The world we live in is molded by History. Every event since the dawn of time has led up to now, and every event now is leading up to tomorrow and beyond. “The Book Thief “, is a Historical Fiction novel written by Markus Zusak. In the book, a young girl named Liesel is fostered by a poor German couple, and comes of age through the Third Reich and Second World War. During the book many Historical events affected Leisel’s life. The three historical events that most promentaly impacted the course of Liesel’s life in The Book Thief, are the rise of the Nazi Party, the German invasion of Poland, and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor.
The rise of the Nazi Party in Germany, greatly impacted the course of Leisel’s life. The Nazi Party, was the key player in all events that took place in The Book Thief. One way the
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Nazi Party influenced the course of Liesel’s life was by taking her parents away. “She knew it, but she had to ask is my mother a communist?.... “Did the Führer take her away?” He said, “I think he might have, yes.” (115) A point could be argued that Liesel would still be living with her communist parents if the Nazi Party never existed. Another instance is when the Nazi’s drove the Jews into hiding. “They looked on as both the hidden Jew and the girl slept, hand to shoulder” (238) Without the Nazi Party, there would have been no reason for Max to hide in the Hubberman’s basement. Furthermore, the rise of the Nazi Party greatly impacted the course of her life. The German invasion of Poland in September of 1939, affected Leisel’s life in the book. Without the German invasion of Poland, the Second World War would have never begun. The war had many effects on Liesel actions throughout the text. One of the effects includes the rationing of food. “The depressing pea soup and Rudy’s hunger finally drove them to thievery.” (150) The rationing of food drove Liesel to steal food with Rudy and the gang of boys. Second, the war also affected Liesel by affecting the Hubberman’s work, thus decreases their ability to purchase books. “When her birthday came around, there was no gift. There was no gift because there was no money… ” (98) If the Hubbermans could have had the money to purchase books, then Liesel would have no motivation to steal them. Without the German invasion of Poland, Leisel’s life would have been very different. The Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 changed the course of the Second World War thus, changing Leisel’s life.
The bombing of Pearl Harbor drew the United States into the war, without the support of the United States, Great Britain could not of sustained a war against the Third Reich. If Britain did not hang on, then the Allies could not of carpet bombed Germany. So if the Allies could not of bombed Germany , then the course and outcome of Leisel’s life would have been quite different. First, she would never of read to her neighbors in the bomb shelter, because there would have been no need for a shelter in the first place. “For at least twenty minutes, she handed out the story. The youngest kids were soothed by her voice….”(381) Second, Himmel Street would not of been bombed, thus, her adopted parents would've still been alive. “First up, the Allies feigned a raid on Munich in order to strike at Stuttgart. But next, ten planes had remained. Oh, there were warnings, all right. In Molching, they came with the bombs. ” (530) The Japanese decision to bomb Pearl Harbor was a key historical event that changed the course of Liesel's
Life. In conclusion, the three historical events that impacted the course of Liesel’s life in The Book Thief are the rise of the Nazi Party, the German invasion of Poland, and the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor. History shapes the world we live in, just as History shaped the world the Liesel lived in.
Going through these events, Elie Wiesel and Liesel Meminger manage to survive this ruthless war. Each viewpoint makes them look back in life, seeing how much they have accomplished as
The Book Thief and The Devil’s Arithmetic both focus on the prejudice Hitler had on different types of people during World War II. Liesel and Hannah both lost someone they had dearly loved. Liesel lost Rudy and Hannah lost many members of her family. In a time of fearfulness, both had told stories to the people surrounding them. Although both were not seen as equal in the eyes of many during their time, I see them as courageous and brave heroes after what they underwent.
In Markus Zusak’s novel, the book thief, Liesel Meminger is surrounded by death and fear as that is the norm in the 1930’s. Liesel is a strong young girl who has been deeply affected by her brother’s death and her mother leaving her and finds comfort in ‘The Grave Digger’s Handbook’, the book she stole at the site of her brother’s burial. Throughout the novel Liesel finds comfort in other books and reads them to escape the terrible reality that is Nazi Germany. Together with books she overcomes obstacles she wouldn't have been able to do without them
It all started on a train; Liesel and her brother were being separated from their parents; and all because their communist political view represented a threat to the Nazi Party. In this same trip, which meant the
In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Liesel Meminger, an orphaned little girl living in Nazi Germany, evolves partly through her numerous literary thefts. At her younger brother’s gravesite, she steals her first book, The Grave Digger’s Handbook, which teaches her not only the method to physically bury her brother, but also lets her emotionally bury him and move on. The theft of her next book, The Shoulder Shrug, from a book burning marks the start of Liesel’s awareness and resistance to the Nazi regime. As a story with a Jewish protagonist “who [is] tired of letting life pass him by – what he refer[s] to as the shrugging of the shoulders to the problems and pleasures of a person’s time on earth,” this novel prepares her both for resisting the
The chaos and destruction that the Nazi’s are causing are not changing the lives of only Jews, but also the lives of citizens in other countries. Between Night by Elie Wiesel and The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom, comradeship, faith, strength, and people of visions are crucial to the survival of principle characters. Ironically, in both stories there is a foreseen future, that both seemed to be ignored.
