
2- The house is described as 'horrible' as it only had two storeys. On the second storey there are only three bedrooms and one toilet
3- The significance of this quote is that Bruno is just telling us more of how he hated the house and if he jumped around it might even collapse because it was so old

4- He thinks that it is horrible and is wishing that the foreseeable future would come quicker than he expected. All he wanted to was go back home

5- It compares as the exact opposite of their old home

6- She is arrogant, gets what she wants and they both are very secretive 

7- No he doesn't. You can see this when he looks at the concentration camp and believes that the Jews inside are just any other people. This is called dramatic irony

8- She also doesn't know where they are. She thinks that they are on the country side when they really are not
9- 'Out-with' represents the motif of Bruno's and makes the innocence of a child during the holocaust because 'Out-with' is actually the concentration camp. This is very dark irony because he does not understand what is happening when we know that many people are being killed
10- When Gretel and Bruno see the people who are outside they become very confused. They become anxious and want to know more. They don't know if they should be scared or happy which makes them even more confused.  

Chapter 1

Describe Bruno's voice. Give examples to support.
Bruno is a very polite young boy who sticks to his rules and occasionally says something out of line 


What characters are introduced? Describe each and give examples to support.
There is Bruno who is a young and polite boy, there is Maria who is the maid, there is Grettle who is described as a helpless case, there is Mother who is a very polite but secret woman, there is Lars the butler, the Father who is known to be polite but has an unknown job which makes Bruno suspicious and finally there are the Grandparents

Who are presented as victims in this chapter and what are the victims of? Do you think that it is fair to consider them victims?

Bruno and the mother are represented in this chapter as the victims in this chapter they are the victims of the allies bombs and shells I believe that it is fair to consider them as victims as Bruno is just a young boy and him and his mother have not done any harm to anyone. Also a lot of books and movie's are very one sided about the holocuast because not all Germans believed that killing Jews and doing the terrible thing that happened the right thing to be doing.
Irony is an important element of the story. How is it used here in the first chapter? Give examples to support your answer.

Irony is used in the first chapter as the Bruno and mother are the victims but the father is a Nazi high person and causing so much pain and anguish. but we are meant to feel sorry for someone that is very well of financially. 

How is the setting presented in this chapter?

The setting in this chapter is of a wealthy family with a high ranking German official as the father and living in a large expensive house in the wealthy part of Berlin during the war time.