Themes - we all know that themes are the encoded messages we receive from a text. The important ones are those which explore what is universally true in texts – in other words what is true for all humanity irrespective of time or place. However, there are also themes which explore the nature of humanity as it is within a prescribed context – in our case World War Two. The following are some ideas which are developed in The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.
Genocide: the annihilation of a race or creed. This issue exists in the book in 3 major ways:
1. through the character of Max,
2. through the events of the Jewish forced marches through the town,
3. and through a personal look at its impact upon Death as he visits Auschwitz for the first time.
First, Zusak allows us to view it from a distance, from the perspective of the folk watching Jews walk through their town. We see this twice. From this we may understand that there were many responses from the German citizens to what was going on. Primarily we learn that local people did have some sort of awareness of ‘the final solution’. Those with integrity and courage, like Hans Hubermann, helped by hiding people at the risk of their own safety, and that of their families. We see that little gestures, are sometimes a rekindling of hope for those less fortunate as Hans and the children distribute their meagre bread rations along the road for the starving Jews. We see that others in the crowd are supportive of the process, and others rendered inert through fear. Now you would need to explain these ideas in a little more depth and gather quotations to support them. Three quotations per idea, probably.
Next, he allows us to see the personal face through one survivor – Max – as he endeavours to maintain his humanity in the face of immense deprivation and loss. As we engage with Max and learn more about him, we are burdened with our growing emotional bond. It is a burden, perhaps, because we know he is a Jew, and we know what danger he is in. Therefore, the bigger the emotional engagement, the more we, the reader, become at risk of having our personal equilibrium disturbed as he falls victim to the system. We watch as Max gradually deteriorates before our eyes, slowly slipped of mental, physical and emotional health. He is relentlessly stripped of his humanity until he is barely recognised as a member of the same species as the rest of us. We learn how even those who escape the camps lived lives of privation and fear. For humans, loss of freedom is loss of identity...or, at the least, we struggle to maintain a sense of our identity or individuality. When Max disappears, we are placed in the same position as friends and families of Jews and political dissenters who have disappeared without trace..we wonder what happened to them... and wonder some more..., and we become frustrated by the fact that there is no answer ---until there is, and then it may be an answer we do not want. Thus this issue also teaches us that the human cost of the holocaust was far more wide reaching than those who suffered the ultimate price, death. Now develop your explanation of this and add some supporting quotations
Finally, we go with Death into the showers at Auschwitz, and through his eyes we are able to see the full expression of racial hatred. We see with horrifying clarity that the Holocaust was a blot on the copybook of mankind and must never happen again. Even death, whose job it is to collect souls, is exhausted and demoralised by it. It is shocking and must never be repeated...and yet it has...in Bosnia, ...in East Timor, ...in Iraq. The final line reminds us that we are all human...when one human is attacked...we are all attacked. It is imperative that we treat others with natural justice and care for when we harm others, we harm ourselves. The Jews have a saying which links “he who saves one, saves the world entire”. This is what should be our personal goals, perhaps. Anyhow, it is a huge idea... Now develop your explanation of this and add some supporting quotations.
Zusak’s exploration of the Holocaust (genocide) in this novel is rich in ideas about war; mental, physical and emotional survival; Fascism; the resilience of the human spirit; the deprivation of human rights, and alienation. What are some of these ideas?
Genocide: the annihilation of a race or creed. This issue exists in the book in 3 major ways:
1. through the character of Max,
2. through the events of the Jewish forced marches through the town,
3. and through a personal look at its impact upon Death as he visits Auschwitz for the first time.
First, Zusak allows us to view it from a distance, from the perspective of the folk watching Jews walk through their town. We see this twice. From this we may understand that there were many responses from the German citizens to what was going on. Primarily we learn that local people did have some sort of awareness of ‘the final solution’. Those with integrity and courage, like Hans Hubermann, helped by hiding people at the risk of their own safety, and that of their families. We see that little gestures, are sometimes a rekindling of hope for those less fortunate as Hans and the children distribute their meagre bread rations along the road for the starving Jews. We see that others in the crowd are supportive of the process, and others rendered inert through fear. Now you would need to explain these ideas in a little more depth and gather quotations to support them. Three quotations per idea, probably.
Next, he allows us to see the personal face through one survivor – Max – as he endeavours to maintain his humanity in the face of immense deprivation and loss. As we engage with Max and learn more about him, we are burdened with our growing emotional bond. It is a burden, perhaps, because we know he is a Jew, and we know what danger he is in. Therefore, the bigger the emotional engagement, the more we, the reader, become at risk of having our personal equilibrium disturbed as he falls victim to the system. We watch as Max gradually deteriorates before our eyes, slowly slipped of mental, physical and emotional health. He is relentlessly stripped of his humanity until he is barely recognised as a member of the same species as the rest of us. We learn how even those who escape the camps lived lives of privation and fear. For humans, loss of freedom is loss of identity...or, at the least, we struggle to maintain a sense of our identity or individuality. When Max disappears, we are placed in the same position as friends and families of Jews and political dissenters who have disappeared without trace..we wonder what happened to them... and wonder some more..., and we become frustrated by the fact that there is no answer ---until there is, and then it may be an answer we do not want. Thus this issue also teaches us that the human cost of the holocaust was far more wide reaching than those who suffered the ultimate price, death. Now develop your explanation of this and add some supporting quotations
Finally, we go with Death into the showers at Auschwitz, and through his eyes we are able to see the full expression of racial hatred. We see with horrifying clarity that the Holocaust was a blot on the copybook of mankind and must never happen again. Even death, whose job it is to collect souls, is exhausted and demoralised by it. It is shocking and must never be repeated...and yet it has...in Bosnia, ...in East Timor, ...in Iraq. The final line reminds us that we are all human...when one human is attacked...we are all attacked. It is imperative that we treat others with natural justice and care for when we harm others, we harm ourselves. The Jews have a saying which links “he who saves one, saves the world entire”. This is what should be our personal goals, perhaps. Anyhow, it is a huge idea... Now develop your explanation of this and add some supporting quotations.
Zusak’s exploration of the Holocaust (genocide) in this novel is rich in ideas about war; mental, physical and emotional survival; Fascism; the resilience of the human spirit; the deprivation of human rights, and alienation. What are some of these ideas?