Book Thief Themes

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Analyzing the Themes of The Book Thief
Were the Hubermanns and Max Liesel’s true family even though they were not related to her through blood in anyway? This is one question that relates to one of the many themes shown throughout the Book Thief by Markus Zusak, which is family can go past blood. There are many other themes that are just as important in the Book Thief; for example, words have tremendous power, and during weak moments, people show their true selves. The themes show the characters’ emotions in certain situations, the bonds that they have formed, and how words can have a huge impact in any situation with the power they have. There are many themes developed through the use of symbols that were shown in The Book Thief including …show more content…
An example that is shown at the end of the book that is perfect for this theme is when Liesel is greeted with the sight of her now dead best friend Rudy, who has been a victim of the recent bombing of the town. This truly is one of the strongest emotional parts of the story and brings out another side to Liesel and how she felt towards Rudy during this heartbreaking time. A symbol that shows the powerful emotions going through Liesel at that time is the kiss that she shared with her deceased friend. This showed her true feelings toward Rudy in the end, which she refused throughout the story and casted his request for a kiss away as a joke, but at that moment she showed the complete opposite of that side of her. “Rudy, please, wake up, goddamnit, wake up, I love you!” (535) This quote shows how Liesel feels about Rudy and shows a side of her that she kept away from him until the very end when she couldn’t hold it in anymore. In other words, Liesel had formed a deep bond with Rudy through their time together and she began to grow feeling towards the boy, yet she kept it to herself until the moment where she was right in front of that same boy who was now dead, her weakest …show more content…
The first theme discussed was words have tremendous power, which was shown through Hitler’s speeches where he shared his words and beliefs to sway the german people to turn against the Jews. Next was the theme at weak moments people show their true self, which was shown through Liesel confessing her feelings toward her best friend Rudy when he was lying dead right next to her. And finally the last theme that was mentioned was family goes past blood, which was expressed through the daughter and parents relationship between Liesel and the Hubermanns throughout the story. Symbols that related to these themes include Mein Kampf for Hitler’s words and beliefs that shaped the Nazis, the kiss Liesel shared with her best friend Rudy that showed her true self in a upsetting and weak moment, and The Mud Men, which showed how much the Hubermanns cared about Liesel’s happiness and that they were generous and considerate like real parents or family. The Book Thief has a plethora of themes that are shown in many events that occur, but the themes discussed in this writing were related to many main points in the story and expressed what the author was trying to tell to the reader perfectly using the events and symbols present in the book. The Book Thief does a wonderful job as a book that utilizes themes
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