Q3 Outside Reading Post #3

As I read more of the book, I found out more about the war situation in Germany.  While Liesel and Rudy are walking they walk by a shop owned by Frau Diller.  Markus Zusak describes her as, "a sharp-edged woman with fat glasses and a nefarious glare.  She developed this evil look to discourage the very idea of stealing from her shop, which she occupied with soldierlike posture, a refrigerated voice, and even breath that smelled like "heil Hitler" (49-50).  Many people were afraid to go into her shop because of her intimidating presence.  She was also very strict about "heiling Hitler".  Zusak writes, "If you walked into her shop and didn't say "heil Hitler," you wouldn't be served" (50).  This really shows the effect Hitler had on a lot of citizens of Germany.  The firm believers loved Hitler and everything he did.  He had hypnotized them into believing so many things that people forced others to basically bow down to him or else they wouldn't help.

We also see what happens to the Jews in Germany.  Hitler was starting to destroy their lives.  Zusak writes, "A few of the shops were abandoned and still labeled with yellow stars and anit-Jewish slurs" (50).  All the shops owned and ran by Jews were quickly shut down.  They would be labeled with a Jewish star to represent that it was ran by a Jew.  The Nazis would destroy the shop and write nasty comments on the building so they couldn't run the business anymore.  While Rudy and and Liesel were walking, they ended their trip at "The road of yellow stars" (51).  Down this street, every house had a yellow Jewish star painted on the door.  Hitler wanted to make sure the Jews were clearly noticed in society.  He made them wear yellow Jewish stars and paint yellow Jewish stars on their houses and businesses.  Everyone would know who or what was Jew because of the symbol.  They would stop going to those stores or stop talking to the Jewish people because of Hitler's rules.  It will be interesting to see how much worse the Jews are treated in that part of town as the war goes on.