To me Hans Hubermann is someone who appears at first to be a gentle man with a kind heart. He takes in Liesel and treats her as his own daughter. She’s afraid when she first arrives at the Hubermann home and Rosa, Han’s wife, yells at Liesel to try to get her out of the car. Han knows better and instead gentle coaxes her from the car. They soon bond over cigarettes, nightmares, and books. Hans teaches Liesel to roll cigarettes, comforts her every night when she wakes up for a nightmare about her dead bother, and teaches her to read. He understand Liesel’s need to read the Grave Digger’s Handbook and never tells her it’s strange or that he won’t help her read it.
As the story progresses we learn more about Hans and realize he’s a more complicated character than was first thought. We learn that he is one of the few Germans not to be a member of the Nazi Party. He chose not to join a group that blamed a group of people for something they weren’t responsible. He was a fair man and he owed his life to a Jew. When it came time for him to return the favor and save the life of his savior’s son he does it. He knows it’s the right thing to do so he doesn’t think twice. Hans is also a man who takes care of his family. He wants to speak out, but he doesn’t for fear of what will happen to his family. His son calls him a coward, but he loves with still.
Hans faced war and death, but still he manages to be a kind and loving man. He knows what’s right and he stands up for it. He risked everything to help a Jewish storeowner that resulted in him not being accepted into the Nazi Party. He risks it all again later in the story by hiding a Jew in his basement, but he does all these things because he knew what was right. That is why Hans Hubermann is my favorite character in The Book Thief.
I agree with everything in your blog. I thought in the beginning that he was just a nice guy who did the right thing but as you read on you see what has made him into the man he has become.
ReplyDeleteYou more or less wrote what there is to write about Hans. Like Danien said, at first i thought Hans was just a nice guy who loved being a father figure, but turns out theres a lot more. Also whenever i found out he served in WW1 after following his character for the book i was surprised and at the same time it made sense. I surprised me because he doesn't seem to be the kind to fight, but also it answers alot of questions about how he acts the way he does.
ReplyDeleteHans is a very intriguing man with an interesting background and a complicated past. He definitely shows the signs of a great father throughout the book, and I find it interesting that he gets along with his foster child better than his own children. Hans is very fair and he understood that he was going to be in huge trouble if he was discovered to be hiding a Jew in his basement. Hans always seems to outweigh the negatives, and he decides a promise is a promise.
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