Should The Book Thief Be Considered A Trickster Hero

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak and the classics The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle and The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle are novels that encompass the theme of Heroic Tricksters. Although The Book Thief is set during World War II, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes in the nineteenth century and The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood during the renaissance, all three novels explore this popular persona, the “trickster hero”, who defies the letter of the law and accepted conventions, yet still manages to be the protagonist.

At the heart of many of the world’s oppressed cultures stands the figure of the “trickster hero”. In folklore and song, he appears in the form of a seemingly innocent and harmless character

that defeats those much larger or faster than himself through craftiness. These ideas of wisdom over might, outsmart versus outgun, come to mind in the story of David, the weak but skilled character from The Bible, in his fight against Goliath; one stone slung in the right place and the fight was over. The rise of this paradigm underlines a culture attracted to brilliant figures, which are placed on pedestals as ultimate brilliant minds, shifting away from the stress on physical strength as defining heroism.

Narrated by Death himself, The Book Thief is the story of Liesel Meminger, who is given up by her mother to live with Hans and Rosa Hubermann in a small German town in 1939.

In contrast with the stern Rosa Hubermann, Hans Hubermann is a gentle man. As portrayed by the narrator: “Liesel observed the strangeness of her foster father’s eyes. They were made of kindness and silver…Liesel, upon seeing those eyes, understood that Hans Hubermann was worth a lot.”
Liesel has “no trouble calling him Papa” as he brings comfort to her and helps her learn to read, starting with a book she took from the cemetery where her brother was buried. So begins a love affair between Liesel and her books and she is soon stealing books from Nazi-burnings as well as the mayors’ library. Keeping a promise he made to the man who saved his life, Hans Hubermann allows the Jew, Max Vandenberg, to hide in his basement. Liesel and Max become good friends, and Max narrates stories about their friendship, which are illustrated in the novel. However, these are dangerous times and Liesel soon learns about the risks that come with her new

friendship.
Along with her neighbourhood friend, Rudy Steiner, Liesel continues to steal more than just books. However, the novel shows that both of them know what it means to be a moral thief, primarily when Rudy says “Maybe if we say Heil Hitler and then steal something we’ll be alright.” One day, the two decide to ambush Otto Sturm, a boy who brings food to the well-nourished Catholic priests. Though not overly remorseful, Liesel and Rudy feel bad after playing this trick – they are not troubled about stealing from those who are well-off, but inuring another crosses their moral line. While war and racism are socially normal, Liesel must figure out her own principles outside of society's accepted rules.
The most obvious innovation in The Book Thief is narrator Death's use of boldface text to convey certain information since he opens on the small fact that “you are going to die.” Likewise, the novel destroys the element of surprise.
“*** A SMALL ANNOUNCEMENT*** ABOUT RUDY STEINER He didn’t deserve to die the way he did.”
Death tells us that Rudy Steiner dies hundreds of pages before it actually happens. He is aware of his habit, and after revealing Rudy’s pending death, Death explains: “Mystery bores me. It chores me. I know what happens and so do you. It's the machinations that wheel us there that aggravate, perplex, interest, and astound me.”

While Death sides with neither Nazis nor Jews, Liesel Meminger boldly states: “I hate the Führer.” Similarly, the trickster and adventurous archer Robin Hood’s own arch enemy is his social superior, The Sheriff of Notingham.

The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle is a collection of stories sourced from the legend, Robin Hood, all woven together in a free-flowing tale.
It begins with the incident that forces Robin Hood, the main character, to become an outlaw at the age of 18. However, he breaks the law only for the sake of justice, rebelling against state oppression. He outsmarts his rivals and inspires tremendous loyalty among his followers and when “people began to find that no harm was meant to them, but that money or food came in time of want to many a poor family, they came to praise Robin and his merry men […] for they felt him to be one of

themselves.”
The reversal of official and outlaw roles in the novel causes readers to support Robin Hood, even though he may be outside the boundaries of the law. However, unlike the Sheriff who ruthlessly declares: “I have tried law, and I have tried guile, and I have failed in both; so I will try what may be done with might,” he often resorts to harmless deception to get out of bad circumstances or into better ones. Robin Hood is heroic and merciful, sparing bloodshed if at all possible, whereas the Sheriff will burn down villages in attempt to seize Robin Hood: “Now Robin Hood and his band might have slain half of the Sheriff’s men had they desired to do so, but they let them push out of the press and get them gone, only sending a bunch of arrows after them to hurry them in their flight.”