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Bruno
Gretel is Bruno’s twelve-year-old sister, whom Bruno refers to as a “Hopeless Case.” She feels that she is much wiser and more mature than Bruno, and often taunts him. She is at first mostly interested in her dolls, but after her lessons from the children’s tutor Herr Liszt, Gretel becomes obsessed with the changing politics of World War II, and begins to track the German army’s progress via pushpins in maps on her wall in “Out-With.” She becomes much more indoctrinated with anti-Semitic rhetoric than Bruno does, and tells Bruno that they are the “opposite” of the Jews on the other side of the fence. Gretel develops a crush on Lieutenant Kotler, and is “inconsolable” when he is transferred away.
Gretel Quotes in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
The The Boy in the Striped Pajamas quotes below are all either spoken by Gretel or refer to Gretel. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 3
Quotes
“But what does it mean?” he asked in exasperation. “Out with what?”
“Out with the people who lived here before us, I expect,” said Gretel. “It must have to do with the fact that he didn’t do a very good job and someone said out with him and let’s get a man in who can do it right.”
“You mean Father.”
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Chapter 13
Quotes
What happened then was both unexpected and extremely unpleasant. Lieutenant Kotler grew very angry with Pavel and no one—not Bruno, not Gretel, not Mother and not even Father—stepped in to stop him doing what he did next, even though none of them could watch. Even though it made Bruno cry and Gretel grow pale.
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Chapter 16
Quotes
“I’m asking you, if we’re not Jews, what were we instead?”
“We’re the opposite,” said Gretel, answering quickly and sounding a lot more satisfied with this answer. “Yes, that’s it. We’re the opposite.”
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Chapter 17
Quotes
He paused for a moment and looked out the window to his left—the window that led off to a view of the camp on the other side of the fence. “When I think about it, perhaps she is right. Perhaps this is not a place for children.”
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Gretel Quotes in The Boy in the Striped Pajamas
The The Boy in the Striped Pajamas quotes below are all either spoken by Gretel or refer to Gretel. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 3
Quotes
“But what does it mean?” he asked in exasperation. “Out with what?”
“Out with the people who lived here before us, I expect,” said Gretel. “It must have to do with the fact that he didn’t do a very good job and someone said out with him and let’s get a man in who can do it right.”
“You mean Father.”
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Chapter 13
Quotes
What happened then was both unexpected and extremely unpleasant. Lieutenant Kotler grew very angry with Pavel and no one—not Bruno, not Gretel, not Mother and not even Father—stepped in to stop him doing what he did next, even though none of them could watch. Even though it made Bruno cry and Gretel grow pale.
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Chapter 16
Quotes
“I’m asking you, if we’re not Jews, what were we instead?”
“We’re the opposite,” said Gretel, answering quickly and sounding a lot more satisfied with this answer. “Yes, that’s it. We’re the opposite.”
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Chapter 17
Quotes
He paused for a moment and looked out the window to his left—the window that led off to a view of the camp on the other side of the fence. “When I think about it, perhaps she is right. Perhaps this is not a place for children.”
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