Who Is Rosa Hubermann In The Book Thief

Rosa Hubermann was not shy when she was first introduced and you hardly saw a glimpse of her quiet side. When Liesel, was dropped off at Rosa’s house, her first words were harsh towards the girl. She always used the word, Saumensch, which means bastard in english. Besides using harsh words, Rosa had a loving side

throughout the story from a cold-hearted character into a loving and compassionate character. For example, Rosa and Liesel are dropping off the wash for all of the customers and Rosa makes Liesel drop off the wash at the worst house: "What? Mama shoved her, you heard me, saumensch. Move it." (42) In this quote you are able to see the side of Rosa that is cold-hearted as she curses at her child and shoves her to do her job when she herself does not want to do it. Rosa is portrayed as not the best foster mother or even a good foster mother. Rosa consistently displays characteristics of cold-heartedness as she takes out her anger of her own life on others. Later in the story Rosa begins to transform from

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.

Liesel, the book thief herself, steals books in times of pain. All six books Liesel steals are metaphors for the feelings of loss and pain during the time of which the book was stolen. She uses the books to grow knowledge of the situations occurring around her, one stolen book in particular is “The Gravedigger’s Handbook” This book is the first of all books Liesel steals, and it is the book that caused her to grow to love words, coincidently, she finds this book in the snow on the day of her brother’s death, which is when she was filled with grief and abandonment. This book is a symbol for Liesel’s grief and as she tries to learn how to read the book, her twisted comfort in the story shows how the words had a powerful effect on her grieving process shown by the quotation, “…Not to mention the morbidity of the subject. As for the girl, there was a sudden desire to read it that she didn't even attempt to understand” (Zusak, 66)

Liesel Meminger is a main character described in “The Book Thief”. After her mother can no longer support her Liesel and her brother, although he does not make the journey, are sent to a foster home in a small town in Germany called Munich were Liesel meets Hans and Rosa Hubermann or Mama and Papa. Although the initial warming up is hard Liesel soon becomes very close to her Papa. “Over the next few weeks and into summer, the midnight class began at the end of each nightmare” (Zusak,69). Hans teaches Liesel each night how to read and write to ease her mind when all Liesel can think about is her dead brother. Hans truly becomes Papa when Liesel trusts Hans will never let her be

Zusak as the author, demonstrates Liesel as a thief to compare her with other rebellious Germans. Throwback to the book Arrival On Himmel Street, death has written “Her knees entered the ground. Her moment had arrived. Still in disbelief, she started to dig. He couldn’t be dead. He couldn’t be dead. He couldn’t-” (23), these words indicate the similarities between Liesel and many other Germans during the period. As we all have known, during World War II, many German families has to suffer from separation. Childrens are separated from their parents, siblings are supported by each others. Just like Liesel, many in the time were departed from their parents on their way to their foster parents. Unfortunately for some of them, their siblings, who share the same journey with them cannot make it to the destination. Not only Liesel shares faiths with the rebellious German who are affected by the World War II, she is also experiencing the same feeling that they are sensing. They are all angry, they are in disbelief, that their loved ones have left them behind in the lonely world. Correspondingly, in the book The Woman With The Iron Fist, Issa has spoken “This is what I have to put up with, these rich bastards, these lazy swine…”(43). These words have spoken for the majority of Germans at the time. Through the words, the abusive tone of the character Issa, we can clearly see the spark of rebellious. Although these words were not directly from Liesel, we all know that “Who

In Markus Zusak’s novel, The Book Thief, Rosa Huberman gives off a very strong first impression to her foster daughter, Liesel. When Liesel first arrives to her new house, Death describes Rosa as using a “fistful of words” (35). By comparing her words to a fist, Death is implying that her words are powerful and strong. This creates an image of how Liesel perceives Rosa’s personality: overpowering and impactful. For example, in the same sentence, Rosa states , “From now on you call me Mama” (35). By coming off so strong, Rosa is most likely trying to assert herself as a powerful figure in the house. Also, just like being punched by a fist, Rosa’s words left a lasting impact of her personality on Liesel. In addition, it sets a recurring theme

In the beginning of The Book Thief, the reader meets Liesel Meminger, her mother, and her brother, Werner Meminger. The father is never introduced. It is only said that he is a communist. Werner dies on the train to Himmel Street, the place that Liesel is left with a couple, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Liesel’s mother is never seen again, but the reader assumes that she was taken away for being one of the Nazi’s targets. According to The Book Thief, “What came to her then was the dustiness of the floor, the feeling that her clothes were more next to her than on her, and the sudden realization that this would all be for nothing—that her mother would never write back and she would never see her again.” Nazis were the epitome of evil. They tore families apart and killed millions of innocent people.

