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Relationship between literature and the Society
Relationship between literature and the Society
Relationship between literature and the Society
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The developmental stage of a young child’s life is very crucial and can be impacted by the media. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Liesel Meminger is a young girl living in a very important part of Germany’s history, the Second World War. Liesel’s childhood unfolds and develops against the backdrop of a time when words, books specifically were used for power and control. Liesel is someone who has a love for reading and, as such, books become very important to her, not only for her education but for her rebellion and discovering her true identity. Throughout the novel, books become a crucial symbol used to convey the desires and discovery of identity for the main character as her childish ignorance changes to her mature adulthood. After losing …show more content…
Liesel also bonds with another person in her life through books. When Max Vandenburg shows up suddenly in her life that she had finally settled and become comfortable with, she is required to change little things in her life that add up into something big. She goes from telling her best friend, Rudy, everything to needing to hide a huge secret from him; a secret that were it to be uncovered, would mean horrible things for everyone involved. Liesel becomes increasingly curious about Max and why she must keep him a secret. Her desire to learn more about the young man in her basement and the book he carries with him (Mein Kampf) causes the two to bond over books, with Liesel spending days trying to find a way to ask “Is it a good book?” (Zusak 210). When Liesel finally asks her question, “Sweeping away the anger, [Max] smiled at her” (Zusak 217). This is the start of a friendship that will last until Death comes to get them. Every relationship starts with an icebreaker and Liesel’s curiosity and desire to learn about Max’s book starts a relationship that affects her for the rest of her life. Two of the most important relationships in Liesel’s life at this point start and are strengthened by the power of …show more content…
Liesel’s life is heavily influenced and impacted by Nazi propaganda and it is through this that she learns the negative side that books have. Max writes Liesel a book in the painted over pages of Mein Kampf about the power of words and how kind words can be used to overcome hateful ones, something that she remembers for the rest of her life. Max writes in The Word Shaker, “It could never destroy all of it, but if nothing else, a different-colored path was carved through it” (Zusak 150). The passage from the novel uses an allegory in order to convey the importance of propaganda in Hitler’s rise; using trees as representatives of books and pamphlets, with characters who are meant to be Max and Liesel. It is through this story, hidden inside Hitler’s book, that Liesel discover that books can be used to help others but also hurt them. Either way, their will always be someone or something that uses even just one book to combat all the others. One book that was never meant to survive is The Shoulder Shrug, a book that Liesel stole from one of the many book burnings that took place across Germany. During a book burning that she attends, the leader says this in reference to the pile of Jewish books “And now we say goodbye to this trash, this poison” (Zusak 110).The book burnings were a way that the Nazi’s
Liesel steals this book from the book burning because of her deep animosity for the Fuhrer, because of what he has compassed to her family. The fifth book is Mein Kampf. Liesel receives this book from Hans because it will disguise her from being against the Nazis. The sixth book is The Whistler. The Whistler symbolizes Liesel’s relationship with Rudy, and the faith they have between them.
Max uses Mein Kampf as a kind of cover so people wouldn’t suspect that he was a Jew and he escapes to the Hubermann’s house as Hans promised to help the Vandenburg’s if they ever needed it as he was friends with Max’s father in the war and Max’s father saved Hans’ life. Liesel is curious but also scared of Max at first but they bond over the fact that they both have nightmares, have lost their families and are both “fist-fighters” Since Max is always hiding in the basement, Liesel begins to describe the weather to him and brought him snow where they had a snowball fight and built a snowman with Hans and Rosa. Soon after, Max falls ill and she brings him 13 presents, hoping that he will wake up and reads to him every morning and night. Max also begins to share stories with Liesel and for her birthday makes her a book called “The Standover Man” which is about his life and journey. Max also begins to have daydreams where he fights Hitler and Hitler always uses his words to excite the crowd and uses them as a weapon. Liesel and Rudy also begin to steal food with a group of
The irony behind Liesel stealing books is that, Ilsa Hermann, the mayor’s wife intentionally leaves the window unlocked for her to climb in and take books while Liesel is oblivious to what Ilsa is doing. Ilsa allows Liesel to use her expansive library because if Liesel does not take and read the books they would just sit on the shelf wasting away. “Lately it’s you that gets the most use out of this room.” (Zusak 461) Another point of irony in Liesel stealing books is that while many people are starving for food Liesel is starving for words. Hitler builds the foundation of his mind-controlled country on poisonous manipulative words and
This realization, although suspected by the narrator for a long time, shows the true irony of Liesel’s thefts: that she never needs to steal them. When she steals her last book, The Last Human Stranger, she even takes a plate of cookies and leaves a note. Although none of these books are featured as heavily as her first few thefts, their titles reference parts of Liesel’s struggles such as her relationship with Max, her role in uplifting her community in the bunker, her continuing education, and her status being the only survivor of the final bombing. In conclusion, the books which Liesel steals are very influential in her development through the course of the novel, with the titles themselves references other parts of her life.
