The book thief is a historical novel by australian author markus zusak and is his most popular work. In world war i, hans befriends a jew named erik vandenburg who teaches hans how to play the accordion. The book thief character analysis 768 words 4 pages. Hans hubermann has multiple talents like painting or playing the accordion. These acts, along with his general kindness, have a huge effect on liesel and even on rudy. The film is about a young girl living with her adoptive german family during the nazi era. Liesel meminger is a young german girl whose mother has given her up to the foster parent system because she can. In the book thief, there are many conflicts, it is a time of war. An amateur accordion player, hans is a tall, gentle man with a remarkable amount of integrity and bravery hans compassion sets a strong example for liesel, who is soothed by his presence.
Book thief character analysis monday, october 27, 2014. However, these scenes of violence do not exist for their own sake, but instead add value and depth to the story being told. The character of hans hubermann in the book thief from. Liesel lives with her foster family after her father abandons her and her mother becomes unable to. As a father figure to liesel, he represents paternal selfsacrifice and the wisdom of experience. Amiable, gentle, humble, secure definitely for liesel, who looked for safety and protection, strong character summary. The book thief the sound of sirens the promise keepers wife quiz the book thief the collector one toolbox, one bleeder, one bear quiz the book thief homecoming the handover man quiz the book thief part 1part 2 the other side of sandpaper book of fire summary the book thief part 3part 4 the way home the accordionist summary the book. The book thief cliffsnotes study guides book summaries. Nov 02, 2015 but after max came and hans left for the war, my view changed for her. Find out why hes such an important figure for liesel and why he.
In the novel, the book thief, the setting is the year 1939 in the newly founded nazi germany. Get everything you need to know about hans hubermann in the book thief. The novel ends when she is an old woman and death comes to collect her soul. Liesel stole books from a grave digger, a bonfire and the mayors wife, ilsa herman. Teach your students to analyze literature like litcharts does. A close analysis of the key scene depicting violence as depicted in the book thief in works of great literature, violent scenes often play prominent roles. Liesel is traumatized by her brothers death, but hans proves to be a. The book thiefcharacter development overcoming adversity. His father saved hans s life during world war i, and later hans tries to save maxs life, which puts the hubermanns lives in great jeopardy. She is very short, with an extremely wrinkled face, and has brownygrey elastic hair often tied up. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is. There is the death of a friend, love of a parent, and survival of those who can take it. In chapter eight we are introduced to the character when liesel plays soccer with the himmel street children. Rudy was a bony legged, sharp teethed,blue eyed boy with blonde hair.
Liesel character since the beginning of time, people have used bravery to continue fighting in order to overcome the hardest things in life. She became this caring woman, she cared for a man she didnt even know and risked her life to keep him from being taken away. Nov 01, 2015 hans was my second favorite character out of this while book, because hes someone to aspire to be. Detailed analysis of characters in marcus zusaks the book thief. The book thief study guide contains a biography of markus zusak, literature. Generous, kind, and patient, hans is immediately sympathetic, and remains that way to the end. He helps not only liesel, but everybody around him. The book thief, pg 242 the book thief by markus zusak is a book of death, love, and survival. It was the first time liesel had been branded with her title, and she couldnt hide the fact that she liked it very much. Character profile for hans hubermann from the book thief. Death takes an interest in liesel, and believes that her story is one of the best stories that he has. Character list and analysis hans hubermann hans is liesels foster father, her papa. As the novel progresses, rosa momma grows and changes through her relationships with others like leisel.
