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Post by ellahardiee on Aug 22, 2017 23:28:23 GMT -5
When Max decides to create his own story, he applies paint to the pages of Hitler's memoir Mein Kampf to write on. "There were the erased pages of Mein Kampf, gagging, suffocating under the paint as they turned" (Zusak 237). What is the symbolic nature of this action? As a Jew, what is Max expressing through the covering of Hitler's life story and prejudicial beliefs and replacing it with his own story?
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Post by ellahardiee on Aug 23, 2017 0:41:42 GMT -5
I believe Max is doing to the book what he wishes he could do to Hitler-silencing his destructive words and oppressive ideals. Max's stories that are written over the words of Hitler serve as personal retaliations toward the Nazi party. Due to Hitler's propaganda and slander of Jews, Max has been driven into the Hubermann's cold, dark basement. Once he covers up the words of Hitler, the pages are now used for Max's own expression, telling a story about his life, a summary of how the man behind the words of "Mein Kampf" affected his own life. The story created from the papers of Hitler's autobiography is the tangible creative outlet that Max now has access to. Max cannot silence Hitler's words from his mouth, but he can erase the words from his brain. He cannot convey his disgust and torment in person, but rebelling against Hitler's ideals in the book is also satisfactory.
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