The Book Thief Analysis

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a girl living in Nazi Germany through perspective of death. Just nine years old when her brother dies and her mother leaves her in the care of the Hubermanns, Lisel turns to the comfort of books to ease her pain. However, as she grows up the innocent words in her books lead her to discover the immense pain words carry through the horrific doings of Hitler, a man beloved by many Germans. The portrayal of life in Nazi Germany depicted by the Book Thief is accurate due to events in the book such as the book burning, the Hitler Youth, encounters of hate shown to Jews, and Germany’s invasion of Russia.

Liesel’s empowerment stems from three sovereign aspects, from discovering the influence of words through books, to discovering new ideas and concepts, and revolting against the horrific Nazi agenda. The younger generation in The Book Thief during Nazi Germany shows a constant hope for the Jewish people in the future. Liesel’s empowerment not only benefits her, but it benefits other people as well, like Max. “Now I think we are friends, this girl and me. On her birthday it was she who gave a gift to me” (Max 35.20) this quote reveals the trust that Max has put into Liesel because of her strong willed empowerment, which gives him strength to keep continuing his journey with the family.

In passage two, The Book Thief, Markus Zusak uses a third person omniscient point-of-view in order to tell the story of Liesel and Rudy, to clarify details of a scene from the narrator’s point-of-view in which this case is Death. Death describes all the main characters’ thoughts and emotions The advantage to using this perspective in this scene is that the reader is able to know the entire scene which is being played out in terms of the narrator being able to tell the reader about the feelings of the characters and the entire scene. However, this type of narration can in fact confuse the reader which can cause the reader feels as though he is looking at characters rather than being a character. This view point also can cause readers perspective

Liesel Meminger is the daughter of Paula Meminger. She is also the sister of late Warren Meminger. Consequently, she steals the first book in the novel, called The Gravedigger's Handbook. Therefore, Death gave her the nickname of “ the book thief” before us knowing that she would become “the book thief”. Liesel Meminger is the hardworking, book-thieving, kind-hearted protagonist of The Book Thief. She loves books so much that she steals them, even before knowing how to read. All of this started because stealing books reminds her of Warren Meminger. This is even she bonds more with Hans Hubermann, her foster father, dedicates his time to teach her how to read. We might be asking, why hasn’t she gotten an education at the age of 10. The answer is not as clear as others, but it definitely has to do with Liesel father’s communist affiliations. He was part of the German Communist Party, that was popular when Hitler took over. This is also the reason why she had to be fostered.

As Liesel grows up, she steals books more often and it begins to become a habit of hers. Each book impacted Liesel in a specific way and she begins to use the words that she has learned from her books to help her grow and prosper, as well as to help her with her journey and experiences. Liesel begins to have an obsession with stealing these books and her obsession is ironic in many ways.

Liesel and Max are very similar because they both have nightmares. Liesel has nightmares of her brother on that train and Max has nightmares of Hitler and he's fighting Hitler. .Liesel feels guilt for being able to live and her brother dying on that train .Max feels similar because he left his family and did not even look back and now he is being saved by Germans and he is a Jew. Max gives Liesels life purpose because she feels like she has someone to take care of. They become friends when max open up to her and shares difficult times in his life. The Standover Man is given to Liesel on her birthday and it is about Max and the things he has struggled with as a Jew. He feels as if people are always standing over him and controlling him, like Hitler for example. He feels that Liesel is his standover person that watches over him all the time and cares for him . In it Max said "all my life I've been scared of men standing over me". (Zusak 225) He feels as though he and Liesel are so strong that no one can tear them down and that's what the book represents. Word Count:

The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak takes place in 1940s Nazi Germany in the small town of Molching. The main character, Liesel Meminger, takes on a role as the foster child of Hans and Rosa Hubermann. She also meets a young boy named Rudy Steiner who goes on to be her best friend and lover. Throughout the book Liesel faces many challenges big and small. From hiding a Jew in the basement to a thieving lifestyle, Liesel has to learn to overcome all of life's problems. Throughout all of this she is supported by her foster father Hans Hubermann who is caring to people he barely knows, intelligence despite his lack of education, and generosity even when he has little for himself.

Relationship to meaning - As a metaphysical and ubiquitous being who is able to provide an intimate yet well-informed recount of various experiences undergone by several characters, Death’s role as the narrator allows the novel to depict both virtues and vices of humanity in the most compelling manner.

Relationship to meaning: Deaths point of view is important because he tells you all of his experiences he has come across people dying. The bad part about death narrating the story, is that you cannot feel the characters emotions and feelings.

In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, words can be very powerful. Words can either break a person down or build them up. There are several examples in this story where words either bring people together or tear them apart. While words prove to both heal and hurt in this story, the healing words leave a longer and lasting mark on the person that is being healed, while the damaging ones do less to hurt than the comforting ones do to help.

Liesel exhibits her newfound reasoning on Adolf Hitler to Hans Hubermann. Liesel’s new reasoning is finally deciphered from the fact that she realizes her mom is a communist. Hitler had Liesel’s mom taken away as he loathes communism. In this situation, the negative power of words comes into play. Liesel’s mom is labeled, negatively, as a “communist”, and she is taken away from Liesel. Liesel spells out her great dislike for her leader, and she starts to acquire power. Hans Hubermann persuades Liesel to keep quiet, but Liesel starts to manifest positive power. Due to this ordeal, Liesel acquires a new book, The Shoulder Shrug. With this new book, Liesel furthers her reading and writing skills. These skills are important as they will lead Liesel to empowering the people in the bomb shelters by her soothing

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.

Through all of the irony and vivid coloring, The Book Thief is more easily understood after acquiring knowledge of reading literature with greater care and meticulousness. Applying chapters of How to Read Literature like a Professor can better enhance a reader’s awareness of hidden messages and symbols within certain works of literature. In Chapter Two, Foster explains how meals suggest a communion between all parties involved in it. Markus Zusak also uses meals and food to bring families together in The Book Thief. Foster also explains, in Chapter Eleven, how violence in literature usually stands for more than just violence.

During the Holocaust, one of the most terrible events that has occured in human history, six million Jews were murdered by the Nazis. Throughout The Book Thief, the protagonist, an almost ten year old, blond-haired, brown-eyed girl named, Liesel Meminger life is changed when her brother dies and mother leaves her with her new foster family. However, throughout her stay in Himmel Street it has allowed her to slowly mature into adulthood. This was because of her stolen books. The three out of the ten books that have helped Liesel grow were: The Grave Digger’s Handbook, The Shoulder Shrug, and The Standover Man.

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