Blog Response due Sunday 2/28 @ 9 pm
February 23, 2010Towards the end of Chapter 8, Death reflects on his ability to see humans at their best and worst, “their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both” (491). What are the best and worst parts of humanity? Use examples from The Book Thief as support.
Shanleyblog's Blog 
Humanity is the quality or condition of being human; human nature. So the most human thing is the ability to feel. I say one of the best parts of humanity is definatly feeling acceptance. In Chapter 9 after Liesel returns the plate she has this realization, “It was with great sadness that seh realized that her brother would be six forver, but whe she held that thought, she also made an effort to smile…she smiled and smiled, and when it came out, she walked home” (473). This shows that acceptance his a better part of humanity because it helps Liesel get over the death of her brother and helps her keep the bad thoughts so her brother out of her head so that she will not have bad dreams about him. The worst part about humanity is the feeling of being alone. In Chapter 5 we are given a very good discription of Max, “When he was alone his most distinct feeling was of disappearance. All his clothes were gray…he often checked if his skin was flaking, for it was as if he were dissolving” (250). This shows that feeling alone is the worst part of humanity because Max felt like he was worthless and because he was alone he felt like people were forgetting about him and that he would soon start dissappearing because no one cared about him.
While Nicole has good ideas for the best and worst parts of humanity, I personally feel that the best part of humanity is empathy. Liesel, Hans, Rosa and Rudy epitomize this quality by helping Jews, despite the severity of the consequences. For example, Rudy and Liesel feed bread to the Jews undeterred by their own hunger, “How things had changed, from fruit stealer to bread giver. His blond hair, although darkening, was like a candle. She heard his stomach growl-and he was giving people bread. Was this Germany? Was this Nazi Germany?” (440). This exemplifies that empathy is the best part of humanity. However, the worst part of humanity is the struggle for power. Hitler, is the most controlling figure in The Book Thief. Max construes this attribute through his imaginary fight with Hitler. Although what Hitler says is made up by Max, it is exceedingly accurate to the Fuhrer’s stance in real life. According to Max, Hitler says to the arena while referring to Max, “He will soon own you… Before you know it, you’ll be working for him at minimum wage while he can hardly walk from the weight of his pockets… Will you climb up into this ring with me?” (254). This demonstrates that Hitler is convincing Germans to persecute Jews first, with the lie that the Jews will do the same to them.
I agree with Jenna in which the best part of humanity is empathy. Humans have the ability to share emotions with one another through empathy, which Hans, Rosa, Liesel and Rudy utilize towards the Jews. Although Rosa is portrayed as a tough loving type of woman towards Liesel, we are shown that she really does empathize other people. The narrator, Death, states “An attribute of Rosa Hubermann; She was a good woman for a crisis”(211). Rosa is able to show empathy towards a Jew,Max, whom is struggling to stay alive. However I do disagree with Jenna that the worst part of humanity is the struggle for power. I do agree with Wesley however, that dissapointment is one of the worst aspects about humanity. In the middle of the book, Liesel begins to get better at reading and writing and decides to write her mother a letter. Each day Liesel awaits for a letter from her mother, yet never receieves one. Liesel is full of dissapointment, which ultimately causes a person to feel sorrow and anger.
I agree with that the examples Jenna and Nicole gave are good examples of the best and worst parts of humanity. I found additional best and worst parts of humanity. I feel that friendship is the best part of humanity. Liesel’s frienship with Rudy, the mayor’s wife and Max are extremely valuable part of her life. Rudy and Liesel’s friendship is expressesd when Rudy asks “You told him about me?”, and Liesel reacts “At first Liesel could not talk. Perhaps it was the the sudden bumbiness of love she felt for him…he was her best friend.” Liesel replies to Rudy’s question by saying “Of course I told him about you”, explaing how she told max about him. This shows how the value of frienship in a person’s life is the best part of humanity. I feel the worst part of humanity is the feeling of dissapointment, distress or sorrow about something that one wishes could be changed, also known as regret. Throughout the Book Thief
Liesel, Rudy, Hans, and even Michael Holtzapfel
all share the feeling of regret. Michael’s regret is demonstrated when he says “I should have stayed, I should have stayed….. His voice was close to noiseless,but his eyes were louder than ever,” when his mother did not come to the bomb shelter, and he didn’t stay with her (487). Micheal experiences a tremendous feelin of regret as he longs thate he could change his actions. The worst part of humanity is exemplified through regret.
