"I have hated the words and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right" (528.) In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, the power of words is a reoccuring theme that leads to Liesel forming a strong bond with a tall man with silver eyes, a feather haired jew, and a woman with fluffy hair that is always in a bathrobe, and changes all of their lives. Words are dangerous and beautiful, they can tear worlds apart and rebuild them, they can hurt and heal, and they are one of the most powerful forces on Earth. In The Book Thief, Liesel Meminger recognises the power of words, and rather than using them like Hitler did, out of hatred, she uses language to fight against injustice and share her thoughts. Words help Liesel connect to 3 specific people, that all change the course of her life through words. Hans Hubermann: the silver-eyed man, Ilsa Hermann: the woman with fluffy white hair, and Max Vandenburg: the feather haired jew. Liesel's story begins with Hans teaching her how to read, and gradually grows to Ilsa sharing her library, and finally, Max inspiring her to write and tell her own story. Liesel’s first experience with words is when she has just begun to live with the Hubermanns, and Hans teaches her the art of reading. It all begins when she is 9, almost 10. She is with her mom and brother on the way to the Hubermanns, where Liesel and her brother will be taken care of. Their mother is a communist and doesn’t want her children taken to concentration camps, so she
Death states that, “I’m always finding humans at their best and worst. I see their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both” (Zusak 491). This book shows us human doing things that weren’t even imaginable before this point. Many people give into ideas that were lies. But, we also watch a few people go out of their way and sacrifice everything for a man they barely even know. They do everything they can to keep him safe and alive. They work harder, the get another job, and they even steal. In Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, death examines the ugliness and the beauty of humans.
“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.
With the power of words, that causes the destruction of Germany and the world, Liesel’s uses that same power to deal with the terror of death that looms over them, allowing her to give power and hope, to those that need it, especially in the midst of the chaos of World War II. Where the German forces were deteriorating, and the Allies only grew stronger with each bomb that they drop, Liesel and her neighbors hide within one of the basements, in attempt to survive the onslaught of attacks, fearfully and anxious. The only things that were with them was each other, and their most precious items, and for Liesel, it was her books. All they could do was wait for sirens, and because of this uncertainty, Liesel took it upon herself to ease her distress.
“The Book Thief” is a novel and film about a girl who survives death during WW2 and how words became very important to her life. Liesel Meminger was brought to her foster home unable to read. Her foster father, Hans, finds out she can’t read and helps teaches her German. Liesel then falls in love with words and uses them to write her story.The theme “power of words” is displayed in the novel and film equally. Three ways the power of words were shown was by making an emotional connection with the audience, influencing people to do something, and creating unlikely friendships.
“The words. Why did they have to exist? Without them, there wouldn't be any of this. Without words, the Führer was nothing.” (Markus Zusak, page 242). At this moment, Liesel was so angry at the words that she tore up a book. She started to realize how much of an effect they can have in the world. Words are a pretty powerful weapon. They can be destructive or productive. Most of the times words are used in The Book Thief, they’re destructive. A good example of this is how Hitler, the Führer, used his words to make everyone dislike the Jews. This grew on and on and led to a big massacre of Jews in Germany. In the novel The Book Thief , the characters Liesel, Hans, and Rudy all inquire a positive and negative impact of words.
“Words are singularly the most powerful force available to humanity. We can choose to use this force constructively with words of encouragement, or destructively using words of despair. Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate and to humble” (Berg, Huffington Post). In The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, a love for the words was able to affect the situation for the better, but also for the worse. We must understand the power of words.
Words are everywhere, words make up books, and the power of words make The Book Thief which will never be able to be improved upon. Words help us communicate with others, but mainly they have positive and negative sides to them. In the novel, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Death narrates the story while Liesel Meminger also tells her story of living in Nazi, Germany. We will discuss how there are many people such as Max Vandenburg and Liesel Meminger who choose to use to use their power of words in the positive way. We will also discuss how people also like to use their power of words in the negative way such as Adolf Hitler. The power of words are very effective especially in Markus Zusak’s writing, and we’ll discuss the main parts of the book which have been effected with the power of words.