The Book Thief and Nazi Germany The heavily proclaimed novel “The Book Thief” by Markus Zusak is a great story that can help you understand what living in Nazi Germany was like. Throughout the story, the main character, Liesel goes through many hardships to cope with a new life in a new town and to come to the recognition of what the Nazi party is. Liesel was given up for adoption after her mother gave her away to a new family, who seemed harsh at first, but ended up being the people who taught her all the things she needed to know. Life with the new family didn’t start off good, but the came to love them and her new friend, Rudy.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a young German girl of about ten years of age, who is fostered by the Hubermanns’, in a small town in Germany between 1939 and 1943. In the prologue, the reader is informed that ‘It’s just a small story really, about among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fist fighter, and quite a lot of thievery’. It is however, much more. Despite the immense sadness and heartache of the overarching context, Zusak employs powerful techniques including; Death’s distinctive narrative voice, the symbolism of words and the inclusion of graphic stories to encourage the reader to feel enlivened throughout the story.
The novel The Book Thief is a book about a young girl by the name of Liesel Meminger. Observing the life of this young girl is not easy as this is the time of Hitler’s reign in Germany. In a short period of time, this girl faces many difficulties. More than any child should ever have to encounter. She has to deal with being abandoned by her mother, the death of her younger brother, and relocation to another part of Germany. Immediately when Liesel arrives to Molching, her life is forever changed. She is forced to live with two strangers, now her new mama and papa. Liesel faces much abuse both at school and at home. At school she is made fun of for her illiteracy and at home, mama speaks very rudely to her calling her a swine and other insults.
The Holocaust is marked as one of the most horrifying events of the 20th century.The person who was responsible for the Holocaust was Adolf Hitler, the leader of the Nazi Party. The question is, how, and why was Hitler able to do this? The actual truth behind all this is that, Hitler could make the world his, just by using words. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, it tells a story about a young girl growing up when Nazi Germany was invincible. The author explores some very meaningful, yet, controversial themes for the most part of the novel. Out of all themes, he believes that words hold a remarkable power. He explores how words manipulate, divide, and connect people.
Throughout the presence of space and time, various incidents occur in which society gains experience from. Through those experiences, the community makes novels, articles, timelines,and more about those events. One particular author, Elie Wiesel, has written a speech after receiving a nobel peace prize about the dreadful account of the Holocaust. Mr. Wiesel lectures about the numerous deaths of the victims during the Holocaust that affected approximately 12 million people . He speaks of the ghetto that he lived in, the suffering he endured, and the pain of it all. On the other hand, He also speaks of how the world should change, so that an event like the Holocaust never happens again. In his speech, Elie Wiesel illustrates the idea of how the world’s actions are bewildering, but it is also up to the same world to stop it. He develops this meaning of his speech by points of point of view, rhetorical questioning, and parallel structure.
German citizens had to endure a challenging lifestyle, presented by Adolf Hitler, of fascism, the holocaust, Jewish laws and propaganda during World War II. From 1939-1942, Nazi Germany affected the lives of Jews, Gypsies, Slavic people, and other groups living in Germany by getting rid of the undesirables, known as the Holocaust. Only Germans with the look of blond hair and blue eyes were even considered to live, only if he or she had no defects or disabilities, anyone else was sent to and killed in concentration camps. The Book Thief takes place in a town near Munich, Germany during this time of the holocaust. The novel focuses on the lives of the people and how they cope and deal with the immediate effects of WWII. It emphasizes the danger of hiding a Jew in a family’s basement, and how they are constantly paranoid of being caught.
In The Book Thief, by Markus Zusak, beauty and brutality is seen in many of the characters. Rudy, Liesel, and Rosa display examples of beauty and brutality often without realizing what exactly they are doing, because it is a part of their human nature. Zusak not only uses his characters, but also the setting of the novel in Nazi Germany to allude to his theme of the beauty and brutality of human nature. The time in which the novel is set, during World War II, displays great examples of beauty and brutality, such as the mistreatment of the Jews. As a result of this time period, the characters have to go through troubling times, which reveals their beautiful and brutal nature in certain circumstances. Zusak uses his characters and their experiences to demonstrate the theme of the beauty and brutality of human nature in the novel.
The main character Liesel, known as “the book thief” is who Death is looking over. Liesel, her mother, and brother are on a train to Munich. On the train ride her brother dies. She and her mother get off the train to bury him. The first book Liesel steals is from the gravediggers. They continue the journey to a town called Molching, where Liesel will be raised by foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Liesel adjusts to her new home life. Hans teaches Liesel how to read. The war is escalating in Germany. The town holds a book-burning to celebrate Hitler’s birthday. That’s when Liesel steals another book from the flames. Liesel’s job is to deliver laundry to the Hermann family. The Hermanns’ have a library full of books. Liesel is allowed to read them in the study. Meanwhile, a German-Jew named Max needs help, so he seeks out the Hubermanns. Max hides in the basement, so he is safe from the Nazis. Liesel begins stealing books from the Hermanns. The Nazis parade the Jews through the town of Molching on their way to the concentration camp for everyone to see. Liesel is given a blank notebook to write her own story. One night the neighborhood is bombed. Hans, Rosa, and the rest of the neighborhood is killed. Rescue workers find Liesel under the rubble. She leaves behind her finished book, called The Book Thief. Death, who has been watching, rescues the book. Liesel ends up living with the mayor
If you were a German citizen during World War II, do you think you would be a Nazi? Most people would say no even though, in actuality, most people would be. It is because people need to succumb to societal expectations to survive in a society such as that of Germany during WWII and in the book, The Book Thief, this theme of individual versus society is explored with people complying and fighting social expectations. Sometimes people side with the Nazi Party out of fear of being targeted and other times fight against Nazi Party because of love for their family and fellow man with usually terrible consequences. In The Book Thief, the theme of the individual versus society is shown many times with characters conforming and defying social expectations.