I think Nicole, Jenna, and Wesley all make valid points in their pros and cons of humanity, however, I think the best and worst aspects of this inevitable condition we’ve all aquired is the same thing: having to make decisions. This ability to choose is unique to humans because other animals don’t have the means or the brain capacity to choose what they want for themselves. Their decision making is very limited, while the complexity of a human’s thought process is absurd. The best part of decision making is the fact that sometimes it liberates people giving them freedom to apply themselves in order to change their lives. In The Book Thief, Max, despite adversities, such as being Jewish and living in a cold basement with little food, prepares himself for an imaginary fight with Hitler by doing push ups and sit ups and fantasizing about this extraordinary boxing match in detail every night. This determination is paralleled by Rudy who also chooses to physically dedicate himself to running in order to prove Franz Deutscher wrong. These are examples of triumphs of the human spirit because Max and Rudy, instead of complaining because their lives were undoubtedly hard, made positive commitments that they stuck to, which brought them a sense of accomplishment. However, this power to make decisions is also a very hindering trait of people. The analysis that goes into weighing pros and cons can be tribulating and can tear a person or a group of people apart. Perhaps the most difficult choice made in The Book Thief was when Alex Steiner allows himself to be draft into the war instead of his son, risking his life in order to secure Rudy’s. If this decision weren’t hard enough to make, the overwhelming regret Alex feels when he sees that his decision was in vain come when Molching is bombed and the entire Steiner family dies. Alex says “Crucified Christ, if only ‘d let Rudy go to that school,” proving that no matter how confident one is in his decision, something can always go wrong (547).
I agree with Delaney when she says that the best part of humanity is also the worst. However I think that this certain part of humanity is something entirely different. The worst part of humanity is death. Dying causes sadness and misery and is ultimately the worst thing that can happen to a person. But without death, humans would not be able to appreciate life. Therefore death is both the worst thing in life and the best thing in life. A wise man once said, “Some days wouldn’t be special, if it wasn’t for rain/
Joy wouldn’t feel so good, if it wasn’t for pain” (50 Cent). This quote means that the good things in life would not be enjoyable if they were not accompanied by bad things. In “The Book Thief”, a similar point is made by Death when he says, “I see their ugly and their beauty, and I wonder how the same thing can be both. Still they have one thing I envy. Humans, if nothing else, have the good sense to die” (491). Death is basically saying that humans can only appreciate the happiness of life because they know that someday they will eventually die. But because Death will never die, he can’t experience happiness; that is why he envies the humans’ ability to die. So without the worst things in life like death, there would be nothing to appreciate. Therefore death is the both the worst and best part of humanity.
Similar to what Jenna said, I believe the best part of humanity is human’s ability to relate to one another. Empathy is a gift that allows people to express emotions. However, as Delaney said, such an ability to relate to one another with words has another face; words can often be used to hurt others. Between empathy and hate (as seen from the cruelty of people’s words) is both the best and worst part of humanity. In The Book Thief, Liesel’s town finds comfort in the words of her book while waiting for Death in the bomb shelter. “Everyone waited for the ground to shake. That was an immutable fact, but at least they were distracted now, by the girl with the book” (382). Such a distraction is surely a comfort in a near-death situation. However, it was also words and speeches that, though conceived as the ‘correct’ path, that caused the Holocaust. Death contemplates, “Did they deserve any better, these people? How many had actively persecuted others, high on the scent of Hitler’s gaze, repeating his sentences, his paragraphs, his opus” (375)? Aside from Death and Hans, very few people were able to see past the Fuhrer’s cunning word tricks and understand that he was having the world kill innocent people. Finally, in Liesel’s narration of her life, “The Book Thief”, she states, “I have hated the words, and I have loved them, and I hope I have made them right” (528). The words of others have brought both comfort and violence to Liesel’s life.
The best part of humanity is the ability to communicate. Communication through words supports the relation between characters in “The Book Theif”. Between Hitler’s propoganda, Max’s books, or Leisel’s own black book, each succeed in sending a message and most importantly rememberance. When Leisel seeks Max in the parade of jews their memories pour out, “The Fuhrer still comes down looking for you sometimes. He misses you. We all miss you” (513).When Leisel and Max both had nightmares they were able to relate through communication, bringing them together.The worst aspect of humanity is fear. Actions that go against a crowd or violate accepted decisions generate fear in those that disagree with society. For example, Hans Hubermann, performing an action as noble as giving a jew a peice of bread in a shameful parade through town, immediately acheived in producing panic. This is clearly the reaction of Hans when he says, “God, Liesel, what have I done?” (395).
As Christine mentions, I believe with her that the best part of humanity is humans’ ability to relate to one another. People’s relationships with eachother build people’s character as well as give people the ablity to care and be cared for. As Liesel dies in her old age, her last thoughts are of, “her three children, her grandchildren, her husband, and the long list of lives that merged with hers,” (544). When humans die, they die thinking of people they were connected with in their life. These memories form a large part of humanity for relationships play a significant role in humans’ lives. As for the worst part of humanity, I agree with Delaney that it is decision making. The outcome of decisions may end up negative or positive. Humans never know what may happen, that unsure feeling alone is the worst part of humanity. For example, when Rudy jumps into the river to catch Liesel’s book, so he could try for a kiss from Liesel, he is making a decision which could end positively or poorly. When Liesel turns him down the devastation he feels is so great he does not ask for her lips again, demonstrating how uneasy humans feel when making decisions.
