Mein Kampf Symbol in The Book Thief

For Hans himself, the accordion is a symbol of his debt to Erik Vandenburg, the Jewish man who saved his life. The accordion then becomes the link between the Hubermanns and Max Vandenburg, and a symbol of Hans's strength of character that allows him to take Max in. When Hans leaves for the war, the accordion comes to symbolize Hans himself, as Rosa silently wears it at night without playing a note.

Mein Kampf Quotes in The Book Thief

The The Book Thief quotes below all refer to the symbol of Mein Kampf. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

For most of the journey, he made his way through the book, trying never to look up.
The words lolled about in his mouth as he read them.
Strangely, as he turned the pages and progressed through the chapters, it was only two words he ever tasted.
Mein Kampf. My struggle –
The title, over and over again, as the train prattled on, from one German town to the next.
Mein Kampf.
Of all the things to save him.

Related Characters: Death (speaker), Max Vandenburg

Related Symbols: Mein Kampf

Page Number and Citation: 160

Explanation and Analysis:

During that week, Max had cut out a collection of pages from Mein Kampf and painted over them in white… When they were all dry, the hard part began… he formulated the words in his head till he could recount them without error. Only then, on the paper that had bubbled and humped under the stress of drying paint, did he begin to write the story.

Related Characters: Death (speaker), Max Vandenburg

Related Symbols: Mein Kampf

Page Number and Citation: 223

Explanation and Analysis:

Mein Kampf Symbol Timeline in The Book Thief

The timeline below shows where the symbol Mein Kampf appears in The Book Thief. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...start to argue, and Hans Junior calls Liesel's books "trash" – she should be reading Mein Kampf instead. Hans Junior keeps arguing and finally calls his father a coward and storms out.... (full context)

A few days later Hans trades some cigarettes for a copy of Mein Kampf , the book written by Hitler. He overhears the party members discussing him, and how... (full context)

...Jew, but now he is on a train for Munich, and holding a copy of Mein Kampf . His friend Walter Krugler had gotten him the book with the train tickets and... (full context)

...train and finds his way nervously to Himmel Street by night, holding his suitcase and Mein Kampf . He feels guilty for inflicting the danger of his presence on the Hubermanns, but... (full context)

...acceptance and some money. It was Hans who sent him the map, train tickets, and Mein Kampf . When Walter was sent away to Poland, Max had to go to Molching and... (full context)

The Hubermanns make Liesel visit the basement, and she nervously starts to ask if Mein Kampf is a good book, but then leaves. She overhears her foster parents saying that everything... (full context)

...Max overhears Liesel telling Hans that Max's hair is "like feathers." Later she asks about Mein Kampf , and Max tells the story of how it saved his life. He begins to... (full context)

...giving her chores or making excuses. During that time Max cuts out some pages from Mein Kampf and paints them white. When they dry he writes a story called The Standover Man... (full context)

...birthday present. Liesel wakes up later and read it, and thinks about the words of Mein Kampf suffocating underneath Max's story. She goes downstairs to thank Max, but he is asleep. She... (full context)

...Max's dream, and Max says that he does. Later Max rips out the rest of Mein Kampf and starts painting it white with Liesel, Hans, and Rosa, so he can start a... (full context)

The Book Thief

Markus Zusak

Mein Kampf Symbol Analysis

Mein Kampf Quotes in The Book Thief

Mein Kampf Symbol Timeline in The Book Thief