The Boy at the Top of the Mountain as a Source of Axiological Ethics for Holocaust fiction

Abstract

AbstractThe main aim of this paper is to point out the artistic and other qualities of Boyne’s publication The Boy at the Top of the Mountain, especially in relation to what could be considered as a lack of scholarly reception of this artistic narrative. In summary, the transformation of Pierrot’s mindset from a humanistically minded bilingual boy to an uncritical recipient of Nazi ideas over the course of the narrative is effectively portrayed. It should also be noted that the change in axiological values in the narrative is influenced by events that entered the child character Pierrot’s life: for example, his stay in an orphanage or his long stay in a house on the top of a mountain owned by Adolf Hitler. Based on qualitative content analysis, the paper answers four questions: (1) How is Pierrot’s change of mind portrayed? (2) How does Pierrot as a child perceive Nazi ideas? (3) To what extent is the war the driving force behind the plot of The Boy at the Top of the Mountain? (4) Is The Boy at the Top of the Mountain suitable for children and young people to read at all?