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Psyche And The Book Thief Comparison

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A small delicate creature that flutters from flower to flower, dancing in the wind, is nature’s very own ballerina, the butterfly. Their fragile wings represent many things ranging from free spirits to the human soul. In Greek mythology, Psyche, the goddess of the human soul, is compared to such creature, and so portrayed to have butterfly wings or a butterfly itself. However, times change and new heroes emerge, for instance in The Book Thief, by Marcus Zusak, the character Liesel Meminger, a German girl that survives many horrors of World War II, can also be the embodiment of the human soul. Psyche and Liesel, though created centuries apart, they have very similar story’s, characteristics, and souls like butterflies. No two stories are the …show more content…

As Psyche’s and Liesel’s stories progresses, like any other human, they experience small joys and sorrows. However, when facing one of their greatest hardships yet, their character similarities clearly show through. Psyche’s husband- Cupid- leaves Psyche after he warns her, that if she is to take her sisters advice upon trying to discover his true identity, she would lose him forever, but curiosity got the best of her. She disobeys her faithful husband and discovers that he is the god of love. Cupid flies away without saying good-bye and Psyche is left wandering in search for him. Though “She had no idea where to go; she knew only that she would never give up looking for him” (Hamilton 128). Psyche realizes her mistake of disobeying Cupid, her then wavering loyalty to him, has now become stronger than ever before and is willing to do anything to get him back. And so she becomes Venus’s (Cupid’s mother and goddess of beauty and love) servant, in hopes of finding him there. Liesel, like Psyche, also losses one of her loved ones; one of her closest friends, Max. Max is a Jew in hiding with the Huberman’s, however, due to the increasing danger his presence brought to the Huberman’s, he left the household in search of a new hiding place. Max’s departure is devastating to Liesel, however months afterwards Liesel finds Max again, on his way to a Nazi concentration camp. Liesel breaks all Nazi codes and

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Jews were being put in Concentration camps, but because of his knowledge he goes into hiding at the home of the Huberman’s. The book describes him as an introvert because in the book it states, “He was the type of person who worked quietly away for very little reward. He kept to himself...”(Zusak 188). Max has positive solutions that he wants to fulfill in a negative way. We can can determine this because Zusak expressed in his writing, “Punches are thrown, the crowd

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483 Words | 2 Pages

Liesel, known as the book thief to the audience has a distinct passion for books and how much they mean to her. Stealing book after the book becomes a hobby for the young girl whose love of books is fostered by her foster father, Hans Hubermann. As Hans teaches Liesel how to read and write they develop an

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989 Words | 4 Pages

To love is to risk. Whether that is risking life, belief, health, or reputation, it is still a risk at any rate to give devotion to another. No era in history knows this better than during the Holocaust. Still, the most unexpected of people would die trying to help Jews escape persecution, they would help others who didn't share the same moral foundation as they did, they would share food rations when they barely had enough for themselves, or they would risk their public standing and forever be labeled as a sympathizer just to help a suffering soul regain his balance. Similarly, Markus Zusak's The Book Thief demonstrates a complete comprehension of how humans act against self preservation and individual comfort when challenged with harrowing situations that appeal to their own personal connections.

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Although humans may originally behave due to innate reasons, much of literature argues external forces shape character and possess the power to influence the way societies behave. Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief exhibits how individuals may react in times of discrimination, and demonstrates the love and hate accompanying war. Difficult times challenge morality, and tests one’s limits; Liesel Meminger perseveres through arduous events, namely due to her identity as a creative and brave adolescent. Liesel’s identity is shaped and ultimately strengthened by outside forces.

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888 Words | 4 Pages

An important role model in Liesel’s life is Ilsa Hermann. After seeing Liesel steal a book at the book burning, she gives her the ‘window of opportunity’ (Zusak, pg. 155) inviting her into her library and sharing her own love of books with Liesel. The reader eventually learns that Ilsa is still mourning the loss of her own son many years before. Ilsa takes Liesel into her care after the tragedy of the bombing raids that results in the death of Hans and Rosa leaving Liesel traumatised and

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695 Words | 3 Pages

World War 1 was a trench war that lasted four years and involved many nation states. The war started with a spark, the spark was when Franz Ferdinand an Archduke was assassinated by a Serbian terrorist group called Black Hand. The terrorist group set a plan to kill Franz Ferdinand but it failed when a member of the group forgot that the bomb he threw at Ferdinand had a delay and it did not kill him. When the other terrorist saw ferdinand coming down the road they were too shocked to do anything so there first plan failed. It was when Ferdinand and his wife were leaving that their driver made the wrong turn and was going by when Gavrilo Princip a member of the terrorist group them and killed Ferdinand and his Wife Sophia.

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840 Words | 4 Pages

Liesel and her father’s relationship grows each and every day they are together. She feels comforted by his presence. “Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father’s eyes. They were made of kindness, and silver… Upon seeing those eyes, understood that Hans Hubermann was worth a lot,” (Zusak Ch 6).

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815 Words | 4 Pages

Books have always been an alternate world to escape to and learn more about the world around you. But that’s a privilege some do not have. In Fahrenheit 451, books and burned at all costs and in The Book Thief, Liesel must steal to be able to read and learn about the world. Within both texts, books play a vital role.

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1144 Words | 5 Pages

Hans Hubermann, Liesel’s foster father, helped Jewish people in whatever way he could. When a Jewish shop named Kleinmann’s was vandalized, Hans asked the owner if he needed any help cleaning up, and promised to come back the next day and paint his door, which he did (Zusak 181-182). Hans delayed applying to the Nazi party because he didn’t agree with their beliefs, and by helping the owner he was put under more suspicion, however he felt that it was a proper action and didn’t allow danger to stop him. In addition to Hans act of kindness, the Hubermanns took a Jew named Max into their care, and allowed him to stay with them to be safe. In a book overview, Tabitha Hall observes, “Though not Jewish, Liesel and her foster parents struggle as they keep their Jewish friend hidden…” (“Overview: The Book Thief”).

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1721 Words | 7 Pages

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.

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978 Words | 4 Pages

At first, Liesel is illiterate, but when she steals her first book at her brother’s funeral, and is abandoned by her mother, she turns to something she

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2175 Words | 9 Pages

One of the most important recurring themes throughout The Book Thief was Liesel’s relationships with all of the people in her life. She grows close with several different people, and trusts, loves, and cares for them all differently but equally. Three of those relationships will be explored more deeply; Liesel’s relationship with her foster father, Hans Hubermann, the Jewish man her family takes in, Max Vanderburg, and her best friend, Rudy Steiner. Liesel’s relationship with Hans is one of the most important, if not the most important, relationships in the novel. Hans is the first person Liesel trusts, and the person who stays with her and loves her until the end.

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470 Words | 2 Pages

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.

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1301 Words | 6 Pages

He killed himself for wanting to live” (Zusak 503). While Michael deals with guilt by self destructing, Liesel, the main character, handles guilt using other methods. Liesel encounters guilt through the death of her loved ones in addition to the sadness of losing everything she had. She deals with this guilt by stealing books and reading with her Papa. By stealing books, she achieved the famous nickname, the Book Thief.

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1008 Words | 5 Pages

Max and Liesel gain a very strong friendship until he must leave for the family’s safety. In the end, the Allied Powers bomb the city, leaving Liesel as the lone survivor, leaving Liesel to face an extremely difficult time. In the end, the narrator, Death, reunites her with Max. Liesel lives a wonderful life and passes peacefully. In the novel, The Book Thief, Zusak proves the satisfaction found in corruption and harmful choices

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