Examine two paragraphs from the book thief

“Yes, the Fuhrer decided that he would rule the world with words. “I will never fire a gun, I will not have to”

Here Zusak shows us the power of words and really exemplifies this by telling us about the power that Hitler gained from his words. He uses imagery with the use of a gun or lack of one to show us the Fuhrer’s confidence to be able to win the war with ease. Zusak’s ideas show us that you don’t have to be a fighter in a physical sense to win a war or a battle for that matter as all battles that have taken place have always had a strong leader to guild them to victory or defeat. Without these people, whole operations would be in complete shambles.

“The injury of words. Yes, the brutality of words. Cuts had opened and a series of wounds were rising to the surface of her skin”

Here again, Zusak wants to show us the power of words and how the main character Liesel Meminger is becoming seemingly stronger with them. Zusak uses the imagery of a supposed nife cutting away at this poor woman, or you could think about it as a metaphor. As these words have gotten her from the inside and have shown themselves on the surface of the woman’s skin, The cuts sickening and repulsive just like the words themselves.