The Book Thief Rhetorical Analysis

The Book Thief is a novel authored by Markus Zusak that is based on people back to the time of Nazi Germany during the time World War II. The book focuses on a little girl’s life and the people around her encounter through struggles and challenges during the time of war. Although war brought about many endless calamities, the war resulted in characters coming together and had a positive impact by creating strong friendship and love bonds between these characters. The book talks about many relationships between the characters and about how they were established. The novel discusses the calamities that ended up taking place as a result of the war. Liesel Meminger, the main character, creates many relations with several characters throughout

The “Climax” is the moment of greatest emotional intensity and/or the turning point in the story for the main character. The climax of The Book Thief is when the planes bombed Himmel Street while everyone was still asleep. It was the moment of greatest emotional intensity because Liesel had that kindness that spread around with those she meets, she cared deeply for Hans, Rosa, and Rudy, and when they died, you could feel the emotion that Liesel had, it was all too much. “In disbelief, Liesel buried her head into Rudy’s chest. She held his limp body, trying to keep him from lolling back, until she needed to return him to the butchered ground.” “She took a step and didn’t want to take any more, but she did. Slowly, Liesel walked to her mama and

Zusak first shows imagery when he describes the setting on their way to the camp. The words “clear,” “greasy,” “olive green,” creates an image of what the truck looked like and what time of the day it was by describing the sky color. Also when Hans had a minor incident about the seat he was sitting in, the narrator calls the situation a “Pitiful struggle between, two supposed grown men.” he believes

In conclusion, by choosing death as the narrator Markus Zusak provides the reader with the information that Liesel does not know and death knows but also describes Liesel, her life and how she feels about the things that are happening in her life. Also, by choosing death as the narrator it allows Zusak to describe the other characters and their thoughts which is effective because it does not create confusion and makes the reader eager to read more. For example, “AN ATTRIBUTIVE OF ROSA HUBERMANN She was a good woman for a crisis”. This is written in bold which means that it has been used as a distraction and to give information about the characters who death is talking about and it also provides the reader with the opinion of

Whenever Death, the narrator, says “A foster home had apparently been found, and if nothing else, the new family could as least feed the girl and boy a little better” (25), it connects readers to the setting. Liesel’s mother thought the best decisions was to send her to Himmel Street, the foster home, to help feed and protect her. Liesel changed everyone’s life in dramatic ways, all because of her mother’s decision to send her away. By the time Liesel has come to know Himmel Street as a home, it was taken away from her by a bombing that the great Führer had ultimately caused. As Hitler made plans to attack other countries and take them over, he had ruined his own. Every German was either scared of him or in a complete brainwash over his ideas. Hitler’s decisions ruined the life of millions of people. Most importantly, whenever the bomb came to Himmel Street on that devastating night Liesel was in her basement reading her life story. Her choice to read in her basement that night saved her life and gave her the ability to grow old and have six children. Whenever readers think about setting, they do not think about the decisions a person makes to get to where they

First, the book is set during World War II in Germany with many deaths happening around Liesel. The time that the book is set in is very important to the plot of the story because with the war going on many deaths are happening, and Death needs to deal with the deaths. Rosa, Hans, and Rudy all died from a bomb from the war and they were the three closest people to Liesel. Also, Death talks in the beginning of the book about how he manages and deals with many deaths. With the war going on he has to deal with even more from the bombings. For example, Death says, “Misfortune? Is that what glued them down like that? Of course not. Let’s not be

Sir Francis Bacon claimed that knowledge is power. Would you agree with this? In my opinion I would agree with this statement because with knowledge a person also has will power. To support my argument I would use the film “The Book Thief” because it expresses both knowledge and the protagonist, Liesel’s will power to gain more knowledge. Another example that I will use is going to be taken from the novel “Sophie’s World” by Jostein Gaarder. This novel gets through with the example that Sophie wants to learn about the history of philosophy.

One of the most important elements Zusak uses enhance the development of the plot is the setting of the story. He creates a vivid setting for the story to take place, in a realistic time in history. The accurate depiction of a town in Germany during Hitler’s reign of terror adds to the story’s plot and builds the mood for the story. Furthermore, the sequence of events in the book is well planned, another important element that contributes to the overall development of the story. For example, the exposition of the book is where death introduces himself through descriptions of what he sees and his thoughts. He does not come out and say that he is death, but rather uses vivid and creative descriptions, such as “ You will know me well enough and soon enough, depending on a diverse range of variables. It suffices to say that at some point, I will be standing over you…” (Zusak 4), indicating that he is not a typical human narrator, but Death, depicted with human-like qualities. He continues to introduce himself through descriptions, telling the audience about how tiring his job is, gathering human souls from Earth and how he never gets a break. Death is depicted with real human emotions as he narrates the events that occur in the towns of Germany and telling Liesel’s story the way he sees

In the Book Thief, Markus Zusak uses death to narrate a story of perseverance and courage. The story is set in Molching, Germany during the late 1930s-early 1940, specifically during World War II. The exact location completely alters the outcome of the book, as in the end Himmel Street, where most of the characters lived, is bombed, killing almost everyone there. The key characters are Liesel Meminger, and orphan, and her foster parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. Other important figures include Rudy Steiner, Liesel’s friend on the block, and Max Vanderburg, a Jew who the Hubermanns are hiding. The book thief is Liesel, who over the course of the

Death collected every small portion of these people’s lives into one robust story; from the passing of Liesel’s brother, to the departure of her foster parents, death was continuously an influence. The different personalities that Liesel encountered throughout the story all shared something in common with her, death. Either these people have experienced a catastrophic loss or they were slaughtered themselves. Regardless of what was the cause or how it occurred, the connection was the consequence. The irony of this is that Death, the storyteller is also the biggest reoccurring themes of the entire story, therefore, it can be said that he is telling a story that revolves around him. Death’s words are very sturdy and touching. He doesn’t fall far from the other theme which is the power of words. His words consist of disappointment, greed, and sympathy, for example, “Still, they have one

1. Title : The Book Thief 2. Author: Markus Zusak 3. Date of Original Publication:2005 4.

The narrator in “The Book Thief” is unique, because he speaks in multiple perspectives. In Markus Zusak’s novel, Death is an omniscient being who tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a German girl who takes a large interest in reading. Death’s narration is different from what is expected, because he gives the story a lighthearted tone through his comments. Death is the narrator in the novel “The Book Thief.” With his omniscience and experiences, he gives Liesel’s story a new perspective.

I personally did not pick up on this concept that Death was the narrator. I was actually told by a couple of friends, and ended up appreciating that they had told me. This concept may be hard for less observant readers to pick up on, but it is a big

The Book thief is a historical fiction novel by Markus Zusak that is about a German girl named Liesel told by an all knowing narrator named Death. During World War II, Death tells us how the girl is adopted by Rosa and Hans Huberman on Himmel street after the death of her brother. As a jew knocks on the Hubermans door, they are lead by a series of words and beauty described by him but, battle the consequences of hiding Max. An analysis of the Book Thief reveals the main idea of family. Ever since Liesel moved into the Hubermans’s house, she felt a gap fill, which is the sense of family.

First, one of these characters that Markus Zusak uses to interpret and develop the theme of this book is Liesel Meminger, who uses words to soothe and encourage others. Liesel is a little girl that was given up by her mother to the Hubermann family. On her way to the family, her brother dies of a sickness and she does her