The Role Of Identity In The Book Thief

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.

Rhetorical reading helps the reader understand what is happening in a novel, and how to interpret it. There will be a part one, part two, and a part five explained in this essay by using this tool. The novel used for this is, The Book Thief, it takes place during World War II with an adventure of a little girl named Liesel Meminger and her life through this time in history. She soon learns what it’s like to let go of loved ones and how to overcome fear. Liesel starts this journey only at nine and continues until she is an older woman. The next following paragraphs show Liesel’s life towards the beginning and middle of the novel.

“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.” This is a quote said by Death in the novel The Book Thief. Death says this quote while witnessing a young boy named Rudy giving a stuffed teddy bear to a dying enemy fighter pilot. In this quote, Death is stating that he sees many people come and go. And through his time, Death sees that people can be both good and bad. While saying this quote, Death wonders how humans can possess two completely opposite characteristics. To me, this quote means that humans can show both positive qualities and negative qualities. Throughout the text, we see both the ugliness and beauty in characters such as Liesel, Hans, and Rudy.

In 1938, young orphan Liesel arrives at the home of her new foster parents, Hans and Rosa. When Hans, a kindly house painter, learns that Liesel cannot read. He teaches her the wonders of the written language. Liesel grows to love books, even rescuing one from a Nazi bonfire. Though Liesel's new family barely scrape by, their situation becomes even more uncertain when they secretly shelter a Jewish boy whose father once saved Hans' life.

Response: Books have comforted Liesel Meminger during times where she had been struggling with feelings many people today have not had to cope with. The first instance of a book easing Liesel’s feeling was The Gravedigger’s Handbook. The main reason that Liesel loved this book so much was because it was one of the few memories of her deceased brother and mother. On page 24, Liesel took the book after one of the gravediggers, who buried her brother, dropped it. After Liesel was adopted by the Hubermann family, she constantly had late night terrors about her brother and her mother. However, her new father, Hans Hubermann, would comfort her and have his “midnight class” where he slowly read The

Imagine growing up in a society filled with hate, depression, starvation, and lots of Death everywhere. While your are moving to a new town to live with a foster family, your brother dies, and you are left with nothing but your basic understanding of the world and very few many friends. One of the only things that you can relate to is words and books, so you loose yourself in the world of books during to shield yourself from the cold, outside world full of war and violence. That is how it was for Liesel Meminger, a young girl growing up in Nazi Germany during World War II whose life is focused on in in Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief. Reading not only enriched Liesel’s life with the amazing stories and images formed through the vivid words of books, but it helped to distract and sustain her from the nearly inevitable, wretched Death of her time.

Her father Hans Hubermann is the best father anyone could ask for. “Pappa grinned and pointed at the girl . ‘Book,sandpaper, pencil,’ he ordered her, ‘and acordeon!’ once she was already gone” (70).This was taken from the part of the book where Liesel and her father really start to become good friend bonding over writing, books, and the accordion. Liesel's mom on the other hand is very tough and believes in using force to teach her children so that they will listen to her and treat her with respect. Throughout the book Liesel starts to melt her heart and you can see her softening up to her “‘You told me to yell at you. You said they would all believe it’ she looked left and right, her voice like a needle and thread. ‘He woke up, Liesel. He’s awake’” (332). The last character is Rudy he plays the role of a young boy who is in love from the very beginning to the very end of knowing Liesel. Throughout the book Rudy would ask for a kiss and every time Liesel would refuse. Though as both of them start to grow older Liesel realizes that she might like him as more than a friend and starts hoping for a kiss as well. Sadly it is not till the end that they both get there wish just as Rudy

