John Boyne's The Boy In The Striped Pajamas

Good and evil is found in everyone. Certain people show either create more than others. “Two Wolves”, by an unknown author, shows the battle between the two. In The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, by John Boyne, Bruno's father exemplifies both of these traits. Everyday, people struggle with deciphering whether good or evil will dominate their personality.

In the poem “Two Wolves”, there is a very prominent theme throughout the story. It is that a person could be good, evil, or both. However, it depends on which one they give in to. An old Cherokee man was telling his son a story one evening. He said, “My son, the battle is between two wolves inside us all.” “One is Evil.” “The other is Good”(Two Wolves 3-9). He tells this to his grandson to teach him a very important life lesson. People can have multiple personalities, but the one that

“The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?” The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed”(Two Wolves 12-16). People make their own decision whether they will turn out good or evil. It is up to them to determine their fate. No one is destined to turn out one way or the other, so the human race has to take it upon themselves to change this.

This theme is exemplified throughout The Boy in the Striped Pajamas. Bruno’s father is a true example of this message, and shows examples of being both good and evil within the novel. His goodness is naively observed by his son Bruno, and his evilness is seen by Bruno’s friend Schmuel while he is at the concentration camp. Bruno sees his father as a kind, caring man who loves him with all of his heart. Toward the end of the book, Bruno’s mother and father began to worry. “‘But would you like to go back to Berlin?’ asked Father. ‘If the chance was there’”(Boyne 190)? This conversation took place around the time that Auschwitz was getting worse. He was clearly a decent man who cared deeply