The Capability of Human Strength in Markus Zusak´s The Book Thief

"The walked on in silence for a while, until Rudy said, ' I just wish I was like Jesse Owens, Papa.'" (page 60) Racial discrimination and prejudice thrived in the time of Hitler's accession and was a behavior innocent, pure and youthful Rudy Steiner didn't comprehend. All he ever wanted was to be like his role model Jesse Owens. The rest of the world like Hitler saw a negro daring against society's judgment of black people, which is why he didn't shake Jesse Owens' hands when he won in the Olympics. In Rudy's eyes, he saw a courageous and hardworking man who deserved that fourth gold medal. Outside forces like the town and his father tried to put out that fire of passion for running but Rudy doesn't understand their perspective. This is where

In The Book Thief, Markus Zusak uses first person point of view, a dark tone and pathos to reveal the harsh reality that citizens of Germany suffered through

According to Napoleon Bonaparte, courage isn’t having the strength to go on … it’s going on when you don’t have strength. Liesel, Max and Hans are the main characters in “The Book Thief” that have acts of courage entirely change their lives. This novel takes place during WWII in Germany. Countless Jews are desperately looking for the courage to endure the harsh rule of the Nazis. On the other hand there are some Germans who use their courage to stand against the Nazis in their own exceptional ways. The characters in “The Book Thief’ show acts of courage and this greatly affects the course of their life and relationships with other characters.

In Markus Zusak’s, The Book Thief, adversity is an important factor in shaping character. Liesel, Max, Rosa and Hans Hubermann all face hardships that help their character develop.The Book Thief is set in Germany during the time of WW2 when Hitler, the Fuhrer, rose to power. This was a hard time for Rosa and Hans because of their struggle to raise a foster child. It was also tough for Liesel because she had to get accustomed to a new place with different rules, but out of everyone, Max definitely faced a lot of problems.

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.

Themes are inserted within literature by the author in an attempt to provoke readers to think about the topic provided. In the novel, The Book Thief, written by Markus Zusak, many topics are presents, such as, courage, suffering, and human behavior. The most prevalent, however, is the courage possessed by certain individuals. This theme, bravery, is evident throughout the entire course of the novel in Liesel Meminger, the Hubermanns, and Max Vandenburg.

Resilient qualities in a personality exercises one's power on how they could control their outcome in dangerous situations. This quality is overwhelmingly evident in Marcus Zusaks The Book Thief. The main character Liesel Meminger and many others shows readers how a person can endure struggles with sustaining willpower. One by encountering death, two being the more willpower a person has the braver they become, and three, having the trait of courage.

War cannot exist without hatred, and hatred cannot be soothed by more hate; it can only be masked by love. World War II was a time for darkness and death, injustice and inequality. People were subjected to acts of inhumanity and hatred, simply for being who they were, having thoughts and showcasing their opinions. Markus Zusak introduces characters such as Liesel and the Hubermanns, who live in Nazi Germany, in the midst of destruction and horror. The war deeply affects their way of living, bringing unwanted conflict in their lives. In The Book Thief, love is a prominent theme which works to hide and soothe the hatred brought along by the war; Max Vandenburg, a Jewish person, finds that the love shown to him by the Hubermanns overpower the hatred he faces because of how he was born, and Liesel and the Hubermanns learn that showing love when the war comes to Molching can help create a sense of comfort and safety.

Life Is Shaped Through Strength In The Weakest Times Sometimes in life things get hard and it becomes difficult to push through and stay strong. There are some things you can do to help get through the difficult times, for example, having an escape from it all, or not giving up and staying strong. One important thing is not to let the little things bother you and turn into bigger things. Some of the characters from The Book Thief do these things to help overcome problems that they are going through.

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.

Brutality and Beauty are both aspects of the human spirit and therefore are evident in society and have been through the ages. History can be examined to bring forth examples of both, often side by side, often in times of great destruction such as in times of war. In the novel, The Book Thief, Marcus Zusak explores and compares the juxtaposition between great brutality and beauty in the human spirit evident in the German town of Molching during WW2. The author demonstrates how the characters in the novel can overcome cruelty and ruthlessness with acts of extraordinary kindness and humaneness. This is shown through the novel with Max and Liesel’s friendship, when Hans gives one of the Jewish camp prisoners a piece of bread and when Rosa and Hans protect Max from the Nazis. Zusak illustrates that a human’s capacity for hope is difficult to destroy regardless of the circumstances.

Liesel’s life was difficult near the beginning of the novel. She was separated from her parents, and lost her brother. After joining her new foster family, she would have to work harder to adjust to it and it will not be easy. When Liesel was out with Rudy on their apple stealing activities, when Rudy was then caught by one of the nazis from injuring his leg. The nazi then disciplined Rudy by beating him up and they cut also his hair with a knife. After Rudy got disciplined, Liesel carries Rudy to the mayor's house. On page 251 Liesel says “I carried Rudy softly through the broken streets… with him I tried a little harder at comforting.” this shows that she was trying hard to comfort him even though she was already trying to carry Rudy. It shows that even when she’s at one hundred percent, she tries to reach one hundred and 10 percent. Near the end of the novel, on page 528, in the book written by Liesel called The Book Thief and on the last

Hope and courage are two feelings that are only powerful when used together. To be courageous and not hopeful is a suicide mission; on the other hand, having hope and no courage will never give one the urge to oppose the problem. In Markus Zusak’s novel The Book Thief, the whole story is the epitome of courage and hope. During the second world war, the young Liesel Meminger is adopted by the Hubermann family, Hans and Rosa Hubermann, who teach her the power of words, as well as the importance of kindness. Moreover, one of the themes of this novel is the creation of hope from courage, and it is shown through the author’s use of symbolism, allegory, as well as irony.

Mahatma Gandhi once said “An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so. Now the law of nonviolence says that violence should be resisted not by counter-violence but by nonviolence. This I do by breaking the law and by peacefully submitting to arrest and imprisonment.” Markus Zusak’s novel, The Book Thief clearly demonstrates the positive outcome from acts of resistance through exchanges between characters. For instance, Hans displays resistance through his acts of kindness. In addition, Max’s courageous actions portray defiance. Lastly, Liesel uses the power of books and words to defy the Fascistic beliefs. Through exchanges between characters, acts of resistance against the Nazi regime are performed.

In the novel The Book Thief written by Marcus Zusak, Max found himself in a situation where the propaganda that Hitler has set affected his life in many ways. With the help of Liesel’s words and reading and the care that the Hubermanns gave, Max grew stronger and he had the courage to stand up and protect himself from the force that Hitler had set against the him and the Jews. By having the his power of will, Max was fighting Hitler in his own circumstances even if it 's just in his imagination.