Boy In The Striped Pyjamas Trauma

War; a dreaded conflict carried on by force of arms, where the only outcome is the devastation and suffering of those affected. Destroyed families, struggling to carry out their shattered lives as a result of the loss of their loved ones continue to bring them down. ‘The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas’ by John Boyne clearly illustrates this through the physical, psychological and social impacts the war has on the protagonists

Due to the destructive nature of war, the suffering victims are left with a profusion of calamitous adversities in which they must desperately attempt to overcome whilst persevering with their short lives. Throughout the life of the protagonist Bruno, the repercussions of the war devastates his life immensely, resulting
Subsequent to their move to “Out-With”, an evident alteration in behaviour is noticed in Gretel. This move negatively impacts the youthful mindset of Gretel, clearly shown by her “various maps she had pasted on the walls”, replacing her dolls. The removal of her dolls symbolizes her innocent childhood fading away, as she is not only getting rid of what is known to be a conventional childhood item, but is further replacing them with maps of the war. indicating that she is beginning to mature and harden up as she moves away from what is considered as a ‘normal’ behaviour for a child. Not only is Gretel impacted by the war, however, her mother is too; Elsa. As a loving and compassionate mother, Elsa suffers immensely as a result of the war, discarding a plentitude of reasons to live, such as her husband, children, home and further disregards her deteriorating health. This is evident through the affair she takes part in and further through the “medicinal sherries” she consumes, as she becomes an alcoholic. Through this, we are able to identify that Elsa lives her life ignoring the tragic consequences that can arise, indicating the loss of self-belief and dignity in herself and thus giving her the impression she has no purpose to live. In contrast to Elsa’s victimized story, Ralf - as a perpetrator of the war - is also a victim. As possibly one of the strongest men at Auschwitz, the war itself has impacted on his life intensely. Immense feelings of despair and guilt builds up inside of Ralf as comes to the understanding that his decision led the the ultimate consequence; the death of his son, Bruno. This put Ralf in a position where “he went to sleep every night thinking about Bruno and woke up every morning thinking about him too.” Furthermore, it led to the deprivation of happiness