Intro In his novel, “The Book Thief”, Markus Zusak communicates his ideas about the vulnerability of all societies to colluding in atrocities by re-framing the events of the Nazi Holocaust in the mid-20th century. Like many texts in the genre of Magical Realism, a variety of techniques are used by Zusak to help the reader […]

Valley of trolls It is summer, nearing autumn and the first of the winter storms are rolling through. The sun is shining, palely through the oncoming wreck of clouds. The alpine grass pushes back from its hunched position under the gathering line of nature that approaches. The boulders that shout protection, hold the position of […]

This story starts with a prison, a man known as 775 and a wish. I have only watched the man twice over his story, the first time at school and the second time at prison. His story is one of determination and courage, it is littered with danger and knowledge. You might now be wondering […]

District 9 After the movie District 9, I had a conflicting assessment from the portrait of the aliens that are colloquially known as Prawns. I agree with how the humans in the movie felt over how the prawns were acting in Johannesburg, which was frustration and anger. This anger was caused by parts of their […]

Markus Zusak deceives the reader into changing and colouring their preconceptions of Nazi Germany in his novel ‘The Book Thief’. Zusak uses this to highlight the power of words and how they grip us. The elements of Magical Realism is used by Zusak to deceive the reader three separate times; The first is the narrator […]

Question:How did Markus Zusak employ features of the genre Magical Realism to convey his ideas about human existence in his novel The Book Thief IntroIntro into how Zusak uses elements of magical realism to challenge the preconceptions of the reader. Paragraph 1What is Magical Realism? Paragraph 2DeathHow Death is used to normalise the horrors of […]

In the novel The Book Thief by Markus Zusak uses elements of magical realism to challenge the reader. Zusak creates an altered reality to expose to the reader the idea that Nazi Germany may have been deceived into believing that genocide was okay. An example of this is when the reader discovers after reading the […]

The Book Thief Character: Liesel, Narrator (Death)Setting: Real WWII, Real Germany, Unreal MolchingStructure: Linear, Chronological – ForeshadowingPoint of View: 3rd person, Unreliable (because retelling)Language: Life of Pi Character: Narrator (Journalist), PiSetting: Real Ocean, Real Ship/Boat, Unreal Island, Uncertain AnimalsStructure: Linear, Chronological – ForeshadowingPoint of View: 3rd person, Unreliable (because retelling)Language:

Quote: “The Survivors. They’re the ones I can’t stand to look at, although on many occasions, I still fail. I deliberately seek out the colours to keep my mind off them, but now and then, I witness the ones who are left behind, crumbling amongst a jigsaw puzzle of realisation, despair and surprise.” Markus Zusak […]