The Boy in Striped Pyjamas

783 Words4 Pages
Culture plays an important part in determining our identity, the way we act and what we believe in. Each of the religions of the world has its own culture, with many customs, traditions and refined qualities. Culture is what we are grow up with, it how we were bought up, it’s our religion, it’s our race, it’s the way we act, it’s traditions we keep, it’s the people we embrace. Culture is something that we are grown up with and it’s our way of doing things. Identity is who we are and our characteristics. In the film “The Boy in Striped Pyjamas” it holds a big focus on culture as an important factor of shaping one’s identity. The Nazi culture influenced on Gretel. In this film it holds the prospective of a young girl named Gretel and her growing up with a German culture in World War 2. Gretel’s culture is what she was brought up with, her religion, her race, the way she looks and the way she acts around others. Gretel was clearly influenced by her culture because she easily came to accept it. Growing in an environment where hating Jews was a rule and was considered “normal” is what caused her to follow her culture. She was raised to follow her culture, and being surrounded by Ralf, her dad who is an SS Commandant, and well as her teacher Herr Liszt contributed to her identity as well. Another character which supports my idea that culture is an important factor in shaping an individual's identity is Ralf - the father of Gretel and Bruno. Ralf appears to be very strict and disciplined. He is very patriotic and does all his work for his country, Germany. In the beginning scenes of the film, we are told that Ralf has been promoted to commandant of a Nazi concentration camp in Out-with and therefore, the family is forced to move to the countryside. Ralf's job is to exterminate Jews by confining them in gas chambers and using carbon monoxide to kill them. Ralf
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