The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

Lesson 4
Lesson Objectives
• At the end of this lesson, students should be able
to:
▫ Discuss the effects of repetition and structural
patterning on the reader and on the story
▫ Identify aspects of Bruno’s father’s character
through imaginative and dramatic exploration
Structural Patterning
• When a writer repeats phrases or sentences
frequently enough for the reader to recognize
them and hear their echo in the story.

Fable
• A fictional story conveying a moral
Group Task
• We’re going to start by doing a sentence-level
starter game to investigate why the writer uses
structural patterning and how it contributes to the
idea of the story as a fable.
• First, what fables do you know?
• One feature of a fable is that they often repeat a
phrase or sentence to underline the moral
meaning of the story. When these phrases are
close enough to one another to echo, it is known
as structural patterning.
Task
• Each group will be given cards. Look at the cards
and discuss:
▫ Why the writer uses structural patterning
▫ What the effect is on the reader
▫ What the effect of the repetition is on the story
John Boyne’s thoughts on ‘Striped PJs’
being a fable
• “Considering the serious subject matter of this novel
and the fact that I would be taking certain aspects of
concentration camp history and changing them
slightly in order to serve the story, I felt it was
important not to pretend that a story like this was fully
based in reality (which was also the reason why I
chose never to use the word ‘Auschwitz’ in the novel).
My understanding of the term ‘fable’ is a piece of
fiction that contains a moral. I hope that the moral at
the center of THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS
is self-evident to readers.”
Whole Class Reading
Let’s continue
our reading of
the novel.

Turn to page 55
and continue to
the end of
chapter 6.
What does Maria mean when she says
“Wonder what he... how he can...” (62)
Development
• In pairs, use the drama cards provided to create
a conversation between Bruno and his father
based on the extract chosen for you.
• Keep the conversation under 3 minutes.

After watching other people’s

conversations, have you learnt
anything new about Bruno’s
relationship with his father?