Inquiry Project

Hadley Mason
University Writing 2
`
9-30-15
Throughout this inquiry project I am trying to compare the validity of the movies
Schindlers List and The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas. I have chosen this topic because I am
interested in learning about how film making, specifically these two films have shown the public
what happened during the Holocaust, and who was effected by these actions. To help viewers
better understand the pain and suffering of those who endured this nightmare, as well as
understand the suffering of those who didnt survive. This topic is of interest to me because I
want to know how these movies portrayed the truth of what happened, as well as what of the
truth of the Holocaust was actually portrayed in each movie. I have seen The Boy in the Stripped
Pajamas before but have yet to see Schindlers List. In completing this project I look forward to
studying each of the two movies carefully to understand better and learn something new.
I specifically would like to know, what is the truth in each of these movies? Which group
was more affected during and after the Holocaust, the Nazis or the Jews? How did those affected
survive this time of mass genocide? Since both movies made their debut in the world of
education and entertainment there has been speculation as to how much of the truth is really
displayed. They both highlight the horrors of what it was like being a Jew as well as a Nazi in
Europe between 1939-1945. But my goal throughout this paper is to unravel the deeper meanings
of each film. To understand how much of each films theme was based off of fact and true events,
or how much was dramatized to keep the viewer interested? Two angles that I can see explaining
this topic would be discussing it from a media stand point. How much in these movies did the
film makers actually truthfully portray? How did they cite their sources? Or Compare each story
to the history of the Holocaust from a biographical standpoint and examine the individual
histories of the main characters from each movie.

Inquiry Project

Hadley Mason
University Writing 2
`
9-30-15
The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas highlights the friendship between the son of a Nazi
general and a little boy trapped in the Auswitz concentration camp. The son of the Nazi general
is oblivious to what his father is overseeing and why these people are being tortured, killed and
treated in this way. Although throughout the movie the friendship between the two boys is
heartwarming it is one that provides no good outcome for either of the two. The graphics of what
both of the boys endure show the viewer how different it is growing up on one side of the wall as
opposed to the other.
In Schindlers list, Oskar Schindler is a German business man, who for political reasons
joins the Nazi party. Through this process he hires Jewish workers to keep his factory working in
the town of Krakow during World War II. As the Holocaust progresses Schindler hires Jewish
workers from the Krakow Ghetto, to keep his factory going. After this Schindler soon discovers
that the Jews in the Krakow ghetto are being exterminated and works to have his workers
protected from such actions so that his business will survive. This process changes Schindler
from supporting the German Revolution to being an aid to his workers and their families to help
them survive from a horrific fate.
Although both of these films purposes are to entertain and educate in order to achieve
this the film has to be made interesting and peak the viewers interest. I have learned much about
the Holocaust from experiencing each of these movies individually but what is told in the movie,
only scratches the surface of the truth to the tale. While completing this project I hope to learn
something new about each of these movies as well as the Holocaust that I didnt know before.
Investigate the protagonist and the antagonist of each story to compare and contrast their
similarities and differences. As well as introduce the truth behind the drama, to help paint a

Inquiry Project

Hadley Mason
University Writing 2
`
9-30-15
clearer picture of the pain and suffering that was experienced by the unfortunate during this time
in history.