His life was saved by a jew erik vandenberg in world war i, and he keeps his promise to eriks widow by hiding her son max from the nazis. The main character, liesel meminger, takes on a role as the foster child of hans and rosa hubermann. The book thief by markus zusak is a novel of cruelty, poverty, and hope. If liesel is the novels moral center, her foster father, hans, is its heart. The film is based on the 2005 novel of the same name by markus zusak and adapted by michael petroni. World war ii was a devastating period and many did not have the mental strength to survive it. The book thief essay describe at least one character or individual you enjoyed reading about in the texts. In the book thief, the author chooses to make a supporting character as a surrogate parent with a rough exterior that is difficult to love. As the novel progresses, rosa momma grows and changes through her relationships with others like leisel, hans, her own children, the community, and max. Death, liesel meminger, hans hubermann, rosa hubermann, max vandenburg, rudy steiner, alex steiner, ilsa hermann, frau holtzapfel, michael holtzapfel, robert holtzapfel, frau diller, hans hubermann, junior, trudy hubermann, tommy muller, arthur berg, walter kugler, franz deutscher, viktor chemmel. Yet hans is clearly not weak or cowardly, as he is one of the few characters who directly challenges hitlers. Character list and analysis minor characters the book thief. It was adapted into a 20 feature film of the same name. An analysis on markus zusaks the book thief, the world war ii, the.
Liesels mother liesel often thinks of her mother and how the fuhrer is responsible for taking her away. Liesel meminger is a young girl who has been placed in foster care by her mother. Markus zusaks the book thief, set in germany during world war ii, follows young liesel meminger as she struggles with the loss of her mother and brother and must go to live with foster parents, hans and rosa hubermann. In markus zusaks book, the book thief, liesel has to face many obstacles in order to see that she just needs to be brave and keep fighting through the emotional pain. Somehow and im sure youve met people like this, he was able to appear as merely part of the background. This study guide consists of approximately 52 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of the book thief. While many people tend to think of death as a horrid and relentless being, in markus zusaks the book thief, zusak shows us that death is a just an end result. Hans gives them a positive role modelhes a rare example of an adult that truly sets an awesome example. Liesel is traumatized by her brothers death, but hans proves to be a calming foster father. The few occasions when hans is strict or harsh with liesel, he is acting.
He is the one who warms the readers heart in a novel. Daniel martinez period 3 the book thief in the book thief we are introduced to an interesting character named rudy. Hans is also a protagonist because he helps throughout the entire book. Character and theme analysis book thief quotes he laughed. Instant downloads of all 1296 litchart pdfs including the book thief. His quiet, gentle nature is what wins liesel over, and death tells us that he is the one liesel loves most. It takes place during world war ii, a time of nazis and adolf hitler as ruler. He makes liesel feel so at home and cares for her so much.
Get free homework help on markus zusaks the book thief. The character of hans hubermann in the book thief from litcharts. Hans was my second favorite character out of this while book, because hes someone to aspire to be. Learn the roles and relationships of the characters in the book thief, and how they contribute to the plot. Hans has true strength of character, as shown by his hiding of max and his other acts of resistance against the nazis. Liesel is a book thief, therefore making her the main character she has blonde hair and blue eyes. Apr 25, 2014 in the novel, the book thief, the setting is the year 1939 in the newly founded nazi germany. Her time on himmel street is great, she meets a best friend, learns to read, writes a book, and befriends a jew that. The book thief is a historicalfiction novel it is the. In the book, liesel faces many challenges big and small. She is 9 years old at the beginning of the story, when after the death of her brother she is taken in by the hubermann family. The book thief mark zusaks the book thief, was written in 2005 that centers around the character of a young girl by the name of liesel meminger who is adopted by hans and rosa hubermann. Liesel lives with her foster family after her father abandons her and her mother becomes unable to take care of her. Hans hubermann is one of the most important people in the life of liesel, the main character.
Hans hubermann is the foster father of liesel meminger. Frau henrich the woman from foster care who delivers liesel to the hubermanns home. Learn all about how the characters in the book thief such as death and liesel meminger contribute to the story and how they fit into the plot. The book thief characters from litcharts the creators of. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on litcharts. He is a very tall man who walks upright, plays the accordion, and has silver eyes. At the beginning of the story, liesel was nine years old almost ten. She is very short, with an extremely wrinkled face, and has brownygrey elastic hair often tied up in a bun, and chlorinated eyes. She is about fifteen toward the end of the novel when the bombs destroy her home and kill her loved ones. Explain why the characters or individuals helped you understand an idea in the texts.
