The fact that Bruno considers
Maria a member of the family shows that he has a good heart, like his father used to
have.
Bruno is unhappy at Auschwitz. He misses his cushy life
in Berlin, but most of all he feels lonely. He even resorts to talking to the maid, Maria, in
desperation when she comes into his room with his laundry. He asks her if she agrees that
everything is terrible there. He is too young to really understand what he is asking, and she
is not sure how to respond.
Maria opened her mouth to say
something and then closed it again just as quickly. She seemed to be considering her response
carefully, selecting the right words, preparing to say them, and then thinking better of it and
discarding them altogether. (Ch. 6)
Bruno considers Maria
part of the family, since she has been around since he was very little. She respects Brunos
father because he was kind to her and her family, and she warns Bruno not to say anything
negative about her father. She is clearly trying to protect him. She appreciates that Brunos
father used to be a good man. She understands that somewhere deep inside him, the same man who
helped her family is there.
He has a lot of kindness in
his soul, he truly does, which makes me wonder €¦. (Ch. 6)
When Bruno says she is part of the family, Maria responds that his father does not feel
the same way. Yet she also is protective of Brunos father and considers him a good man. She is
worried that the Nazis might hear negative comments and Brunos father might face
repercussions.
Bruno's father's cold nature seems to be a response to the
war. Sometimes good people have to do bad things, or look the other way, in order to survive.
Although Bruno is too young to understand what is going on, his observations seem to show us
this. During World War II, many Germans were swept up in the Nazi world without really wanting
it.
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