The Book Thief

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“Words have the power to both destroy and heal. When words are both true and kind they can change our world” a quote by Gautama Buddha. Throughout The Book Thief, readers see how the power of words changed every character's life, whether it was for good or for the bad. Liesel Meminger, the protagonist of the story, shows how the power of words helped her connect with new people and ultimately live life. Max Vandenburg, “a Jewish fistfighter”, uses the power of words to find happiness in a tough time. Hitler and The Nazi party use the power of words to take control and brainwash many people into believing what they think is the perfect human. The Book Thief illustrates the power of words and how they can bring beauty or cruelty into a person's …show more content…
Throughout The Book Thief, readers see many conflicts arise from what Hitler and the Nazi party are saying. For example, in the text, the reader sees a broken relationship between father and son, with Hans Junior and Hans Hubermann, when Hans Junior decides to stop talking to his father after finding out Hans lack of allegiance to the Nazi Party. This demonstrates how the power of words can be used for bad because Hitler and the Nazi party are using them to brainwash people into believing what they think is right, which as the reader sees can affect relationships. In addition to this, the words of Hitler and the Nazi’s also had the power to affect an entire group of people, the Jews. In the chapter “The Long Walk To Dachau”, readers see a clear example of just how cruel the words of Hitler can be, when Jews are being marched down to the concentration camps at Dachau in complete misery. On page 301 it says, “When they arrived in full, the noise of their feet throbbed on top of the road. Their eyes were enormous in their starving skulls. And the dirt. The dirt was molded to them. Their legs staggered as they were pushed by soldiers’ hands - a few wayward steps of forced running before the slow return to a malnourished walk.” This shows the dehumanization of Jews and the rise in power of Hitler and the Nazi party. The power of words from Hitler and the Nazi party brought cruelty into the life of
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