The Sublime In The Book Thief

The Eyes of Hope Among the Eyes of Fear: Zusak’s The Book Thief In Zusak’s The Book Thief, sublimity is shown by the actions and emotions of characters through various events. The beauty in the destructions of war, and the power of language during hard times all contain aspects of the sublime in their own way. Sublimity is achieved through perception, and Zusak portrays this by his writing style: making Death the narrator. Throughout the novel, several moments of sublimity are shown, even if characters may be oblivious to it, just like the Steiner children playing with dominoes; they build up a magnificent structure to observe it collapsing. Liesel’s ability to use her language to sooth the worry of a crowd during a bombing, and Death’s potential to search for the pulchritude during World War II, reveal sublimity. …show more content…
Liesel displays her potential of language usage by reading a book to the families in the basement to reach a tranquil state. She begins by reading and feeling “their frightened eyes hanging on to her” (Zusak 381), which gives her authority of the atmosphere. She attained a sublime state in the basement due to the war state they are in, but still the individuals were “soothed by her voice”. (Zusak 381). Her actions portray how the “sublime makes the sense of beauty fear for its security” (Baker 169). The fearful families feared the bombs and the consequences of them, but Liesel managed to comfort them greatly. Liesel is a symbol of the good in a bad situation; she is a definition of the