FRQs

FRQ 3 - Prisoner B-3087

#1 In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. Either from your own reading or from the list below, choose a work of fiction in which the reader is confronted with a scene or scenes of violence

In the novel Prisoner B-3087 Alan Gratz utilizes scenes of violence in order to demonstrate the hardships and unpredictabilities of the World War II concentration camps, ultimately illustrating that people can go through life threatening situations, but with sheer determination and luck anyone can go through the same things and make it out.

To begin, Gratz shows the scene of violence in order to demonstrate the hardships of the concentration camps. Yanek is a jewish boy who grew up in Poland during World War II. The Nazis have invaded Poland and taken Yanek to Plaszow concentration camp. Where the leader of the camp would walk out of his quarters and just shoot any random jewish person with no reasoning. Yanek witnessed those murders multiple times. Because Yanek witnessed this, people can understand what Yanek was going through from this scene of violence. Consequently, the reader is able to feel the hardships of the camps from this scene of violence. Therefore, the scene of violence does not exist for its own sake, but rather to show the reader what Yanek is feeling and how he got through it. Additionally, Gratz used this same scene of violence in order to demonstrate the unpredictabilities of the camps. When the leader of Plaszow goes out and shoots a random jewish person for no reason Yanek is forced to not react to it or else he will be shot as well. Because Yanek was used to the other concentration camps where the deaths would be for a reason, Yanek had to adjust to the unpredictability of the random deaths. Consequently, the reader now understands the unpredictability of the camps and what Yanek had to go through because of reading the scene of violence. Therefore, this scene of violence does a great job at demonstrating the hardships and unpredictabilities of the camps in the war.

In addition, Gratz utilizes another scene of violence in order to demonstrate the hardships and unpredictabilities of the camps. Yanek has now been moved to Auschwitz concentration camp, where when he first gets off the train he is being mentally and physically abused. He is being struck with the butts of the Nazi’s rifles and he is being shouted at for not listening to them well enough. Right after this Yanek is removed of his clothes, gets his hair shaved, and gets “B-3087” tattooed on him. Because of this the readers will feel sympathy for Yanek because of the hardships he went through. Consequently, the readers are able to more deeply understand what he is going through, since Yanek is being physically abused for just being there. Therefore, this scene of violence does a great job at demonstrating the hardships that Yanek had to endure during his time at the concentration camps. Along with hardships this scene of violence also demonstrates the unpredictabilities of the camps. Because Yanek is removed of his clothes, hair, and name the reader feels deeper sympathy for him. Consequently, the readers are able to understand what he is going through more from this scene. Therefore, this scene is a great representation of the hardships and unpredictabilities of the camps in the war.

Frq 3 - Allies

In the novel Allies, Alan Gratz demonstrates sacrifice with the different perspectives of the story in order to convey war time calls for soldiers who are willing to sacrifice and soldiers who value their country and freedom, ultimately illustrating that people can overcome hardship with unity and shared courage.

First, Gratz shows the sacrifice by Dee to show what he values. David or Dee is an American teenager who has just freshly joined the army during World War II. Dee is underage, but he still joined the army so he could help his country win the war. Because Dee joined the war while still being under the legal age to join it demonstrates his values as a person. Consequently, Dee is now seen as someone who is selfless, patriotic, and someone who cares for their liberty. Therefore, Dee shows that he sacrificed his safety in order to fight for his liberty and others’ due to him being underage when he joined. Gratz demonstrates sacrifice again, in order to show Dee’s personal beliefs. When Dee was deployed on the beaches of Normandy during D-Day, there was a time where he drug an injured allied soldier to safety. Because of this it is evident that Dee believes in other people’s safety before his. Since Dee ran out into the open, where the enemy was constantly firing, just to save someone that was already injured demonstrates Dee’s sacrifice and what it means to him. Thus, Dee shows what it truly means to sacrifice and put his body on the line for his values and what he believes in.

Furthermore, Gratz utilizes more scenes of sacrifice in order to show what other characters value and believe in. Samira, another perspective in the book, demonstrates sacrifice by her working with the French resistance. Samira is a young girl who joined the French Resistance during World War II. Because Samira joined the resistance at a young age and as a girl, this shows an impeccable amount of sacrifice. Consequently, Samira has helped many people with her efforts because she is willing to sacrifice herself for the good of her country. Therefore, she can overcome the hardships she faced because of her sacrifices and many others’ as well. James Mckay, another perspective of the war reveals sacrifice by him being a paratrooper. James McKay was a British paratrooper who deployed behind enemy lines. Because James was deploying from an airship, and parachuting behind enemy lines, that shows the utmost willingness to sacrifice, since there is so much that can go wrong with each step he has to do. Thus, James along with the other characters are able to overcome their hardships because of sacrifices made along the way.

Alan Gratz utilizes scenes of sacrifice in order to show that war times are desperate times and sacrifice is needed, whether it’s by deploying behind enemy lines, or whether it’s joining the army underage. Ultimately illustrating, hardships can be overcome through the sacrifice and unity.

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