How Is Death Portrayed In The Book Thief

Throughout the novel, The Book Thief, Markus Zusak narrates the story using the unique character of Death. While Death tells the story of Liesel, a young girl living in nazi Germany, he, in the process, reveals a lot about himself through direct and indirect characterization. If I could choose to give any character I read about this semester a christmas present, I would give Death a paint set because it could serve as a stress reliever, give him joy from all the colors, and with it he could paint a visual of some of the many descriptive scenes inside The Book Thief. First, I would choose to give Death a paint set because it could possibly serve as a stress reliever for himself. In the very beginning of the novel, Death describes the stress

Throughout the entire novel, Death describes his love for the colors he sees. The very first line he says, “First the colors. Then the humans That’s usually how I see things. Or at least that’s how I try” (Zusak 3). This then continues to the very end, when he titles the epilogue of the novel, “The last Color”. I also believe that part of the reason why Death is so fascinated by Liesel and takes such an interest in her is because she also appreciates the same little things, such as the colors, that Death does. When Liesel is still very young, Death narrates, “Each night, Liesel would step outside, wipe the door, and watch the sky. Usually it was like spillage- cold and heavy, slippery and gray- but once in a while some stars had the nerve to rise and float, if only for a few minutes. On those nights, she would stay a little longer and wait” (Zusak 45). This illustrates how much Death really appreciates colors and scenery. This is why I think that Death would adore something such as a paint set, that he can create art and colors with. He could paint his own scenes or ones that he’s seen

In The Book Thief, there are many parts where Death describes very detailed and colorful scenes. Having the opportunity to actually see some of the scenes that are described throughout the novel, would possibly give joy to people such as myself and others. One example of a scene that I would love to see illustrated is the fire on Hitler’s birthday. Death writes, “The orange flames waves at the crowd as paper and print dissolved inside them. Burning works were torn from their sentences. On the other side, beyond the blurry heat, it was possible to see the brownshirts and swastikas joining hands. You didn’t see people, only uniforms and signs” (Zusak 112). While this may be a glory scene, I think that this would be a great scene to illustrate because of the imagery that is presented in it. This continues to be one of the most memorable scenes for me because of how raw and descriptive this scene is. Another scene that I think would be lovely to see illustrated is the fallen hours of May 30. Here, Death tells, “By the time I was finished, the sky was yellow, like burning newspaper. If I looked closely, I could see the words, reporting headlines, commentating on the process of the war and so forth” (Zusak 336). This is such a uniquely described scene that I, and I’m sure many others would love to be able to actually see. The Book Thief is already a great and unique