Unbeknownst to Liesel, Max secretly writes two graphic stories for her, enshrining the power of words, rewarding her developing power of words and giving her strength to write her own words. The Standover Man; the first of the two complete illustrated stories, encapsulates Max’s feelings towards Liesel and their developing friendship. Within the context of the story, Max is depicted as a bird- like creature who fears ‘men standing over’ him. His fear may be associated with the events of his life that have left him vulnerable, for example, losing his father at a young age and losing a fist fight to a friend. As the story progresses, it becomes evident that Liesel’s presence provides comfort to Max, as he begins to realise that ‘the best standover man [he’s] ever known is not a man at all’, but is Liesel; a companion who is ultimately able to redefine Max’s preconceived notion of ‘the standover man’, as being someone associated with abandonment and antagonism to a compassionate figure that he need not fear. The second story, The Word Shaker, written by Max, and created with the assistance of the Hubermanns, juxtaposes a book of oppression and detestation into a story of hope and resilience, to impart optimism within the reader. The fact that the faint text of the Mein Kampf does not leak through the painted pages, as it did in The Standover Man, is symbolic of how the only way to obliterate the legacy of Hitler is through the union of Jews and Germans. This is utterly uplifting, as they elicit the realisation that even for Max, who is secluded from the world and tormented by the Nazi morals, is powerful enough to overcome his fear of Hitler’s
Max showed her a side of the world that was technically forbidden for her German roots and family. Either way, her family housed a jewish person. Which was illegal at that time and punishable by death. Not a topic to take lightly. Anyways, Max wrote Liesel a book called “The Standover Man”. A quote from the book makes his story ironic. “It makes me understand that the best standover man I’ve ever known is not a man at all…” (Zusak, page 205, line 5-8) This is ironic because Liesel could be a man with her guts, but she is different. She doesn’t put up with any crap from anyone (but her parents of course), but she can also at the same time be very caring. She is as mean as an angry bull, but as nice as a caring mother with her newborn child. It’s kind of hard to think of any female being like that but that is how Liesel is
“I am haunted by humans” (Zusak 550). The Book Thief by Markus Zusak is about the horrors of World War II. Liesel and her family help out an old friend by hiding a Jew. Liesel also steals her first book when she at her brother’s funeral. Liesel Meminger’s remarkable actions like feeling good when she steals a book and her family hiding a Jew help demonstrate why Death is “haunted by humans”.
...by American bombers and everyone but Liesel dies on the street. Liesel only survives because she was writing a book of her own, and was in the basement when the bombs struck. When she is rescued by the police, she rushes to find her parents and Rudy, but only finds them both dead. The story ends with her being adopted by Ilsa Hermann. Of course, this does not mean the story is over; there is an epilogue. Max survives the war and later finds his way back to Liesel, who rejoices when they finally meet. When Liesel finally dies, death takes her away from the others and shows her the book that she was writing when the bombs fell. She asks him if he understood the meaning of it, to which he responds with his own sage advice. When death takes her soul away for good this time, and takes one last look at the title of the book. The Book Thief by Liesel Meminger.
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.
Ilsa Hermann had seen Liesel steal The Shoulder Shrug from the stack of burning books. She had invited Liesel into her study while Rosa had been doing their laundry. Liesel is quick to stop the visits after Frau Hermann stops the laundry services. Liesel, however, hasn’t given up the books completely. With Rudy’s help, Liesel begins stealing books from Frau Hermann’s study.
Liesel experiences abandonment throughout her life, and the novel during a suppressed time in World War II Germany. Through her experiences Liesel’s learns to equate abandonment with love knowing that circumstance have forced her loved ones to leave her.
10.The Book Thief: Liesel writes this book, and it saves her life when she goes down into the basement to revise it, and is protected from the bombs.Liesel writes the book to explain everything she went through. She loses it after the bombing, but death picks it up, and shows it to her when she dies.
With examples of family, love and friendship, expresses the hope that through the healing power of words, the corruption and hate in the world can come to an end. Even though the style of writing is simple and direct, it does a good job conveying the different themes of the story, including the different conflicts between politics and religion, separation of families, death, etc. The power of words is shown as soon as Liesel learns how to read. Her will for prosperity and curiosity becomes more powerful with every word she learns.
During Markus Zusak’s book we observe the beauty of humans at many times. One of the most beautiful things a human does is when Max, the jew the Hubermanns are hiding from the nazis, gives Liesel a book that he made himself. But he says that “Now I think we are friends, this girl and me. On her birthday it was she who gave a gift to me”(Zusak 235). Max made this book for leisel by taking paint from the basement and painting over pages in Mein Kampf. He lets the pages dry and then he writes a story on them. He makes this book for Liesel because he can’t afford to buy one, and even if he could he can’t leave the house. But when he gives Liesel the book we also examine humans doing something so unbelievably nice. Liesel accepts max as a friend. Which in the long run will help Max out a lot, because he is locked in the basement and he can’t even go up stairs during the day. So someone who is there to talk to him, and someone for him to talk to will help him out. Throughout this book we watch their friendship grow. Liesel feels bad for Max because he is stuck in the basement so on a regular basis she will tell Max what the weather is like...
How does society and the characters identities influence the choices they make? Since The Book Thief is a historical fiction text, the fictitious characters interact in a realistic WWII setting in Germany. Three characters in the book,Liesel Meminger, Max Vandenburg, and Rudy steiner develop their identities within the parameters of the Nazi controlled society. However, if Liesel Meminger, Max Vandenburg, and Rudy Steiner were characters in today's society, their lives would be different.