For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one. He helps not only liesel, but everybody around him, teaching and giving people what they needwant. Character profile for rosa hubermann from the book thief page 1. At the start of the book she is just a nineyearold orphan making her way to himmel street to live with rosa and hans hubermann. Liesel shows major character development throughout the book thief. In my opinion, i think hans is the most loving character in the book. A complete analysis of all the major characters in markus zusaks the book thief, including hans and rosa, max vandenburg, rudy steiner, and the book thief herselfliesel meminger. As were both aware, shed stolen books previously, but. Hans is exceedingly kind and gentle, and has a quiet strength and courage. Death narrates the story of liesel meminger, beginning when she is nine years old and suffering from the death of her brother and separation from her mother. The accordionist the secret life of hans hubermann summary. Narrated by death, the book thief is the story of liesel meminger, a nineyearold german girl who given up by her mother to live with hans and rosa hubermann in the small town of molching in 1939, shortly before world war ii. Possibly the only good thing to come out of these nightmares was that is brought hans hubermann, her new papa, into the room, to soothe her, to love her is an excellent quote and shows how much hans truly.
However, people, even death, perceive him as a normal or barely visible man. But she builds a new family with hans and rosa hubermann who treat. Even when the hubermanns barely had anything to survive on themselves let alone max, rosa insisted, you will be fed, as best as i can. The book thief mark zusaks the book thief, was written in 2005 that centers around the character of a young girl by the name of liesel meminger who is. Hardworking, intelligent even with her inability to read at the beginning of the story, brave, bold character summary. One of the main characters is a 9yearold adopted girl named liesel meminger. But after max came and hans left for the war, my view changed for her. She also meets a young boy named rudy steiner, who goes on to be her best friend and lover. He provides the novel with dark thoughts, humor, and information. Once a reluctant soldier during world war i, he is a house painter and accordionist. Liesel is the book thief referred to in the title because liesel is fascinated by the power of words. The reader knows a lot about hans, and can feel what he feels and see through his eyes, making him a round character. Character profile for rosa hubermann from the book thief. Published in 2005, the book thief became an international bestseller and was translated into 63 languages and sold 16 million copies.
At this age, liesel was unfortunately separated from her family, her father and brother died and her mother was most likely brought to a concentration camp. The book thief, written by markus zusak, is no exception to. His quiet, gentle nature is what wins liesel over, and death tells us. She forms a special connecting with max, the jew they are hiding in their basement. We all wish we had a father figure as crazyawesome as hans. Erik saves hanss life by nominating hans as the soldier with the best handwriting, which allows hans to help write letters while the rest of the men fight. He follows his own moral compass even when it puts him. Liesel s foster father, a silveryeyed house painter and accordion player. History and especially world war two is a testament to the duality of human nature. Tools of characterization character analysis names.
He is a painter who doesnt agree with the acts of the nazi party, but applies for membership to keep up the. Max vandenburg is the jewish man who hides in the hubermanns basement. Hans hubermann papa liesels foster father and husband of rosa, hans is a former german soldier during the first world war, accordion player, and painter. Everyone in molching is scared of the nazis and hitler, scared to do anything that would even upset a nazi. Hans hubermann quotes in the book thief the the book thief quotes below are all either spoken by hans hubermann or refer to hans hubermann. Character list and analysis hans hubermann cliff notes.
Liesel is nine years old, almost ten, at the start of the novel. Liesels foulmouthed, often aggravating, foster mother. He is the one person who liesel loved the most, he treats her like his own child and teaches her many things about life. As time goes on, liesel transforms into a curious, determined, and strongminded girl. At the beginning of the novel, liesels a lonely, confused, and severely lost child. Book summary the majority of the novel takes place in the fictional town of molching, germany, near munich, between 1939 and 1943. For liesel, the main character in the book thief by markus zusak, the answer to both of those questions is hans hubermann, her foster father. She is curious and eager to learn but also understands that she needs to be obdient. Hes a rare example of an adult that they can really aspire to be like in the ways that matter. Hans hubermann has appeared in the following books. Hans is patient and gentle with liesel, and is the first adult able to win her. Zusak gives us a unique perspective on life as we read through the eyes of lifes leading offender. Tools of characterization in the book thief shmoop. She loves her foster parents very much, along with her best friend rudy.
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