The Classification of Living Things

The Classification of Living Things is symbolic of safety and family tradition and it gives rise to a host of other symbols and metaphors related to animals in the book. The game was taught to Pearl and Stasha by their grandfather, a former biology professor. It is a form of charades where the participants must guess what sort of animal is being acted out through gestures, and then name its genus, family, species, and kingdom. Zayde has used it as a distraction in the past, when the girls were questioned about being “mischling” and they play it on the cattle car en route to Auschwitz in order to remain calm. When Pearl wakes up in the cage and cannot remember who she is or what has happened to her, she hears Zayde and her mother's voices, and she remembers the classification system...