time, Bruno also shows some efforts in being tolerant and showing restraint to Shmuel, like what happens when they share their opinions about soldiers.
“There aren’t any good soldiers,” said Shmuel. “Of course there are,” said Bruno.
“Who?” “Well, Father, of course,” said Bruno. “That is why he has such an
impressive uniform and why everyone calls him Commandant and does whatever he says. The Fury has big things in mind for him because he’s
such a good soldier.” “There aren’t any good soldiers,” repeated Shmuel.
“Except Father,” repeated Bruno, who was hoping that Shmuel wouldn’t say that again because he didn’t want to have to argue with him. After all,
he was the only friend he had here at Out-With. But Father was Father, and Bruno didn’t think it was right for someone to say something bad about
him. Both boys stayed very quiet for a few minutes, neither one wanting to say
anything he might regret Boyne 140.
Here, both of them show their restraint by not saying anything after they argue about something. They do not want to make their dispute gets worse. Instead, they
realize that giving suitable pause can lower their tense and keep the atmosphere of their friendship stable.
One must learn to accept his friends for what they are. When friends lose tolerance, they begin focusing on and criticizing what they used to accept. Then the
friendship begins to get worse. In this case, showing restraint plays important roles as it helps friends to control themselves whenever they have disagreement towards
something. When friends are able to do that, their relationship can grow stronger. That is why maintaining friendship requires tolerance and restraint.
4.2.5 Managing Conflict Cooperatively
The last way to maintain a friendship according to Beebe 336-338 is managing conflict cooperatively. As friendship develops, friends share more
personal information and spend more time together, so there are chances that
conflicts may increase. The key to successful development of friendship is not to avoid conflict, but to manage to it effectively. In the novel, we can see the efforts of
Bruno and Shmuel in managing their conflicts cooperatively, as what is shown when they argue about which one of their house is nicer.
“I’m sure it is,” said Shmuel quietly. “Although it’s not a very nice part of it.”
“No.” “Where I come from is a lot nicer.”
“It’s certainly not as nice as Berlin,” said Bruno. “In Berlin we had a big house with five floors if you counted the basement and the little room at the
top with the window. And there were lovely streets and shops and fruit and vegetable stalls and any number of cafes. But if you ever go there I
wouldn’t recommend walking around town on a Saturday afternoon because there are far too many people there then and you get pushed from pillar to
post. And it was much nicer before things changed.” “How do you mean?” asked Shmuel.
“Well, it used to be very quiet there,” explained Bruno, who didn’t like to talk about how things had changed. “And I was able to read in bed at night.
But now it’s quite noisy sometimes, and scary, and we have to turn all the lights off when it starts to get dark.”
“Where I come from is much nicer than Berlin,” said Shmuel, who had never been to Berlin. “Everyone there is very friendly and we have lots of
people in our family and the food is a lot better too.” “Well, we’ll have to agree to disagree,” said Bruno, who didn’t want to
fight with his new friend Boyne 114.
Their conversation reveals that they can manage to settle a little conflict between friends. When neither of them have the same opinion or interests, they do not try to
force their opinion one another. Instead, they search the best way to come to the conclusion that satisfies both of them.
Once, Bruno makes a terrible mistake by denying that he is a friend of Shmuel in front of Lieutenant Kotler. Bruno really regrets it Boyne 172. He feels
so ashamed that he can behave so cruelly. Bruno then returns everyday to the place where they usually meet. When Bruno finally meets Shmuel, he runs towards him,
almost crying with relief and regret.
“Well, I’m sorry about last week,” said Bruno. “I hate that Lieutenant Kotler. He thinks he’s in charge but he isn’t.” He hesitated for a moment,
not wanting to get sidetracked. He felt that he should say it one last time and really mean it. “I’m very sorry, Shmuel,” he said in a clear voice. “I can’t
believe I didn’t tell him the truth. I’ve never let a friend down like that before. Shmuel, I’m ashamed of myself.” Boyne 175
From his speeches, Bruno shows efforts to maintain his friendship with Shmuel. He does not want their friendship ends. He does not want to avoid a conflict. That is
why he apologizes for what he has done. The good thing is that Shmuel forgives him by shaking hands and smiling each other Boyne 175.
Managing conflict cooperatively can actually transform conflict into an experience that strengthens a friendship. That is why it is important in maintaining
a friendship. In summary, what Bruno and Shmuel do to maintain their friendship is in accordance to Beebe’s suggestions.
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CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
The conclusions and suggestions are presented in this chapter. The first section concerns the conclusions of the analysis in the previous chapter and
contains the answers to the problems formulated. The second section presents the suggestions for further research and the implementation of teaching through this
novel in Prose II class.
5.1. Conclusions
As a social creature, human cannot live without friends. Having friends enables someone to develop himself because a friendship allows opportunities for
communication and self-development. That is why it is important for children to create and maintain friendships with their peers in order to develop their own
personalities. The importance of friendship is reflected by the charactes of Bruno and Shmuel in John Boyne’s The Boy in the Striped Pajamas.
In the novel, Bruno is portrayed as a German boy who comes from a rich family and whose dream is to become a great explorer. He is an adventurous boy
who enjoys exploring to new places and loves reading adventure books. Bruno is also a loving person who cares much about his family and friends. He shows
admirations and affections especially towards his parents. Being a son of a rich family does not make Bruno haughty and lazy.
Instead, he shows politeness and respect towards every people he meets, including the servants such as Maria and Jewish people like Shmuel, who is supposed to be a
