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Examples Of Propaganda In The Book Thief

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“Your words mean nothing when your actions are the complete opposite” (Anonymous). In Nazi Germany, not even the small town of Munich could escape the words of Hitler. Throughout The Book Thief, words play a pivotal part in shaping the lives of all the characters. However, The Book Thief is also full of instances of people overcoming the words that they know to be wrong. Actions speak louder than words, and how Hans sheltered Max, Liesel interfered with Jewish parades, and Rudy gave a teddy bear to a dying soldier are all examples of people overcoming propaganda.
Hans Hubermann was provided with every opportunity to cleave to the mold of a perfect Nazi, to fall in like his son, but he chose to hide a Jew, risking everything. Despite that he was just as swamped in propaganda as the rest of the country, “but if nothing else, he was a man who appreciated fairness. A Jew had once saved his life and he couldn’t forget that”, because to him, that action meant more than all the beautiful lies Hitler could spin (Zusak 180). Not only did he refuse to join the Nazi party, a choice that resulted in him “‘losing customers quicker than… [he could] count’”, but he repainted a Jew’s door after it had been covered in slurs (Zusak 181). But even after that, …show more content…

In Nazi Germany, lives could be saved or condemned by whether or not people chose to follow the words that Hitler gave them. Many of the atrocities of the Holocaust took place because people did not try to overcome the words with their actions. However, the people who did take action were able to make changes, however small they were. This is still relevant today, because people should be able to think for themselves, and act for what they believe is right. Although some people may consider words to be more powerful because they can reach farther, with actions, even the most persuasive words can be

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