I agree with Nikki on this one. The thing that separates humans from animals is the relationships and bonds that are formed. Closeness and compassion between humans can be a reason for heartbreak and sadness, or ecstacy and happiness. This is evidenced when Death says, Leisel “was incapable, and after a few more minutes at his side, she was able to tear herself from the ground. It amazes me what humans can do, even when streams are flowing down their faces and they stagger on, coughing and searching, and finding” (536). But, one can never be without the other. Happiness is not eternal, and sadness does not last forever. They are intertwined, which has a drastic effect on humans. Even with the sadness of jews all around, “Leisel couldn’t help herself. There was a trace of a grin on her face as she and Rudy Steiner, her best friend,handed out the pieces of bread on the road.” The best way to describe this is “Trouble is part of your life, and if you don’t share it, you don’t give the person who loves you enough chance to love you enough.” (Dinah Shore) The main flaw and also the most important part of humans is the relationships that are shared, as they can make or break anyone at any moment.
Humanity can be defined as the condition or quality of being human. There are multiple aspects of humanity that are both good and bad but some more than others. The best part of humanity can be viewed differently for most people but I agree with Jenna when she said the best part is empathy. A general quote displaying empathy is “If each man or woman could understand that every other human life is as full of sorrows, or joys, or base temptations, of heartaches and of remorse as his own . . . how much kinder, how much gentler he would be”(William Allen White). This proves that empathy is the best part of humanity but it is a matter if people actually follow through with this action. Empathy is the feelings shared towards one another which defines the relationship between Max and Liesel. When Max became extremely ill Liesel showed a great deal of affection towards him especially when she says, “Please, Max, just don’t die” (316). This shows that empathy is the best part of humanity because it allows true feelings to be revealed. I agree with Delaney when she says that the worst part of humanity is decision making. I think that can be considered a weakness in most people depending on confidence. In life there are so many decisions that need to be made which puts a person in that typical situation of which path to follow. Some decisions carry a greater risk and sometimes bring the worst out of people. Hitler was a well known and well liked man. He was seen as extremely powerful but most did not think that his power would go to his head and destroy what he thought to be like. Hitler made a poor decision in deciding to eliminate the Jews. Many people feared him even more due to this decision that went horribly wrong. As said before there are risks in making any decision but as stated in a song,”Sometimes you gotta go through the pain to experience the joy” (Damaged by Danity Kane). This proves that decision making is the worst part in humanity because it can allow people to see others as they really are which is not always a good thing.
I agree with Nicole with how she said that humanity is based on human nature. In my opinion human nature is how a person lives his/her life. One of the problems with how people live their lives that can also be an upside is how sometime people keep things to themselves. One of the upsides to this is it can help people from getting hurt. An example of this is how Hans hides Max because otherwise he would be sent to a concentration camp. One of the problems with this is how sometimes you won’t get what you want because your to stubborn to say. A less extreme example of this is how Liesel thought, “perhaps it was the sudden bumpiness of love that she felt for him” (518). In the end she probably wishes that she couldve said what she felt because little did she know that it would be the last time she talked to him. This is why in humanity something as little as a keeping things to youselves can be bad or also good.
I think Jenna is right that empathy is the best quality in human nature, and although I agree that a struggle for power is also a bad quality in humans, I ultimately believe the fear of death is the worst. For empathy, humans’ ability to have a conscience and know that something is morally wrong stops them from hurting one another. The quote “Max, Hans, and Rosa I cannot account for, but I know that Liesel Meminger was thinking that if the bombs ever landed on Himmel Street, not only did Max have a less chance of survival than everyone else, but he would die completely alone.” (384). It is that hurt we share with others that makes us better, more understanding people. The worst quality, the fear of death stops us from living. Sometimes people will not help others or take chances for fear of dying. Throughout the Book Thief a fear of death stops people from helping the Jews. Therefore, the worst quality can stop the best quality in people.
I have to disagree with the point that Kali stating that a good part of humanity is keeping information to yourself. Just like Megan said, humanity allows us to communicate to each other. Through communication, we create bonds and friendships that relates us all. Throughout The Book Thief, Max and Liesel form a unbreakable bond just by sitting in the basement. Their communication allowed them to understand each other better and to become better friends. Even over time, they still share the same feelings for each other, which they expressed when they reunited in the epilogue. “They hugged and cried and fell to the floor” when they saw each other (548). By keeping your feelings bottled up inside, you further isolate yourself from the world and the people you love. This can lead to depression,guilt, or a multitude of varying bad feelings. It is better to share with others what you are going through then keeping it all to yourself.
I agree with Ashley because the ability to share information with other people and make friendships is the best part about humanity. If the best part of humanity was keeping information to themselves then everyone would feel lonely and separated. Max shows the need for communication with other people because his friendship with Leisel is the only thing keeping him happy in the cold basement where he is hiding. I think that keeping things inside is the worst part of humanity because it isolates people from each other and isolation never causes any good feelings in people.
I agree with what Reed and Delaney said about the best and worst parts of humanity being the same thing. I believe this is the idea of progress. Humans have been building their ideas off of others for years, and the result has been the technoledgy to improve the qaulity of life for millions of people. However, with advanced technolegdy comes weapons of mass destruction responsible for the deaths of millions. “The first bomb hits Tommy Muller’s apartment block”(page 529). Other mechanisms such as cars which we depend upon daily have detrimental effects to the environment which could possibly cause huge problems in the future.