Symbolism In Night And The Book Thief

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Synthesis Essay

A symbol is a thing that represent or stand for itself or something beyond itself as well. A symbol can be a color, a book, or a person. For example, Melissa de la Cruz used symbols when she stated that “Black is the color of night. White is the true color of death.” In Night by Elie Wiesel, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, and the movie Swing Kid, symbolism found in music is a common theme that they all convey. Music symbolizes peace, comfort and freedom in the two novels and the movie.

In Night by Elie Wiesel, Juliek playing the violin in the crowded barracks is a symbol of peace, safety, hope and Juliek himself. Throughout the book, Elie mentions how dark and silent the night is, emphasizing the prisoners’ fear of the nightmares the darkness brings. However, as Juliek recognizes that …show more content…

In the movie, a group of teenagers dance to swing music at night, something that is forbidden in Nazi Germany. However, the swing kids still do it secretly because they enjoy dancing and it expresses their displeasure of the suppression of the Nazis by saying things like,; “Swing Heil! Swing Heil, Peter! Swing Heil!’(Carter, 1993). Dancing to swing music is a way for the swing kids to protest their denial of freedom, and fight against the oppression of the Nazis. One of the swing kids, Thomas, joins the Nazis and believes that he can be both a Nazi and a swing dancer at once. However, the swing dancers represent the opposite of what the Nazis stand for, and Thomas cannot be both an advocate for freedom and a part of a fascist regime.. Arvid says to Thomas that he“ would rather belong to any one... ANYONE, than belong to the Nazis like you do”(Carter, 1993). Thomas still thinks that he is not a Nazi, but he actually is brainwashed by the Nazis. He does not dance to swing music anymore, which represents the loss of his appreciation of the swing musics and his friendship with the other

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