The Impact of Thievery Thievery has been a problem with mankind since the beginning of time, many characters in The Book Thief show this character trait that will affect their lives forever. Markus Zusak uses thievery to narrow in on the multiple situations that have been risen in the book that has been a problem for Liesel, who has faced terror throughout her life. Liesel is making poor decisions that is affecting her survival on Himmel Street. Her friendship with Rudy has had a negative and positive effect on Liesel’s life. The Hubermanns sneaking Max to their house and hiding him in the basement. All lead back to the decisions that Liesel makes. It is January 1939. Liesel Meminger, a nine year old girl, soon to be ten. She has a dream about Adolf Hitler, the Führer, and one of his powerful speeches. As she wakes up from her dream, she sees her brother, Werner lie motionless, on the train, dead. They stop at the next nearest down, where he is buried by two grave diggers, one is a young apprentice. Spotting a book slip out of the apprentices pocket, The Grave Digger’s Handbook, Liesel picks it up. Liesel and her mother make their way to Munich, where they are say goodbyes and separate for good. Liesel is …show more content…
As Rudy and Liesel’s relationships grows, they become more sneaky and conniving as they begin to know more about each other. Rudy has negatively impacted Liesel’s situation by convincing her to steal books, helping her steal books from Ilsa Hermann and Rudy falling in love with Liesel. “At school, Rudy made a special point of seeking Liesel out during the breaks” (Zusak 51). Rudy has changed Liesel by forcing her to do bad things which can ultimately bring bad things in the future. It all started when Liesel and Rudy went to the Mayor’s Library to steal books. What are you waiting for? (Zusak 131). Rudy whispered to Liesel as she was eight steps from the
In The Book Thief, a work of historical fiction, written by Markus Zusak introduces the main character Liesel Meminger, the reader starts to see how she keeps having many conflicts but always stays positive. Liesel has many conflicts, for example her brother dies early in the book and that shapes the way she is. Later on Liesel steals books and that makes her happy because the first book she stole was the grave digger's handbook and that is how she remembers her brother. Liesel steals and reads books this is how she finds happiness with all the bad things going on around her. In the end of the book most of the people she loves die and it is hard for her to find happiness again. The author uses the setting and point of view to express theme and to make the reader feel sympathy; He uses this because with the theme of finding light in the darkness, deaths perception, and the setting of Germany makes the theme clearer.
The human race is constantly contradicting itself throughout everyday life. The most ideal example of this contradictory is in the book, The Book Thief. In this book, Hitler was trying to make what he thinks is the perfect race. Hitler’s desire is so strong that he collected all of the Jewish People in Molching and sends them to camps to be punished and even killed. On the other hand, the Hubermann family was trying to help the Jewish out and save them. The family even went as far as putting their own lives in jeopardy by letting Han’s old friend named Max live in the basement. Even Liesel’s best friend named Rudy tries to help the Jewish as they march through Molching. But when Rudy and Liesel go to help them and give them bread, they are beaten by the Nazi’s
Every time Liesel steals books from people, she consistently places the lives of others at risk. An example of this is when Liesel is worried about Max dying and wants to steal a book and read it to him
“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage,” Lao Tzu. Courage is the choice to confront agony, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. Physical is when you show bravery in the face of death, pain, or threats, while mental courage is when somebody makes a right decision while opposing someone or something else. Some people do not have a choice to be courageous, and are forced to be courageous, while others have a choice to be courageous.
