1. Markus Zusak: The Book Thief

2.  Structures: How a narrative is communicated e.g. Sequence of events, setting, stage directions  Features: Elements of a text that are focused on. e.g. Characters, plot, themes and ideas.  Conventions: practices that are common to the text type e.g. Use of symbols, motifs, points of tension.

3.  You need to discuss the structures, features and conventions that Zusak uses to convey meaning in his text as it relates to the topic you have chosen by using metalanguage  Every question will allow you to discuss these features, and try and weave metalanguage throughout your body paragraphs. The purpose of this criteria is to demonstrate your ability to understand how the author uses language to communicate his or her meaning. The key is to remember that the author's words or phrases are always chosen with a particular intention – it is your job to investigate why the author has written a text in a particular way.  http://www.vcestudyguides.com/what-is-metalanguage http://www.vcestudyguides.com/what-is-metalanguage

4.  How do the characters change and develop? ▪ E.g. they undertake a physical, emotional and spiritual journey. There is no question that the characters are emotionally stronger at the end of the novel even though they are physically weaker  How do they interact with each other?  How can one belong when they are a foreigner in their own country?  What is Zusak saying through these developments?  Why are the characters so diverse?

5.  Frau Diller – staunch Nazi  Hans and Alex Steiner – worried about Hitler and the war, but do not speak up against destruction  Gravedigger – obeys the other. Death wonders what it the “other” is more than one person.  Metaphor for Nazi Germany, where one man, Hitler commands the entire nation, which obeys him unquestioningly.  Liesel's senseless brutalization of Ludwig and Tommy is compared with Hitler's invasion of Poland. In his rise to power, Hitler promised to restore Germany's greatness following a humiliating defeat in World War I. Similarly, Liesel "avenges" her humiliation through violence.  Liesel later comes to regret this, and eventually realizes the superior power that words hold to violence.  The Standover Man, Hitler and Max

6.  Viktor Chemmel  Allegory: story with two meanings. One is the literal story and the other is the symbolic meaning  "They had no qualms about stealing, but they needed to be told. They liked to be told, and Viktor Chemmel liked to be the teller."(296)  Viktor is a cruel boy who steals for fun and demands obedience from the others  The notion of desiring to be controlled is allegorical  Literal meaning: Liesel recognises that the gang likes to be led rather than to lead  The symbolic meaning is that weakness and complacency leads humans to obey the worst commands merely for the sake of order  This is what Hitler did to Germany and how his propaganda convinced so many people

7.  Why are parts and chapters used? Why does the novel start the way it does? What are the turning points? How does the dramatic tension rise and fall? Why is the resolution so dramatic?  10 parts named after books plus Prologue and Epilogue  Framed narratives: books within books within books e.g. The Standover Man exists in The Book Thief which exists in Death’s version of The Book Thief  Main plot: Liesel  Sub plots: Rudy and Max etc.

8.  Narrator provides snapshots of the World War II outside of Himmel Street and in neighbouring houses and fills in the gaps of Liesel’s knowledge (sees all)  Death as narrator offers a unique perspective on all the death and dying occurring during this historical period as he does not directly affect the action  The narrator is relating the story to his readers as he understands it through a story written by a little girl about her own life. The narrator adds in definitions and small things that he has observed. He is trying to explain his confusion about human nature.  "the survivors," "the leftover humans," "the ones who are left behind, crumbling among the jigsaw puzzle of realization, despair, and surprise" (20-22)

9.  Death suggests that it's easier to be dead than to be alive and suffer  Death is a "result." - biological process  Death implies that it exists as a result of humanity's actions that Death is kept busy by men who kill other men.  The capacity of men to do evil, along with the capacity of men to do good, is a central theme of The Book Thief, and Death is both fascinated and conflicted by these extremes. Hitler and Stalin represent one extreme, Liesel and Hans Hubermann another.The Book ThiefHans Hubermann  The novel invites the reader to consider the "worth" of humanity  Zusak says:  “...war and death are best friends...”  “Death is weary, he’s fatigued...”  “Death is haunted by what he sees humans do to each other because he’s on hand for all our great miseries”

10.  How does it convey Zusak’s ideas? How does it foreshadow the events to come? How can you juxtapose the setting with the events? Consider what these aspects convey:  Pre World War Two  Nazi Germany and Jews in concentration camps  Communists rounded up  Broken shops and Anti-Jew graffiti  Himmel St: “heaven” but opposite: poor, hell, starving, propaganda and extremism. Narrative is about: girl growing up in Germany not Germany itself  Bomb shelter basements on Himmel St  Laundry route (Grande Strasse and Isla’s library)

