Sunday, March 8, 2009

Setting

The Book Thief is based in Himmel Street in Nazi Germany in the year 1939. This point of view is interesting, so far in many World War II books, the center is the concentration camps. This books setting so far is different. Liesel and her foster parents live in the poorer part of Germany; they are really affected by Nazi Germany. The author, Zusak, is really excellent in describing how the city looks and feels. I have a sense of what it looks like most of the time, cloudy, gloomy, and rainy, not the best place to live in. The setting really fits the book, it’s in a horrible time period and it just fits in with how they story should be told, it makes it more realistic. It also helps us realize how terrible place it is to live in this time period. All the struggles the Jews have to go through, it just seems such a terrible place to be. Overall the setting in The Book Thief gloomy and dreary, but it fits the time period for when this was written.

7 comments:

  1. I agree with you on how the feel of the setting, really gloomy and cloudy fits the book. I also said the same point as you on how it is very different to read in the point of view of a normal neighborhood rather than a concentration camp during this time period. You did a great job describing the setting!

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  2. I also agree that the setting does a great job reflecting the horrible events of the time period. I like how the book remains realistic while also telling a compelling story.

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  3. The author does a good job of explaining how poor Liesel and her foster parents really are. By this, I agree with your statement that the poorer part of Germany is really affected by Nazis. The poorer the people are the more likely they are to agree with change, in this case, the Nazi's change.

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  4. I also feel that most of the time the setting is also, cloudy, gloomy, and cold. It feels like this (to me), becuse I know the bad things that are goining on during that time, and also because Death is the one describing these surroundings nothing looks that bright or happy. I think that the author does a good job of setting the mood, by describing the settings.

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  5. I agree that it seems cloudy and rainy most of the time, and that the author describes the setting really well. His discriptions make it much easier to visualize it.

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  6. I really like how you described the setting and connected it to what the plot line of the book is. I agree that since the book is taking place during this horrible time period in Germany, it makes sense that the setting would seem gloomy and gray. I also agree with what you said about the authors good descriptions and like Emma said, i think it makes it easier to visualize what the neighborhood in which the story takes place. I also like the point you made, Alli, that things also seem gloomier than they maybe are because of the fact that Death is the one illustrating them to us.

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  7. I also agree that the setting is described much more gloomily because of the fact that Death is narrating. I think that this is also a good thing, because it conveys a much darker setting, and makes it clear to readers how depressing Nazi Germany was in this time for Jews. I think this really adds to some of the characterization that Zusak is able to give about Death, and his views of the humans' world.

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