The Boy in the Striped Pajamas: Chapter 13 Summary & Analysis

As the weeks go on, Bruno realizes he is not going to be returning to Berlin any time soon. Eventually, he gets used to life at Out-With, and stops feeling so unhappy. He is glad to find a friend in Shmuel, and goes to sit and talk with him at the fence every day. Bruno starts to fill his pockets with food to bring to Shmuel, though he eats some of it himself on the way when he feels like he needs a snack. Bruno asks Maria about Pavel, and inquires why he works as a waiter if he is really a doctor. Maria is shocked that Pavel told Bruno that, and she explains that Pavel was a doctor in another life, before he came to live at Out-With. Maria agrees to tell Bruno what she knows about Pavel’s life, if Bruno promises not to tell anyone that she told him. She says they can both get in great trouble if anyone finds out. Bruno agrees, and Maria tells him all she knows.

At the fence, Bruno finds Shmuel waiting for him. He gives Shmuel the food, and asks if he knows Pavel. Shmuel says that Bruno needs to understand that there are literally thousands of people living on his side of the fence, and it is unlikely that he knows Pavel. Bruno says that Pavel is from Poland, like Shmuel, that he was a doctor before he came to Out-With, and that he helped clean Bruno’s knee. Shmuel replies that the soldiers here don’t like it when people get better—“it usually works the other way around.” Bruno nods, even though he doesn’t quite understand what Shmuel means.

Bruno asks Shmuel what he wants to be when he grows up, and Shmuel says that he wants to work in a zoo because he likes animals. Bruno says he will be a soldier like Father, but a good one, not mean like Lieutenant Kotler. Shmuel says there aren’t any good soldiers, but Bruno says that Father is a good soldier, whom the Fury has “big things in mind” for. The boys are quiet for a moment, and Shmuel tells Bruno that he doesn’t understand what it is like on his side of the fence. Bruno, trying to change the subject, asks Shmuel if he has any sisters. Shmuel says he doesn’t, and Bruno tells his friend about Gretel, a “Hopeless Case,” and how annoying she is when she flirts with Lieutenant Kotler. Shmuel looks noticeably upset when Bruno mentions Kotler’s name, and says that he doesn’t like talking about him because he is scary. Bruno agrees. Bruno sees Shmuel shiver, and berates him for not wearing a jumper since it is becoming chillier out.

Back at his house that evening, Bruno is disappointed to see that Lieutenant Kotler is joining them for dinner. Pavel waits on them as usual, and Bruno notices that he seems to become smaller and more withered with each passing day. He seems to shake from the weight of the plates, and Mother has to ask twice before he pours her another glass of wine. At the table, Bruno complains of learning history from Herr Liszt, because he would rather read. Angered, Father points his knife at Bruno and says that the family is in Out-With because they are “correcting history.” Bruno still complains that it is boring, and Gretel tells Lieutenant Kotler to forgive her brother, because he is an “ignorant little boy.” Bruno counters by saying Gretel is a “Hopeless Case,” beyond the point of help. The children tell each other to shut up, and then their parents make them stop bickering.

Lieutenant Kotler remarks that he enjoyed learning history as a boy, though his father was a professor of literature. Mother replies that she did not know that, and asks if he still teaches. Kotler says that he has not kept in touch with his father since he left Germany in 1938, so he does not know. Father is startled that Kotler’s father left Germany, and seems concerned when Kotler says he believes he left for Switzerland, and may be teaching at a university in Berne. Father calculates that Kotler’s father must be in his forties, as Kotler is nineteen, and he finds it strange that he chose “not to stay in the Fatherland.” Father inquires as to why Kotler’s father left Germany, and Kotler says he does not know. Father speculates that perhaps he was ill, or perhaps he had “disagreements” with the government policy. Kotler seems concerned, and Father switches the subject, telling Kotler that they can discuss the topic at a later time.

Father calls for Pavel to fill up his wine glass, and asks what is the matter with him that evening. Pavel opens the cork with care, but loses control of the bottle as he is filling the glass. The bottle empties onto Kotler's lap. “No one… stepped in to stop [Kotler] doing what he did next, even though none of them could watch.” What Kotler does to Pavel makes Bruno cry, and Gretel grow pale. Later that night, Bruno reminisces on how kind Pavel was towards him, and he wishes Father had stopped Kotler from doing what he did to Pavel. He decides he is right to keep his mouth shut and not to disagree with Father or Kotler. Bruno’s old life in Berlin feels very far away, and he can hardly even remember what his best friends Karl, Daniel, and Martin look like.