The Role Of War In Markus Zusak's The Book Thief

We all wonder what courage stands for, what courage means. Does it reflect on a person's performance or their actions? Courage was shown in many different forms and appearances throughout the Holocaust, whether it was the courageous actions of one man alone, who saved thousands of innocent people or others, who volunteered to be imprisoned in Auschwitz, the biggest concentration camp there was. Unlike some of these heroes, A set of twins still lives to tell the tales. The twin sisters endured the harshest of experiments at the hands of a doctor. Markus Zusak also portrayed a realistic story when he wrote the novel 'The Book Thief' which was set in Nazi Germany. As you read through the pages you begin to follow a young girl who was growing up in the Holocaust. Courage does not mean you do not get afraid, it is doing what you are afraid to do. Courage means you do not let fear stop you. Courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying "I will try again tomorrow."

“‘Book burning’ refers to the ritual destruction by fire of books or other written materials. Usually carried out in a public context, the burning of books represents an element of censorship and usually proceeds from a cultural, religious, or political opposition to the materials in question.” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum)

The Book Thief’s main character is Liesel Meminger throughout the book she develops more and more by opening up and doing new things. At first she was very shy and would not do hardly anything for example, “It took nearly fifteen minutes to coax her from the car. It was the tall man who did it. Quietly.”(28) That is when she first got out of the car “There was the gate next, which she clung to.”(28) This shows all the more how shy she was at the beginning of the book when she first arrived on Himmel Street. Then as the book goes on she starts to adopt her foster-mother, Rosa or Mama’s style of speaking and starts cussing some when talking to her best friend, Rudy and even the mayors wife when she terminated her mothers washing and ironing

“When Liesel arrived in Molching, she had at least some inkling that she was being saved, but that was not a comfort” (Zusak 23). Liesel Meminger from The Book Thief was a very dynamic character throughout her story. She showed how strong she could be, but she was still haunted by her past. Although many misfortunes came to her, she tried not to let them get to her and stayed strong-minded. She was not afraid to put herself in danger to protect the ones she loved. At the beginning of the story, she would not even go into the Hubermann’s in fear of what would happen. However, she realized by the end of the story that they were her true family. She was an angry girl who despised her new family, but that all changed. Liesel Meminger from The Book

Alphonse Elric from Full Metal Alchemist says, "humankind cannot gain anything without first giving something in return. To obtain, something of equal value must be lost." In the novel, The Book Thief, Markus Zusak portrays the multiple transactions humanity experiences but in return, they put their self at risk for defying others of higher power through some of those transactions. For example, the older character's transactions with people of lower stature, the young adults' dangerous interactions and the children's exchanges with the enemies all defy the Nazi party. Therefore, through their transactions, the characters of all ages show forms for resistance towards the Nazi regime.

In the tale, “The Book Thief,” Leisel’s life is changed when she loses her entire family, and she feels powerless, like she has no control over what will happen to her. This is relatable to me because I have gone through events in my life that have created a sense of powerlessness as well. When I was seven, I had to move to Rapid City, and I had no input on the situation.

Love is the most powerful force between two people. The Book Thief is written by Markus Zusak. The book takes place in Nazi Germany during World War II. A young girl, Liesel, went through very traumatic events and was sent to live with a foster family. In the beginning her foster mother, Rosa Hubermann, did not give much love to her. However her foster father, Hans Hubermann, was willing to give his love to Liesel and didn’t treat her any different that one of his children. Her foster family is doing the most forbidden act in Nazi Germany. They are hiding a Jew in their basement. Make summary longer. Many characters in the novel were healed through love, but three main characters that were healed were Liesel, Max, and Rudy. Markus Zusak wrote The Book Thief to show the

Markus Zusak’s engrossing book, The Book Thief, takes place in the outskirts in Nazi Germany. 33 Himmel Street is the new home of a Communist daughter, Liesel, who has just seen things that many people may have not seen, throughout their lives. She has been brought to this foster home because of World War II. She gets to know a Jew and he, without knowing, teaches her about the war. She finds a true friend in Rudy Steiner, who longs for a kiss from her. She also happens to live with an altered father, who pulled in many directions by this war. The novel suggests that war exposes people to experiences, both good and bad, that they have never encountered before.

“Even death has a heart” (Zusak 242). Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief is a novel of love, death, and survival. This novel consists of the love of a parent, the death of a friend, and the survival for those who are strong willed. Many were not compatible with the traumatizing events throughout the history of World War II, resulting with population decreases. Zusak’s The Book Thief is a story, narrated by Death, of Liesel Meminger and all her accounts with death and how she coped through it all; her survival was all through words. Throughout the novel, Death repeatedly adds his own thoughts and feelings of Liesel and the events around him. The Book Thief makes readers realize the power that words can have; we as readers just have to pay attention

In Markus Zusak’s historical fiction novel, The Book Thief, Death, the narrator of the novel, expresses that, The quote appears in the end of Part Five where Death is narrating and reflecting on the day he claims to never forget― the day Death carried the corpses of hundreds of thousands of Jews to freedom. Death is, yet again, vindicating to the readers that he is sympathetic towards the humans that he’ll inevitably collect one day, but he especially merciful to the souls of Jews― one to which a readers can relate. In addition, Death provides readers with the terrible realities of the Holocaust as he incorporates the atrocities

“The bad thing that happens today could be paving the way for the good things coming tomorrow. Trust the process.” - Mandy Hale. I used to think that because Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief had a setting in Nazi Germany that this novel would have a melancholy, depressing mood. Now, I realize that one of the themes of The Book Thief is that good things can come out of bad.

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.

Zusak uses many literary devices to portray his theme, one being characterization. Whenever, Liesel’s new father, Hans Hubermann, makes the decision to give a poor, dying

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.