Liesel come to love her foster family, Rudy, and even Max. "Not leaving: an act of trust and love, often deciphered by children" (Zusack 37). When Liesel is still new to Himmel street Hans stays with her for hours of the night, this leads to their relationship building to that of a father, daughter type. "Rudy, please, wake up, Goddamn it, wake up, I love you" (Zusack 535) The bombs fells, the town was ripped apart, a 14 year old girl was sleeping in the basement. Liesel survived, she alone survived. Her best friend, the boy who loved her, was killed along with everyone else, Liesel was
Rudy Steiner is Liesel Meminger’s best friend. He has been by Liesel’s side at her best and even at her worst. He was the one that walked home with Liesel after she beat up Ludwig, got a book that was thrown into a river for her, stopped her from chasing Max and wanted a kiss. Rudy always wanted to help Liesel and would do anything to do so. Liesel was not judged by him for the actions she made. Rudy and Liesel had fun together as children. Children in this time period had to grow up very fast because of what was going on. Rudy went with Liesel
Liesel is kind-hearted because in The Book Thief she said, “ I don’t want to lose someone else”. She said this to Max after they became close friends. Given that, she is kind-hearted one can tell that she would do anything to protect her family from death. After WWII max and Liesel reunite and they hug and cry until they fell to the floor. Where Liesel use to live in 33 Himmel Street before there was a raid that destroyed the whole street, they hide Max. Her best friend is Rudy Steiner, he is a neighbor at first but then the friendship grows after each mischievous thing they do together. With Rudy, she grows and steals books for fun. Rudy might think it is fun, but to Liesel, it means for her. Like I said, she does this in memory of her brother. They have a race and it is a draw after falling. Rudy then said to Liesel, “If it’s a draw, do I still get my kiss?” Liesel then says, “ Not in a million years” and Rudy at the end he says “One day, Liesel, you’ll be dying to kiss me”. Therefore, at the end of the book and middle, she desires to kiss him but doesn’t until the end where he is dead. Later on, her family and she hide a Jew, Max Vandenburg, from the Nazis. Max and Liesel have grown close together. Liesel is competitive, compassionate,
You could clearly tell that Liesel and Rudy’s relationship consisted of soccer, arguing and stealing, but mainly stealing. Soon after they stole food Liesel started stealing books and Rudy noticed and gave her the name book thief. When Liesel mentions Rudy to Max, and Rudy finds out about it changes everything in their relationship. You could finally see that Liesel did care about Rudy. At the very end of the story when the closet people toliesel had passed away she finally kissed Rudy, that made such a significant change in the story because, not only did liesel care about rudy but she loved
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.
If you believe in yourself and have dedication, pride, and never quit, you will be successful. Markus Zusak, the author of The Book Thief, creates a story of a young orphan named Liesel Meminger, who is living with her new foster family. She learns the wonders of reading from her foster father and grows to love books. During Liesel’s time with her new family, she shows determination through her efforts and kindness with her encounters with other people. Liesel in The Book Thief expresses her traits, such as hardworking, and bravery.
Imagine you are a poorly fed citizen, who is living in Germany, during the World War II, what would you be doing, probably stealing something to fill up your tummy right? It is true that at the economically unstable period mentioned in the book, thievery is understandable, anything could be stolen and anyone could be a thief. However, for those who have read and understand the book thoroughly would acknowledge the importance of Liesel's’ thievery characteristic.Markus Zusak, in The Book Thief characterizes Liesel as a thief to compare her theft with mutiny against Nazi Germany, other rebellious German people and the development of her personal identity.
11 million people died during the Holocaust. In Markus Zusak’s The Book Thief, Liesel Meminger loses many of her loved ones. At the beginning of the book, Liesel’s brother dies of illness on a train, and her mother is taken away by the Nazis for being a communist. After losing everyone she ever cared about, the story drags Liesel into a humble household where she discovers her passion for books, and her love for her family and friends. However, her loved ones are once again torn away from her as Himmel Street, the street she lives on, gets bombed. She loses her foster parents, her best friend, and everyone else she came to know. As a result of these adverse events, Liesel’s innocence was stolen from her. In The Book Thief, loss plays an essential role in developing characters, especially Liesel. After losing Werner, her brother, Liesel is plagued by
At the library, she was offered a book by the mayor’s wife multiple times but Liesel declined. After being removed from the job because the mayor couldn’t offered job, Liesel must leave. Though she declined the book many times, she returns to the house to steal food but instead retrieves the book. She steals it for her close friend Rudy. The book itself represents the connection between the two especially Rudy valiantly saves the book after it was almost thrown into a river.
Rudy and Liesel are empty without each other's company, they are like brother and sister, They know everything about each other. They know each other's tough and soft spots. They get into trouble together, but in the end find a way out of it... They met as strangers and appear, so but few knew about the strong, moving, and dynamic relationship of Liesel and Rudy. They fight but in the end they just learn that there are things that they will have to deal with. Rudy and Liesel are like lovers in the sense that they care deeply for one another, and would do anything for one another.
In the beginning of The Book Thief, Liesel is alone for a majority of her time. She has just moved into a new neighborhood with new parents, so she’s undoubtedly scared and socially reclusive. Her new neighbor, Rudy, however, comes to visit Liesel on her first day to hopefully become her friend and make her feel more welcomed. Soon after, Rudy is Liesel’s only and best friend, and throughout the story they are depicted together running, playing, and talking. Liesel grows from being a quiet outcast at her school to a social butterfly who stands up for herself and others. Her friendship with Rudy allows her to grow into what she really is: a strong, independent, educated girl. Liesel also endures many hardships around her. Throughout the entire book, endurance is one of many themes. Everyone on