The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Retell:  
              The movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, is about a boy named Bruno, who is the son of a Nazi commander, and a Jewish Concentration camp inmate. The boy is forced to move from his old home in Berlin, to a new one in in a place called "Out-With". The young boy loves to explore, and goes out into the forest to do just that. Bruno comes upon a fence, where a boy wearing striped pajamas, no shoes and a cap is seated. The two boys become friends and learn that they have many similarities and differences. Bruno constantly brings the boy food and toys for the both of them to play with. One day, Bruno is told by Shmuel, that his father is missing, as Bruno decides to help him find him. In order to get past the fence, Shmuel brings Bruno striped pajamas, and he brings a shovel from home. The boys are accidentally herded into a group of people going into the gas cambers, and take their last breaths in there together.

Reflect:
            This movie showed how a child's innocence may lead them to do drastic things. While Bruno was fulfilling his end of the friendship, the two of the boys were met with their untimely death. "Out-With", which Bruno heard incorrectly, was actually "Auschwitz", and "the Fury" was actually "the Fuhrer". While Bruno thought it was adventurous to go into the woods and explore, he did not realize the consequences he would have to face later on. Going under the fence was something that Bruno did not think much of, as he did not know what it meant to be inside of it, and it led to him getting killed. Due to his childish approach to things, he did drastic things, which had drastic consequences.

Relate:
          After watching this movie, I can relate it to the quote below, as prior to the Canadians infiltrating the Jewish concentration camps, the soldiers thought that these camps were just a myth. Prior to this, these people thought that concentration camps would not be as bad as others said they were, which was almost as if they were seeing an illusion. The quote relates  both to the Canadian soldiers, as well as The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, because it shows us that ignorance is bliss, and that if one does not know about something, then they have no reason to act upon it. People choose to ignore things, because it may taint the way in which they see things.

Blog Post #2 - Atonement by Ian McEwan

Classist Ways by Kiranjot Assi

Snap! Crack! Whip!
Did I do something wrong?
I never noticed,
the residue on these silver spoons.
The determination in me,
was still strong.
I wanted to impress you,
and change your classist ways.
But I think,
that I have made a mistake.
The only reputation I have,
is the money I earn,
not luck, intelligence, or even concern.
I care  for you,
cook for you,
keep all your trash.
But you only keep me around,
to beat and thrash.
When something happens, that is wrong
I take all blame.
You never look back, do you think I'm insane?
I want to be free,
and not have a tag.
To be known for who I am,
and not by my class.
And then, I think, as I rot in jail,
The only way  out of this misery,
is to come out of my reverie.

Blog Post #1 - Atonement by Ian McEwan

Article: http://soaw.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=532

              The book, Atonement by Ian McEwan, discusses many issues about many different topics. However, the major social issue in this book would have to be classism, as the book is set in England in 1935, where society is greatly influenced by the social class system. From the beginning of the book, the third person point of view forces the reader to see that the story is not just about one family living in southern England, but the British society before it is changed by war. Classism plays a big role in Atonement as it builds up the background and helps to create a foundation for tragedy. Robbie Turner, who is at the lower end of the social class system, is imprisoned because of misunderstanding behind a crime he did not commit. Assumptions based on this stereotype contributes to him being arrested many times. What was most important was that the conviction against him was flimsy, and how people’s attitudes towards lower classes changed it into a very strong point.

              The article, ‘Confronting Classism’ by a school in America, talks about how upper class people are seen as more articulate and are smarter than those in the middle and working class. The article also talks about how different criteria are followed for different classification systems. One may include the workforce status, while the other may not. The article then goes to state that classism not only hurts on an economic, but on an emotional level as well. Being classified into a category is not something that everyone wants to happen to them, especially when the people above them have the power to make them feel bad about it. The stereotype behind the working class is that they are unintelligent and inarticulate, whereas others and that they are good listeners.

              This article relates to the book, Atonement, because it shows how classism has not changed from the mid- thirties to now. Just as people were classed in Britain before the war, they have continued to be classed after the war, seventy years later. This article shows how the “intelligent” people can have more power over the “unintelligent” people, and how they have more say, as they do more for their country than what the working class does. Just as Robbie Turner was accused of committing a crime, and the people who had more money were able to use their status as an advantage to sway the decisions of the court, even though he was not the one that committed the crime.

This video, shows how classism plays a role in today's world; through entertainment. We may not always realize, but we face classism everywhere, and fail to notice it happening.