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Corrupt Authority In The Book Thief By Markus Zusak

491 Words2 Pages

The novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is centered around the theme of escaping control from corrupt authority. With escape comes poverty and hardship for the inhabitants of Molching. Germany is under Nazi rule and Jewish people are being punished daily. Many citizens, soldiers, and Jews struggled with poverty throughout the story due to the sacrifices they made to better the town. Rosa Hubermann is a cardinal example of the hard times people of Germany in the low-middle class faced. Rosa had been running a washing service in Molching and lost her last customer roughly halfway through the novel. “The one time she desperately wanted a Watschen and she couldn’t get one! …That was when they fired you.” Rosa lost her job that day in exchange for the “good” of the German citizens as a whole. Hans Hubermann, during his tenure as a soldier, experienced difficult situations and gruesome encounters during both world wars, as on page 175. “Found in several pieces…among the bodies. Cold sweat- that malignant little friend- outstaying its welcome in the armpits and trousers.” …show more content…

Max had barely escaped his former town only because his mother chose to accept capture to save Max. Between that point and his arrival in Molching, he had arguably the roughest journey of the characters. “The young man’s voice scraped out like it was all that remained of him.” In this quote, the emptiness of voice symbolized his lack of hope and lack of sustenance in the last month. “He had eaten only the foul taste of his breath for what felt like weeks, and still nothing. Occasionally, voices wandered past and he longed for them to knuckle the door, to drag him into the unbearable light.” Max was soon thrown into parades as seen in part 10, “In those camps, many people were still made to work, and walk. Max Vandenburg was one such jew.” Max was treated as a prisoner, as a slave, because he believed in

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