History has demonstrated brutality through tragic wars and hostilities, even through tragic times beauty has shown as a light in the hardship of brutality. This is a recurring theme in the novel “The Book Thief” written by Markus Zusak, beauty and brutality occur in the characters Liesel, Rosa, Death revealing the confusing ways of society and humanity. Zusak won the 2014 Edwards Award for “The Book Thief”, which occurs in “machine” Nazi Germany. The society is facing the hardship of Adolf Hitler, who is trying to create a perfect world without Jews. The characters of the novel show how they show beauty (light and brutality of their society of humanity.
Beauty and brutality are shown in Liesel Meminger in various ways showing the contrasts…
Death experiences lots of brutality but she shocks readers every now and then with a sense of beauty. In the first chapter Death says, ” First the colors. Then the humans, That’s usually how I see things or at least, how I try to see things.” Through the novel, Death comes in and narrates about picking up human souls. Along the way Death tries to find a way to give meaning to her job; which is one of the ways she finds beauty in her life. The main thing she collects along the way is the collections of courageous stories of the souls she collects. On the other hand, though Death has lots of human qualities, she will never be human. In the end, she is still the being that comes to seperate our souls from our bodies. “It’s lucky that i was there. Then again who am I kidding? I’m at most places at least once and in 1943, I was just about everywhere that year.” (539)
Liesel, Rosa, and Death show beauty and brutality through their society of Nazi, Germany and through the rough humanity of their society. Each of the characters throughout the novel show perserverance; no matter how hard times get they keep trying to do better in their…