Liesel Meminger, coined “The Book Thief”, exhibits extraordinary acts of courage within the literary work. Since birth, Meminger has faced hardships; she deals with the absence of her father, the death of her younger brother, and the abandonment by her mother all within several years. These adversities lead to the development of Meminger’s courageous nature, which she displays throughout the novel. Acts of her courage include stealing books and trusting the Hubermanns After attending her brother’s funeral, Liesel notices that one of the gravediggers has dropped a novel. Looking around to make sure no one is watching her, she collects the book and hides it; stealing this book ignites the fire and desire inside of her to learn how to read and expand her knowledge. After Liesel Meminger arrives to the Hubermanns’ house in Molching, Germany, she has to be coaxed out of the car. Finally, Hans Hubermann, later known as Papa, is the successor in luring the child out of the car, he immediately gains her trust, unlike his cold counterpart, Rosa Hubermann. Despite Rosa’s foul mouth and direct orders, “Saumensch. You call me Mama when you talk to me” (Zusak 35), Liesel eventually learns to trust and love her. Learning to love and to trust the Hubermanns shows how courageous Liesel truly is since she had previously faced the abandonment/death of two parents.

The character of the mother executes the tell-tale signs of counterfeit happiness when she tells the murderous story of the narrator’s father’s brother. “‘Oh honey,’ she said, ‘there’s a lot that you don’t know. But you are going to find out’” (36).

In the short story The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick, we are introduced to three characters who are facing death surrounding them in a concentration camp. We are introduced to Rosa, Stella and Magda. Rosa is the mother in the story of Magda, Magda is a young baby whose odds of survival is not very good. We are also introduced to Stella, who is a demon in the mind of Rosa. Stella represents the life that Rosa once had, one where she did not have a child and did not have to put someone’s life before them self. Stella appears to have all the human features, have emotions and has human flaws, but she taunts Rosa while she is in the concentration camp. Stella also brings Rosa something that she could not do herself, the feeling of relief of a horrible

After losing her mother and her brother, Liesel’s life and identity is changed drastically many times. It is through books that she discovers and becomes comfortable with this change. When she first meets Hans and Rosa Hubermann, her new foster parents, she does not wish to speak with them or get to know them. However, once Hans discovers Liesel with the book she stole when her brother was buried, The Gravedigger’s Manual, they bond over Hans teaching Liesel to read. Liesle describes the first time her and Hans have a lesson in the middle of the night: “She had done this at school, in the kindergarten class, but this time was better. … It was nice to watch Papa’s hand as he wrote the words and slowly constructed the primitive sketches” (Zusak

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

The recuperative power of language is revealed when Liesel begins an intrepid career in book thievery, finding solace in books and words amidst the cataclysmic historical period of Nazi Germany. Liesel’s unconscious desire to overcome her traumatic experiences is discovered within the confines of the basement. This is symbolic as, in Freudian psychoanalysis, the basement represents unconscious drives, repressed fears, traumas and fantasies. In Liesel’s journey to process her trauma and acknowledge new traumas, she psychoanalytically seeks out the comfort of the womb due to the absence of a motherly figure in the form of the basement. Zusak alters the archetypal image of the basement, picturing it as a metaphorical ‘womb’ for Liesel, a place of salvation and safety. “Liesel revisited those dark rooms of her past.” (p. 117) When Liesel discovers it is unlikely she will ever see her biological mother, she retreads underneath the table in an attempt to alleviate her pain. However, when Liesel feels psychologically strong enough to face the trauma of her abandonment, she is able to leave her place of safety and security and share her story with Max. This demonstrates the complexities of trauma and how an individual utilises differing coping mechanisms to confront their psychological suffering. Liesel, whilst opening herself to the pain of others, learns to express and

Hans is a passionate, caring man who earns his living as a house painter by day and an accordion player by night. Liesel believes his eyes show kindness, and is closer to him from the beginning than to her foster mother. He is one of a few in their village who is not a registered member of the Nazi party, which comes to have serious repercussions on the family as the book progresses. Rosa Hubermann is a stern, strong woman who looks like a “wardrobe with a coat thrown over it” and would be “cute,” but appears perpetually annoyed. She peppers her language with epithets like “Saumensch” and “Saukerl” and “Arschloch”. “Sau” refers to “pig” and mensch is girl and kerl is man, arschloch sounds pretty close to its English equivalent. From the beginning Liesel is “saumensch,” which at first refers to Rosa’s annoyance at taking this girl in, even though it does mean more money for the family. But by the end, it has become a term of true endearment. Liesel’s best friend in the village is a little boy named Rudy, “the boy next door who was obsessed with the black American athlete Jesse Owens.” Rudy is in love with Liesel and always pesters her for a kiss, which he does finally receive, after some pretty serious turns in the story. He is a simple, almost naïve boy, and would do almost anything for her, including jumping into a nearly