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 Book Thief, a work of historical fiction, written by Markus Zusak introduces the main character Liesel Meminger, the reader starts to see how she keeps having many conflicts but always stays positive. Liesel has many conflicts, for example her brother dies early in the book and that shapes the way she is. Later on Liesel steals books and that makes her happy because the first book she stole was the grave digger's handbook and that is how she remembers her brother. Liesel steals and reads books this is how she finds happiness with all the bad things going on around her. In the end of the book most of the people she loves die and it is hard for her to find happiness again. The author uses the setting and point of view to express theme and to make the reader feel sympathy; He uses this because with the theme of finding light in the darkness, deaths perception, and the setting of Germany makes the theme clearer.
Words: Words are something we use everyday to communicate. Words make up sentences and books. We use words to convey meanings, to show feelings, and to communicate. The problem is that most people take this for granted. Most people do not know the power their words have, and the effect they have on other people. The power of words holds a strong meaning in the novel, The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak. During the book, different characters acquire power through their words and language, in both positive and negative ways.
"Words have energy and power with the ability to help, to heal, to hinder, to hurt, to harm, to humiliate, and to humble." (Economy). Consequently, this quote exemplifies the illustrious meaning of words being so powerful that they will never be forgotten and only be remembered by those that they affect most. Words give us the power to communicate and explain our thoughts, which can affect change on others in the society. Therefore, they are not as influential and manipulative as they seem to be. In the novel, The Book Thief, power of words are used as emotion, influential, and building knowledge.
Words, something we blindly hear, listen and feel. Humans do not think twice of the harm or good doing power they possess. In the novel, The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, shows how words can give the characters such robustness during the war. As well as how strong they use their words so they can get out of difficult situations. Adolf Hitler, Max Vandenburg, and Liesel Meminger are characters that hold power throughout the novel in both positive and negative ways.
Words are more influential than thought. Words can have such a powerful impact on how you interpret things, how you feel, and how you can make others feel as well. The word choice used in The Book Thief demonstrates many themes throughout such as death, friendship, guilt, reason, and the struggle between ones inner self and the society in which he is surrounded. As complex as this may sound, the method was used in a simplistic fashion to construct the meaning and details of certain situations through the senses that ultimately capture how the characters take in the world around them. The power of words in the novel The Book Thief is used to control individuals and gain power if rooted from bad intentions; however, the power of words also
The developmental stage of a young child’s life is very crucial and can be impacted by the media. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Liesel Meminger is a young girl living in a very important part of Germany’s history, the Second World War. Liesel’s childhood unfolds and develops against the backdrop of a time when words, books specifically were used for power and control. Liesel is someone who has a love for reading and, as such, books become very important to her, not only for her education but for her rebellion and discovering her true identity. Throughout the novel, books become a crucial symbol used to convey the desires and discovery of identity for the main character as her childish ignorance changes to her mature adulthood.
Words can influence the mind in many ways that thought may not be able to. They are carefully placed and shared in different ways by each and every individual. Words have powerful impacts and can majorly impact how one may think, feel, or even lead others to feel. Written by Markus Zusak, “The Book Thief” describes a story of an innocent foster girl, Liesel Meminger, who resides in Munich, Germany at one of the most troubling time periods in history, Nazi Germany. A tale narrated by the one and only Death himself, shows the perspective from his point of view, as well as others, describing how Liesel had been seized away from her birth mother at a young age, and put into a foster family. Her new family, the Hubermanns. As she matures and grows into a more critical thinker, understanding and analyzing everything that carefully happens around her. Her foster-father, Hans guides her and teaches her how to read, which little does she know sparks her journey, the art of stealing books. Liesel soon discovers that words aren 't simply lines on a page, they are strong emotions packed into a form that merely is held in her delicate hands. Not only did she hold the pages of emotion, she held a power, a dangerous weapon of words, a weapon of control, and every book that she had stolen was giving her unimaginable power that made her think in ways that she would’ve never thought she could have. As with Nazi propaganda, and a gift that enabled her to broaden her worldview. Liesel evolves