Courage in the Book Thief

Yilin Chen

Courage does not simply mean people have to do big， great things in order to protect their country or even save the world. In daily life， little things can also demand and create opportunities for courage. In todays societies， it is often hard to be courageous， because when people have to face an obstacle or problem， often they prefer to thoughtlessly tolerate it or try to hide from the problem， because they do not want to put themselves into conflict. People avoid problems and thus opportunities to be courageous not only in modern times， but they also did so during World War II， when many ordinary civilians drifted with the “main ocean” of hate， war， and silence rather than listen to their consciences and react.? The Book Thief by Markus Zusak follows a group of ordinary people during World War II who rise above their ordinariness courageously. Max uses his intelligence to prove courage means remaining calm while being afraid. Rudy uses his heart to show courage means staying true to himself while in a world of other opinions and beliefs. Hans Hubermann uses his actions to demonstrate courage means not being afraid of strong powers. Each character uses his actions to fight ignorance and oppression， which fully illustrate the various， deep meanings of courage.

One of the deep meanings of courage is： remain calm. Max is a “struggling” twenty-two year old Jewish man who really hates Hitler and fears being captured and imprisoned， or worse.? One time he tries to escape from the German town， Stuttgart， and when he is on the train to Munich， Max is desperately afraid of being asked for his “Papers，” which are forged documents with his fake， non-Jewish identity （159）. Hes afraid that if he is asked to show his identity card again， hell give himself away with fear and trembling and “the smell—no， the stench—of guilt” （159）. Luckily， no one asks him for his papers. While he is in danger， he tries to keep to himself by facing the problem and reads Hitlers autobiography， pretending to be an unassuming German. He does not agonize over what hes lost and does not cry. Fortunately， nothing bad happens， because his calm demeanor， that of a normal German traveler， saves himself from the danger. In short， when people need to face some problem， or are even in danger， the problem will be much easier to solve with calm and courage.

Courage also means staying true to ones own heart， and the truth. In The Book Thief， Rudy is a courageous boy， because he does not care about the pressures from others to hate or dislike those that are different. He dares to point out the correct thinking by not conforming： “At school， Rudy made a special point of seeking Liesel out during the breaks. He didnt care that others made noises about the new girls stupidity” （51）. He dares to question others and tries to get along with a girl that everyone dislikes. Rudy not only gives warmth to the girls heart， but also gives the girl a chance to become easy-going， to become better. Thus， being courageous means showing different opinions， especially truths as a way to protect a nice persons heart and give them a chance to be better， or even help the society better develop.

Finally， courage also means standing up for what is true and right in the face of authority. Even though the leader is horrible， even though the leader did a lot of things wrong， even though the leader is really selfish， the people still follow the power. But， a courageous person knows truth and honesty is more powerful than politics and power.? Hans Hubermann in The Book Thief is a perfect example of this sort of person. He does not care for Hitlers force or politics， and Hans still does what he wants to do and be what he wants to be. For instance， “In 1933， 90 percent of Germans showed unflinching support for Hitler. That leaves 10 percent who didnt. Hans Hubermann belonged to that ten percent，” which shows Hans does not let others or power dictate his conscience （63）. Unfortunately， Hans has a bad end， and he loses his life， but until the last minute of his life， he is happy， satisfied， and proud of himself because he courageously remained true to the power of right， not power of might. Thus， he never regrets. In a sentence， a courageous person will not care about the strong power， they will follow their own heart and be what they want to be.

On one hand， courage is an easy word to understand， but on the other hand courage is hard to explain and thus practice. Everyone will have a different definition for courage. Courage requires hard work because it requires an honest view of ones own self and control over ones emotions， fears， and actions.? The real meaning of courage is not simply to become a hero after a big， great event， but to just keep calm when facing a problem， dare to express your own opinions， and then be what you what to be.

【作者簡介】Yilin Chen， Westside Christian High School， Tigard， Oregon， USA.