The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

Theme Package The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

The Fury • Bruno mistakes the word “Führer “ for “Fury” • The Führerwas the title of Adolf Hitler, the dictator of Germany from 1933-45 • Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vbduo4fHANA&feature=related Adolf Hitler -The Führer -

Eva Braun – Hitler’s Mistress • Chapter 11 mentions Bruno’s meeting with the Fury’s friend, the pretty blonde lady • Eva Braun met Hitler when she was only 17 • She and Hitler were married 40 hours before their deaths by suicide in 1945 – she was 33

Berlin 1940s • The novel opens in the German city of Berlin in the early 1940s • Population: 4 million • The city experienced massive bombing by the Allies between 1940-45

Out-With • Bruno mistakes the name Auschwitz for Out-With • Auschwitz was a notorious concentration camp in Poland which existed from 1940-45

Auschwitz

Prisoners of Auschwitz

Location of Auschwitz

The Real Commandant of Auschwitz • Rudolf Hösswas the first commandant of Auschwitz from 1940 – 43 • In June 1941 Höss was informed that because of its isolation, Auschwitz had been chosen by Hitler as the main site for the extermination of European Jews • Höss was executed in 1947

The Waffen-SS • Lieutenant Kotlerwas quite likely a member of the Waffen-SS • This was an elite branch of the German armed forces • They had a reputation for cruelty

Woman Guard • Juana Bormannwas one of the few women guards at Auschwitz • She was known for her cruelty and called “Wiesel” and “the woman with dogs” • She was executed after the war for war crimes

Slave Labour • Strong, healthy prisoners were forced to work by the Nazis • The men in the picture are building airplane parts

“Canada” • Near the gas chambers was a place the inmates called Canada • It was called this because Canada was thought of as a country of great riches • Here the possessions of the prisoners were brought • The items were sorted and sent back to Germany

The Jews and Auschwitz • About 960,000 Jews were murdered at Auschwitz • Healthy prisoners were forced to work until they grew too weak. Small children were executed immediately • Prisoners were told they were going to have a shower, but instead were gassed

The Star of David Flag of Israel • Worn by Jewish prisoners it was known in Hebrew as The Shield of David • Dates back to at least the 12thCentury • Origin remains unknown • King David was Israel’s 2nd and greatest king • Is now a part of the flag of Israel

Anne Frank • Auschwitz’s most famous prisoner was probably Anne Frank, the author of “The Diary of Anne Frank” • She was later transferred to another prison where she and her sister, Margot, perished in 1945

Oscar Schindler • Only one remarkable man managed to get prisoners out of Auschwitz - Oscar Schindler • He outwitted the Nazis to save more Jews from the gas chambers than anyone else during World War II. • A movie, Schindler’s List, was made about his exploits

Maximilian Kolbe • Kolbe was a Catholic priest who was sent to Auschwitz in 1941 for speaking out against the Nazis • While there he selflessly helped many prisoners by sharing his rations and tending to their injuries and illnesses • He was killed in August 1941

Art Created by Prisoners Death of Hunger Untitled

The Liberation of Auschwitz • In January 1945, 58,000 prisoners were evacuated from Auschwitz • The SS burned the camp records and blew up the gas chambers • The Red Army arrived on January 27, 1945 and found only 7,000 prisoners left – most were very weak and ill

Auschwitz Museum and Memorials Museum – Watchtower and Fence Auschwitz Memorial in Amsterdam

This (Auschwitz) is the biggest cemetery for Jews, Poles, Roma and Sinti. It must tell us that we have to come back here again and again. We must keep the memory of the worst crime in human history alive for those who were born later. • ~ German President Horst Koehler

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas