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  • Essay / War from the perspective of both a survivor and a victim in "The Book Thief"

    The Book Thief is a film adaptation of the book of the same name, depicting World War II. Throughout the film, “Death” tells the story of Liesel Meminger, a survivor of World War II. It begins with Paula Meminger traveling with her children to their new foster home. During the trip to Molching, Liesel's brother Werner dies. Soon after, Liesel begins to adapt to her new parents, Hans and Rosa Hubermann. She also became friends with Rudy Steiner. Liesel spent four years with the Hubermanns before the town of Molching was bombed by the Allies. This causes most of the townspeople to die along with Liesel's loved ones. The Book Thief is a true portrait of life during World War II and the effects of war on civilians. It focuses on one of the most significant points, which is that not all German civilians accepted Nazi Germany and blindly followed its rules. It provides us with enough information to truly understand the lives of war survivors and victims. In summary, the aim of this project is to understand the events of the war from the perspective of both the survivor and the victim, and the effects it had on them. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned"?Get the original essayIn 1939, Paula Meminger found a couple who agreed to adopt Liesel and her brother Werner in order to protect them. During the trip to Molching, where the host family lives, Werner dies of pneumonia. This indicates the poverty of the family, as many poor people died of diseases due to the inability to pay for health services. Paula was then most likely sent to a concentration camp. The death of her brother and Liesel's separation from her mother mark the beginning of many devastating events. We see that she expresses her misery by often looking at the photo of her brother that she keeps with her all the time, and by frequently writing letters to Paula. By this time, Hitler had invaded Poland in September 1939, which proved to be an immediate cause of the war. As France and Britain issued an ultimatum to Germany, Germany attacked France. Eventually, Britain and France declared war on Germany. The period between September 1939 and April 1940 remained peaceful as there was very little fighting during this period. The film also gives us a glimpse of one of the turning points of the Holocaust: Kristallnacht, “The Night of Broken Glass.” Police and Hitler Youth ransacked Jewish businesses. At the same time, they beat and killed Jews inside. The film then takes a look at Max Vandenburg and his mother, whom he unfortunately soon had to leave to protect herself. On April 20, Adolf Hitler's 50th birthday was celebrated as a national holiday throughout Nazi Germany and other parts of Nazi Germany. On Hitler's birthday, residents of Molching celebrate by burning objects considered "anti-German". Some of these fires were specifically aimed at books. burning books, finds one that hasn't been burned and steals it. Hans soon discovers Liesel's stolen book, when she asks him if his mother is a communist. When Hans implies that Hitler might have hurt his mother, Liesel continues to say. , “I hate the Führer!” Hans worriedly tells her that she can't say such things. This is because people who disrespected Hitler were considered anti-German. They were sent to campsconcentration. Max Vandenburg, a Jew, comes to live in hiding with the Hubermanns. The parents told her that it was extremely important that she not tell anyone about him. Max begins to form a friendship with Liesel which ultimately lasts a very long time. While some children might live and pretend to be non-Jews, most Jews do. send their children to German families who would agree to hide them until the end of the war. These children pretended to be non-Jews and had to carefully hide their Jewish nature. It required a lot of things, the biggest of which was fake IDs. For Max, this was a difficult task and that's why he lived hidden in the Hubermanns' basement. At that time, even finding rescue families was quite difficult. Luckily for Max, Hans was in debt because Max's father saved his life during World War I. During this period, air raids began to occur more frequently than usual, forcing people to hide in bomb shelters. While in a communal bomb shelter, Liesel reads to the rest of the civilians. It comforts them, soothes them, and distracts them from the impending horrors. Other police officers then begin searching the basements for Jews, in case the Hubermanns are hiding Max under a large Confederate flag in the basement. One day, the police arrest a Jew whom Hans defends. This, in turn, proves unfortunate as they cast him aside and take his name. In order to protect the Hubermanns, Max leaves. Soon, Hans receives a letter informing him that he has been drafted into the army and must leave immediately. This turns out to be more and more distressing for Rosa and Liesel. At that time, many men were forced to spend some time in the army. While Hans is away, Liesel sees Jews heading towards the concentration camp while people stare at them as if it were a parade. She then finds herself seeing Max among these people and screams for him, only to be thrown to the sidewalk. These forced movements of prisoners from Nazi Germany to or between concentration camps were generally known as death marches. One night at the end of 1943, the town of Molching was bombed by the Allies and the air raids did not begin. This causes the deaths of dozens of civilians. Liesel's parents, along with Rudy and his family, are killed in the explosion while Liesel herself survives since she was in the basement. She is heartbroken when she sees the dead bodies of her parents. German towns and villages were specifically bombed by the Allies in order to destroy munitions factories, weapons warehouses and eradicate enemy troops. Two years after the death of Liesel's relatives, she began working in the sewing workshop owned by Rudy's father. Max enters the store and asks for Liesel and they are both overcome with joy when they finally meet. The beginning of 1945 began with the evacuation of concentration camps like Auschwitz and gave rise to even more death marches. Soon other camps were liberated, such as Buchenwald, Bergen-Belsen and Sachsenhausen. May 8 marks VJ “Victory in Europe” Day, while September 2 marks VJ “Victory over Japan” Day. On September 2, Imperial Japan capitulated after the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. This, in turn, ended the war. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Conclusion To sum up, the film provides us with information about the events that take place. during the.