Human nature is full of complexities. It has inclinations towards violence as well as kindness and empathy – both at different times. These complexities are baffling for one to keep up with. These complexities are clearly emphasized in Markus Zusak’s novel, ‘The Book Thief’. Taking place during the Holocaust, Liesel Meminger loses her family members and she then lives with her foster parents, the Hubermans. While she creates wonderful memories with Rudy, mama, papa and other members, Molching is bombed in the end, killing everyone but Liesel. In this book, Zusak uses archetypal characters and symbols to show the complex human nature and how far one can go in terms of kindness and cruelty. The mentor, Hans, shows the act of kindness while the villain, Hitler shows so much cruelty that most of the people living in

The Book Thief written by Markus Zusak is a novel about a young girl named Liesel living in Nazi Germany. Her whole world is turned upside down at the young age of nine when her brother dies and she is separated from her mother. This story is unique in the sense that it is not narrated by Liesel, but instead by death, giving us insight on all perspectives throughout the book.

Everyone has to grow up. It is apart of human nature, getting old, growing taller, and experiencing life; however, everyone grows up differently in the world. In the late 20th early 21st century book The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini the main character has to learn to find his identity by growing up with guilt hanging on his back. His experiences and learning how to make amends with friends, dealing with oscillating beliefs that differ from the government, and trying to find himself which eventually lead to his self-actualization in which made growing up hard but all worth it. Similarly, in the book The Book Thief by Markus Zusak the main character is learning how to find herself and self-actualize in the world with a government that deterred children from having their own thoughts, her desire for learning, and her

As she gets to her foster parents house, Rosa and Hans Hubermann she is not willing to go in the house but is forced to by her mother. As she meets Hans and Rosa she has an amiddit connection to Hans and likes him but she is not so sure about Rosa. Liesel starts school but does not know how to read. She meets a boy named Rudy who is her best friend. One night Hans finds Liesel's book and teaches her how to read.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is classified as a historical fiction novel because it tells a story that takes place during a tragic period in human history. This book reminds readers of the unspeakable acts that occurred during World War II under the Nazi Regime in Germany. The book focuses on the life of a nine year old girl, Liesel Meminger, living in Germany during this period of history. Markus Zusak was significantly influenced by his parent’s stories of their personal experiences of what living through World War II and more importantly the Holocaust was like for them. Although Liesel herself is a fictional character, the events that take place as well as the town names and actions throughout the book are historically accurate which classifies this novel as a historic fiction.

“The Book Thief” is a novel written by Markus Zusak. The story follows a nine-year-old girl named Liesel Meminger as she adapts to her new home in Molching, Germany during World War II. She is forced to live with a foster family, the Hubermanns, after the death of her brother and the separation from her mother. During the time at her new home, Liesel falls in love with books, resulting in her decision to steal several. Also, despite the dangers of harbouring a Jew in Nazi Germany, she decides to hide one in their basement. Throughout the story, Liesel’s friends and family help her overcome difficulties and find her identity. The people who have impacted Liesel’s character the most are her foster father Hans Hubermann, Rudy Steiner and the

Society shapes our identities and who we are as a person which contributes to how our future turns out but sometimes the paths we are led down are not always the direction we would choose, through the novel's ‘Room’ by Emma Donoghue, ‘The Book Thief’ by Markus Zusak and the films ‘Girl Interrupted’ directed by James Mangold, ‘Sucker Punch’ directed by Zack Snyder, the character’s hardships are shown through the protagonist's lives. The novels both similarly follow children who are exposed to a less than normal world and a harsh version of reality. The Book Thief follows a young girl whose whole life is turned upside down after she loses her mother and brother due to events surrounding WW11 and is then placed in

It seems sometimes like the market for young adult literature is written down to the readers, almost in a condescending manner. That is why a book like The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is so refreshing in this sea of cookie cutter romances and fantasies. While classified as a young adult novel, it deals with very serious themes. The book’s cover comes printed with this label: “It is 1939. Nazi Germany. The country is holding its breath. Death has never been busier, and will become busier still.” It is a dark allusion to what is to come. But Zusak makes this story more accessible to the audience he is writing to and does this by creating identifiable characters, by bringing humor into