Growing up / Coming of age The Book Thief shows many characters who grew up and were coming of age during the story like how Rudy and Liesel did. Liesel and Rudy were both kids who did not know any better. Liesel has been a little girl who lost her mom and her little brother and was adopted by the Hubermann’s later on and Rudy was a little boy who has blonde hair and blue eyes who was very athletic. Rudy has a special talent, but does senseless things.
Stand Up Throughout Europe, during World War II, fear abided in many people causing closed mouths and the idea of individuality and absurdity. Opinions were kept silent and the dictatorship in Germany persevered and became prosperous. Though many people were hushed by the fear of what could happen, few did stand out for their beliefs. Although many people did not voice their opinions, people like Raoul Wallenberg and Irena Sendler bravely hid and saved many Jewish people. Similar to Hans in The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, he too helped harbor a Jewish man named Max in their basement.
The Book Thief is narrated by Death. Throughout the book he makes casual remarks about his job, but occasionally he puts the casual talk on hold, and that is when one can infer that he cares about something. Rudy Steiner was a talented boy, from running around a track, to soccer, to memorizing facts about ancient beings, he was the best of the best, and what is hard to like about that? Nearly all the time, death is associated with all objects depressing.
John F. Kennedy, American politician and former 35th President of the United States once stated “Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction.” JFK is absolutely correct in saying this because although effort and courage are important in various situations throughout life, they are meaningless without a purpose backing them up. Some of the most prominent examples of how we use courage and effort for a purpose is when we defend our certain beliefs and virtues. People around the world are using courage, whether it is a simple statement or an unexpected action to stand up for their true beliefs. Literature, movies, and the media also praise taking a stand against the enemy using the protagonist as an example.
What is the power of words? The power of words is how words can impact situations. Words are a main form of communication, causing horrible or amazing circumstances. According to The Book Theif, Liesel learns how to read and learns many new words, she learns how impactful the power of words can be in books. Many characters write books that are meaningful and very impactful toward the story.
In the film The Book Thief, the story took place in Nazi occupied Germany during WW2 where an illiterate girl, named Liesel learns to read and write discovering a whole new life. Symbolism is used in The Book Thief by showing the reader symbols in random objects such as books and street names. Heaven Street was the street that Liesel’s foster parents had lived on when she moved in with them and it symbolized Liesel’s so called Heaven. That is where Hans taught her how to write and read, which she had always aspired to do, for example in the scene when Hans turned the basement walls into Liesel’s dictionary so she can write every new word down that she learns.
Guilt: one of the strongest emotions, the cause of grief and sadness everywhere. In The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, characters such as Liesel Meminger, Hans Hubermann, and Michael Holtzapfel, are only a few who experience this intense emotion. Whether it stems from death, survival, or thievery, guilt finds it’s way into affecting each character’s lives, making it a main theme. The most popular type of guilt throughout the book is survivor’s guilt.
The Book Thief Narrative Tension Markus Zusak uses all three forms of narrative tension in his story, The Book Thief, but it is clear that anticipation is the most used out of all of them. An early example of this is when Zusak uses anticipation at the beginning of the section, The Eclipse, to gain the reader's attention. Zusak foreshadows the future by using colors associated with certain events. Zusak starts The Eclipse by saying, “Next is the signature black, to show the poles of my versatility, if you like. It was the darkest moment before dawn.”
Humans lie and steal without hesitation to survive. That is how man is. However, human nature does not allow for cruelty to exist without the other end of the spectrum - kindness. In his novel, The Book Thief, Markus Zusak reveals the extreme malice possible in humans, along with the tenderness that stems from it. In times of hate and paranoia in Nazi Germany, ones who live morally are rare.
“It’s just a small story really, about, among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery…” (Zusak, pg. 5) The novel, The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak in 2005 explores the theme of family relationships. It is through nine-year-old Liesel Meminger, the protagonist, that the idea of a broken family during the era of Nazi Germany is explored. The Book Thief depicts the struggle of young German girl, Liesel Meminger, living in Germany during the time of Hitler’s reign.
Charlotte, that's sweet of you to send me this book. Thanks very much. I appreciate it. I feel bad because I didn't get you anything. Thanks for considering me a kind friend.
The characters in a story. They are hard to bring to life, yet a story would be incomplete without them. I love to write, and I often don’t have troubles creating my characters. But what makes every character stand out is that special thing about each and every one of them. That’s one thing that I loved about “The Book Thief,” by Markus Zusak.
Based on the circumstances that they are developed in, humans are capable of both good and evil. Markus Zusak's The Book Thief explores the complexities of human nature through his use of setting, symbols and characters. Different characters possess different qualities based on their experiences. Symbols are used to illustrate both the beauty and the ugliness in humanity. Also, in the novel, the setting in which the character is raised has either a negative or positive effect on the characters actions.
Growing as a Character Every event in our lives happens for a reason, whether it is to learn from our mistakes or to gain experience from them. In Markus Zusak's novel “The Book Thief,” Liesel Meminger uses her experiences with living in the 1940s to learn life lessons and experience first hand the many terrible things Hitler is doing to people around her. She learns how to deal with the many obstacles that are thrown at her. Liesel grows as a character by following her step-father’s footsteps in being a kind and generous person, going through childhood with her best friend Rudy, and being aware of what is going on around her by learning from Max.
Markus Zusak has assembled ‘The Book Thief’ using a variety of narrative conventions. These include a unique narrative viewpoint, plot structure and use of imagery, all of which provide meaning to the reader. (33 words) A narrative’s point of view refers to who is telling the story. In this case Zusak’s narrator identifies himself as Death.
