The Book Thief Strength Of Words

In the novel, The Book Thief, author Markus Zusak illustrates the theme that words have the potential to be more harmful than physical violence, if used in the wrong way.

There is a part where we watch as humans are so ugly that it is hard for us to imagine that what they had done is possible. Liesel is playing soccer in the park and all of a sudden all the kids stop because of a noise they hear coming down the street. They think it could be a herd of cattle, but that not what it is. It is a group of Jewish people being led, or forced, to the death camps by German soldiers. On there way we watch a man die “He was dead. The man was dead. Just give him five minutes and he would surely fall into the German gutter and die. They would all let him, and they would all watch”(Zusak 393). This is talking about how when a Jewish person would die, the Germans wouldn’t do anything. They wouldn’t care that a man died right in front of them. While the Jews are walking Hans, Liesel adopted father, gives them bread. While Hans is giving this man bread a German soldier notices what is going on. He walks over to the man and, “The Jew was whipped six times. On his back, his heart, and

“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.

Liesel is characterized as a girl full of courage and her unwillingness to back down. An example of her courageous mentality is when Ludwig Schmeikl bullies her because of her inability to read. The narrator explains, “(Liesel) stood up and took the book from him... she threw it away and kicked him as hard as she could” (82). This scene shows that Liesel is not afraid of standing up for herself and does not back down from Ludwig. Instead she retaliates back against him, bringing him to the floor. While she may be

Liesel ran into conflicts on page 103 when Rosa was discussing issues with her husband, “The Huberman's couldn't find the flag. ‘They'll come for us’ mama warned her husband’ they'll come and take us away.” This flag symbolizes Nazi,Germany which was portrayed as a “pass” that they were part of Hitler's following. Without the Nazi flag, she had to understand that her family would become suspected of not being a member, thus be taken away to an unknown place, thus she must learn to stay silent. Liesel enjoyed books and on Hitler's birthday she stole two books. By doing so she learned that she is limited to certain information and she can't know everything that she is curious about. She mentions one of the books she found talks about a Jew “presented in a positive light” which is punishable by authorities(Zusak 143). She got scolded by Rosa on how she should be reading the Mein Kampf (Zusak 105). The Mein Kampf was written by Hitler based on his ideologies and views on changing Germany according to “Mein Kampf is published” by History.com.Since Germany was against Jews they did not enjoy the idea of having them in a powerful role or position. Liesel had to understand what was right and wrong especially touchy subjects revolving around Jews since it could cause trouble for not just her but her

The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak, outlines the tragedies and events that take place in Liesel Meminger’s life, in Nazi Germany. Throughout this young girl’s struggle of living in the oppressive Nazi regime, she is able to learn crucial lessons about life and the art of survival- some that follow her to the grave. The most important lesson she learned and the pivotal theme of the novel is that rebellion can be and beneficial in certain situations.

When Max moved into the Hubermann’s basement, it was a favor for the person that saved Hans’s life, “‘He saved my life’” (Zusak 179). This is where we need to understand the power of words and see that they are the difference between life and death. When Hans make this promise, not knowing that the power of his words was going to affect him in the future, it really was the difference between the life and death. Next, there was the situation with the bombing in Molching. When Death is collecting the souls in the Hubermann household, as said by Death, “But there was no Liesel in that house. Not for me, anyways” (Zusak 532). During this time, Liesel was writing her own book in the basement. The words were powerful, and in this lucky situation, they literally did save her life. Again, understanding that there is so much power within one person with words. They come from people and they are able to create amazing stories and say amazing things with them. It is amazing how powerful one book can be with all the words in it. By way of contrast, words still do have the power to ruin lives. During this time period, Hitler had so much power with his words. To further explain, “The words. Why did they have to exist? Without them, there wouldn’t be any of this. Without words, the Fuhrer was nothing. There would be no limping prisoners, no need for consolation or worldly tricks to make us feel better. What good were the words?”

Max Vandenburg, who was a very supportive boy of Liesel, always helped her during her worst times and even her best times. Max had missed Liesel’s 12th birthday so he made her a little gift. He took a book called Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler, but made it his own called The Standover Man. He gave this book to Liesel as it symbolizes how people have always stood over him in his life to help him just like Liesel has. “During that week, Max had cut out a collection of pages from Mein Kampf and painted over them in white. He then hung them up with pegs on some string, from one end of the basement to the other … Only then, on the paper that had bubbled and humped under the stress of drying paint, did he begin to write the story. It was done with a small black paintbrush” (Zusak 223). This quote reflects the power of words because Max is doing this for Liesel since they are good friends, and since it's her birthday. This comes to show that Max is about positive words towards his friends, but mainly Liesel.

The book 's importance is explained through Death where ‘“The books meaning 1. The last time she saw her brother. 2. The last time she saw her mother.” Despite Liesel being illiterate, the Gravedigger’s handbook holds significant meaning for the character. Liesel has an overwhelming feeling of loss of control and acts out in rebellion to steal the book that lay beside her brothers grave. By stealing the book, she has a reminder of her small family and it stops her feeling defeated by her ever changing life, which she has no control over. This idea is then reinforced with another action of the character. Liesel then finds out that Hitler was the cause of the suffering and loss of freedom of the people she loved and knew in her life.This second act of rebellion takes place while Liesel visits a Nazi book burning. Liesel soon understands that the Nazi’s burnt books to brainwash citizens of Germany(_____). As a result of this Lisel then understands the importance and power words have, causing her to again acts rebelliously in a protest. “And it was anger and dark hatred that had fueled her desire to steal it.” This passage from the novel shows the emotions of Liesel. As a character who is unable to express herself verbally, her actions speak for her. Liesel 's desire to understand words begins to grow, with her understanding that Nazis burn books in fear of what they may do to society.

This distinctness is not unexpected, for as one’s strengths and beliefs are personal, as is the effect of events effecting those strengths and beliefs. Wiesel and Ten Boom state the purpose of their self-exposed stories clearly, and their purposes differ just as clearly. Wiesel stresses the importance of applying lessons of the past to the present for the sake of the world’s future. He writes to create a feeling of such horror and catharsis within the reader to prevent the evil of the Holocaust or any type of unjust persecution to ever occur again. He opens the reader’s eyes with vividly horrible images of human suffering and creates no barrier

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.

The tumultuous event of World War Two Germany reveals the human’s desire for strength. Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief explores the human need for feeling powerful and the lengths people will go to obtain it. When Liesel first arrives at the Hubermann’s she feels powerless, she attains power through stealing books and learning how to read. Rudy Steiner also longing for power tries to obtain it through standing out and impressing people. Max Vandenburg, a Jewish fist fighter hiding in the Hubermann’s basement feels weak since he has little control over his life. He gains strength by fighting for his own survival through imagination and words. Zusak allows readers to relate to the novel by using the characters struggle for power to depict

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

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