11.  Both Himmel Street basements are places to hide in times of fear  Max (Jews), if they are 'lucky,' are hiding from the Nazis in basements  German citizens, like the residents of Himmel Street, are hiding from the Allies' air raids  Cold, uncomfortable, cramped and temporary  Life in the basement is uncertain - each breath might be your last  There is a fine line between safety and danger

12.  The Hubermann house  The basement is where Liesel and Max forge their friendship: Liesel learns to read, Max writes his books  Where Rosa, Hans, and Liesel have their snowball fight and love of family blossoms  Later, the basement becomes a seat of creativity for Liesel as she writes her life story, as it was for Max when he wrote The Word Shaker.  The house of the Fielders  Deep bomb shelter for people on Himmel Street  Liesel realizes that she can use her love of reading to provide much needed comfort to those around her  Liesel becomes "the word shaker," when she begins reading to her friends and neighbours

13.  Creativity and artistic expression are often believed to come from the subconscious, that place under the surface of our conscious thoughts  Liesel and Max are creative, loving people in spite of their circumstances, not because of them. They did not need to be locked in a basement to do creative work. At the same time, deep suffering and knowing they could die at any moment adds urgency and power to their work. This is irony and a symbol of rebellion against Hitler

14.  How and why does the novel give a sense of what is going to happen? Foreshadowing is a literary technique in which events that occur later in a story are hinted at in advance.  The narrator Death reveals when certain characters die and under what circumstances.  In the prologue, Death explains that the novel will include, among other things, "a girl" (Liesel), "an accordionist" (Hans), and "a Jewish fist fighter" (Max)  Death describes Liesel as a "perpetual survivor," indicating that she lives through the war while others around her die.  This technique keeps the reader's focus on the actual processes by which the characters meet their ends and emphasizes the futility of the characters' individual actions in the face of an all-consuming war and powerful Nazi party  Death is aware of habit and explains when he talks about Rudy’s death pg. 38 “Mystery bores me. It chores me”  Function is to fool readers into trusting narration and the belief that there are no surprises at the end because he does not provide clues.

15.  Death's use of boldface text to relay certain information foreshadow and spoil the plot: *** A SMALL ANNOUNCEMENT*** ABOUT RUDY STEINER He didn't deserve to die the way he did. (37.9).  The foreshadowing of the other events makes us let down our guards and be surprised  Death also provides illustrations, books within his books, The Standover Man and The Word Shaker, both written on painted-over pages of Adolph Hitler's Book, Mein Kampf.  There are excerpts from the other books that are important to Liesel. This includes her own book, The Book Thief, the story of her life, which Death rescues from a trash truck and reads over and over again before returning it to her when she dies  Framed narrative: a book within a book

16.  What language choices has Zusak made? His choice of language is purposeful.  Speech of Rosa – swearing – reflection of her background and personality  Speech of the Nazi party – rhetoric from the Party – threatening, persuasive and powerful  Max’s way with words and books  Formal English and German words and definitions (realism for a novel set in Germany)

17.  GEMS – Language on every page Metaphors, similes, imagery, personification, puns, etc.  Pun - "I'm haunted by humans" (88).  Humans are haunted by ghosts or death  Here, Death is haunted  Haunted by what humans have to go through  Haunted by what humans do to each other  Haunted mostly by their acts of kindness and love

18.  The title most obviously refers to Liesel Meminger, the book thief of the story. She's officially given the title by her best friend Rudy Steiner at the end of Chapter 42. In this chapter, Liesel steals The Whistler from Ilsa Hermann's library, the first of many such library raids.  Death, is also a book thief  When Liesel drops her newly completed memoir, The Book Thief, after learning that all those she knows and loves on Himmel Street have died from bomb blasts, Death steals the book from a trash truck  Max Vandenburg, the Jewish man hiding from the Nazis, who commits an ultimate act of figurative book thievery. He paints the pages of Adolph Hitler's book, Mein Kampf, white and then sketches loving and frightening words and pictures of his life over the paint  Hitler is actually the biggest book thief of the novel. This becomes apparent in Part 2, which features a massive book burning in celebration of Hitler's birthday in 1940.  With every act of book-thievery, Liesel and her crew steal back whatever words and books they can from Hitler, and even steal his book from him (though he doesn't know it!

19.  Narrator is hoping to prove that your human existence, is worth it” (33)  Narrator is looking for glimpses of hope  Characters feel pain, sadness, loss and despair, but manage to rise with renewed courage  Readers want to believe that humans can grow, learn, and change  Hope that individuals will take a stand against injustice when opportunities do present themselves  In spite of our joy at finding Max alive, the novel ends on a rather melancholy note