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Effects Of Language In The Book Thief

1301 Words6 Pages

Throughout war, death, and defeat, millions of words are spoken and the majority are damaging. In the novel, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, the language are gut-wrenching. The protagonists undergo great changes throughout the story. This is shown in Max Vandenburg, a Jewish man who left his mother for safety from Nazis. While in Nazi Germany, he undergoes challenges. During this time, he learns to be thankful. While spending his life in silence and hiding from the world. Hans Hubbermann is a caring man who houses Max. Hans cares so much for Liesel, his adopted daughter, and loves every second with her. Lastly, Death, the narrator, and taker of souls, in the end, shows his true feelings of stereotypes. The words are damaging and they only hurt the people of Europe, especially during World War II.
The words are detrimental to Max. The majority of words spoken to Max are hurtful or scared for his future. Max rethinks his life and realizes how fortunate he is, but how much danger he is putting these people in. In the Hubbermanns basement, Max says, “How could he show up and ask people to risk their lives for him? How could he be so selfish?”(Zusak 169). The reader gets inside of Max’s brain and it is shown how he really feels about the Hubbermanns housing him. It is proven just how awful the words can be. As the reader, it is clear that he feels sick just thinking about the punishment Rosa and Hans would receive. Max clearly feels guilty about being the reason this family

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