Book Thief Themes

The Book Thief is a historical fiction novel by Markus Zusak set in Munich, Germany during the Nazi reign from 1936-1943. The novel incorporates a main character that is, in the beginning, an innocent child who doesn't understand the world and takes her on a journey where she grows up and matures through the hardships and challenges of her life. The story is narrated by the character Death, who is a fresh take on the Grim Reaper, only wearing the black cloak when it's cold and never carries a syte. Death describes the life Liesel Meminger, an orphaned girl who witnesses her brother's death and burial and finds herself being adopted by the benevolent old couple, the Hubermanns. The rest of the story follows Liesel's journey through her incredibly challenging life with the Hubermanns and characters such as Rudy, The mayor's wife, and Max helping her along. Symbolism in The Book Thief deepens the story by conveying many different ideas and emotions that supports the reader's understanding of the story. This is especially apparent with the use of the gravediggers to help the reader remember characters, the use of color to help the reader feel the proper emotions and remember the correct events, and the use of Liesel's changing feelings about Rudy to convey how Liesel grows and matures through the book.

“The power of words, written or spoken, have life. They can change the world.” (search quotes). The power of words should not be underestimated. Liesel proves this to be true in the novel and the film The Book Thief. She uses words to develop relationships with her foster father, Hans Hubermann; Max Vandenburg, the illicit Jew in her basement; and her neighbours. In the novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak there is much more relationship development compared to the film The Book Thief directed by Brian Percival. This consequently causes the theme of the power of words to be less prominent in the film.

Philip K. Dick, a notable author, once said “There exists, for everyone, a sentence - a series of words - that has the power to destroy you. Another sentence exists, another series of words, that could heal you. If you're lucky you will get the second, but you can be certain of getting the first.” The Book Thief explores an array of themes but none more meaningful than the power of language to heal and destroy. The novel follows the life of Liesel Meminger, who learns how much words can influence her life in minuscule ways. Learning the alphabet and creating words was one the first ways that Hans and Liesel bonded. They would sit in the basement for long hours writing words on the wall. The power of words also brought Max and Liesel together. Liesel would describe the weather to him when was trapped in the basement. Hitler used the power words to spread propaganda of racism and hatred. Ultimately, it’s Liesel’s words in her journal she leaves behind after the bombing that institutes the emotional connection Death feels to her. The power of words is the most important theme in The Book Thief.

In the Book thief, there were many books that Liesel read, and all of them were a symbol for something. However, these three, while being simple when first looked at, are actually full of symbolism and are able to convey the situations and feelings of the characters in a way that the realistic actions of the characters themselves are unable

The Book Thief is set in the time of World War 2 where the Holocaust is present and disaster is everywhere. Throughout the story, Liesel, the main character, learns that words are extremely powerful and hold the ability for people to use them for good or for evil. Among the disaster and altercations, Liesel uses her literature to comfort her and make herself more powerful due to her knowledge, which demonstrates the theme of the story, the comfort and power of literature and words softens the pain of loss.

Her enthusiastic attitude can only be calmed down by the sound of Papa’s accordion. Nothing can come in between her and her words, not the darkness of the room, and of course not even the Nazi Germans. Furthermore, in the book A Girl Made of Darkness, it is shown that Liesel is intrigued by the smallest thing in life as she questions her parents about her Christmas present (Zusak, 89). Understand her family situation, Liesel is not expecting for any present for Christmas, however her dad has been able to trade cigarettes for some books . To most of us, when we receive presents we will just accept the present, no questions asked. On the contrary,many questions have been proliferating in Liesel’s mind when Papa gives her the gifts. Not to mention another obvious evidence is when Max first arrived at the Hubermann’s house. As can be seen, Zusak has portrayed Liesel as the book thief because her inquisitive characteristic indicate those who questions the Nazi German

The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak shows how the impact on the power of language has on Liesel Meimeger through the structure of the novel. The structure of the novel shows the development of the character Liesel, highlighting the impact of the power of language. In her development, she finds the ability to express herself as well as to connect to others. Books become a comfort to her and heal her, they help her grow strong relationships with other characters in her life. However, she also sees the damage words have caused through Nazi propaganda, understanding that Hitler 's words have been the cause of suffering of the people in her life. Despite this, the structure of the novel shows the ability of the character to understand that

In the novel The book Thief, Markus Zusak explores that death and war are often more difficult for those who survive. At the center of the text is the idea that those who are left behind after tragedy suffer greatly. This is revealed through the hardship of life and experience a gentle transition. This was shown as an experience of Liesel who struggles as well as the other characters that have difficult processing their grief and guilt. Zusak’s novel acts to alert his readers the dangers of war and by the hardship of life and experience a gentle transition.

When Liesel arrives in Molching she is unable to read or write. Hans Hubermann teaches Liesel to read when he discovers that she has a book. Thereupon Liesel learns to love reading. She decides to record the story of her life in a notebook given to her by Ilsa Herman. This decision leads to Liesel’s survival during the bombing of Himmel Street. "Only

Manga artist Natsuki Takaya once said “...even the smallest of words can be the ones to hurt you, or [the ones to] save you” (Takaya). The significance of words makes up the outcome to decisions. The simple use of words creates mended relationships and protected lives. Words save and hurt people but they are used for the same reasons, these words fix emotional struggles and give answers to the brutality of the unknown. In the novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, words and stories become a valued equalizer. Liesel and many other characters are victims of this equitable doing. Initially, words and stories lead to complete understanding of situations and create contrasting emotions. Furthermore, emotional struggles can be

After losing her mother and her brother, Liesel’s life and identity is changed drastically many times. It is through books that she discovers and becomes comfortable with this change. When she first meets Hans and Rosa Hubermann, her new foster parents, she does not wish to speak with them or get to know them. However, once Hans discovers Liesel with the book she stole when her brother was buried, The Gravedigger’s Manual, they bond over Hans teaching Liesel to read. Liesle describes the first time her and Hans have a lesson in the middle of the night: “She had done this at school, in the kindergarten class, but this time was better. … It was nice to watch Papa’s hand as he wrote the words and slowly constructed the primitive sketches” (Zusak

Do you like war? Do you despise war? Have you ever attempted to help someone during a war, probably not though? In The Book Thief, there is a girl named Liesel who were adopted by Hans and Rosa Hubermann and they helped harbor a Jew during WWII. In The Things They Carried, is about a soldier named Jimmy Cross who adores an English major named Martha and then one of the soldiers’ gets shot and assassinated which makes Jimmy forget about Martha and become a better leader. In The Book Thief and The Things They Carried have some similarities and differences and some of them I’ll explain with literary devices. The theme for The Book Thief is death/war/brutality and the theme for The Things They Carried is to focus on what’s more important than yourself.

The olive branch is known worldwide as a symbol of peace. The eagle is the symbol of freedom. Going deeper, the swastika is the symbol of Nazism. Symbols have very large impacts on the way a person sees things and these symbols can influence decisions.

When he learns about her book thievery, he begins to teach her how to read using the books she steals. Liesel’s foster mother, Rosa Hubermann, runs a washing an ironing business, and is very strict and is mean to Liesel sometimes, but the girl always knows she loves her. She also meets Rudy Steiner, a little boy with a dream of becoming an Olympic runner, and they quickly become best

There are three themes for The Book Thief. The themes that are big in this book are caring, prejudice, and identity. Caring is one of the main themes in The Book Thief because Rosa always acts like she is mad and hates Liesel by using foul language toward her, but she really cares for Liesel and would do anything to keep her from getting hurt. She’s strict because she cares about Liesel and Hans. The next main theme is prejudice.