Answer the following questions based on the text “Night” by Elie Wiesel noting page numbers and citing textual evidence to support your answers.
PREFACE to the NEW TRANSLATION:
1.) Read the preface by Elie Wiesel. Why do you suppose Wiesel imposed a ten-tear vow of silence?
He was probably still processing what he had seen, and in memory of the people that died.
2.) Why did he have trouble finding a publisher?
He had trouble finding a publisher, because it was too sensitive of a topic and it was unpopular at the time.
3.) What is the “devastation that will never end”?
His memories would be the devastation that will never end.
4.) What is Wiesel saying about how we can make sure that something this horrible is never repeated?
He is saying to inform horrible things so that they do not repeat ever again.
FOREWARD:
5.) Read the Foreword by Francois Mauriac. Why is Mauriac so moved by Wiesel’s book – of all the Holocaust literature he had seen?
6.) How do you explain the “inconceivable passivity” with which the Jews of Sighet yield themselves to the Nazis?
The inconsiderable passivity the Jews yield is fear and hope.
7.) What aspects of Wiesel’s experience does Mauriac find most disturbing?
The aspects that Maurac finds most disturbing is that the sister and mother are burned to death, and children are being hung and transported. He also
NIGHT:
8.) When and where does Elie Wiesel grow up? (city, country and time period) How old is he?
He grew up in Sighet.
9.) Try to picture Elie’s childhood. How is his childhood like yours and how is it different?
His childhood is like mine because he goes to school and he is religious. His childhood is different, because he is Jewish and I did not grow up in Sighet.
10.) Who is “Moshe the Beadle” and why does Wiesel begin the story with him?
Moshe the Beadle is his religious mentor and he is not very respected. He starts with this character because it shows how much he wants to learn about his religion.
11.) What do Eliezer’s parents and the other in the community think of Moshe?
The community thinks that he is strange and do not give him respect.
12.) Why does Elie spend so much time with Moshe?
Elite spends a lot of time with Moshe, because he wants to learn more about his religion.
13.) What is Elie’s father’s profession?
He is a store owner
14.) Is Elie’s father highly respected in the Jewish community?
Elise's father is highly respected in the Jewish community.
15.) What has happened to Moshe that caused a great change in him?
He was taken out of town and escaped and watched people die in the holes they dug.
16.) How does this experience change Moshe?
This experience changed him becasue he lost his faith and joy.
17.) How does the rest of the community react when he tells them what has happened to him?
They do not believe him and they think that he is still crazy.
18.) The Jews of Sighet are optimistic because of the news they hear on the radio in late 1942 and 1943. What is the news and why are they so optimistic?
They were optimistic, because they thing that someone is going to save them.
19.) With an ironic tone, Wiesel says, “Besides, people were interested in everything – in strategy, in diplomacy, in politics, in Zionism – but not their own fate.” What does he mean?
It is ironic because they think that they have nothing to do with it.
20.) Berkovitz brings news from Budapest that anti-Semitism (hostility or discrimination against Jews) war is rampant. Why then, is “optimism soon revived”?
They still think that they have nothing to do with it and they think that they would be saved.
21.) Why do “the optimists rejoiced” even three days after the German soldiers appear in Sighet?
They believe that they would be saved and they are hopefull.
22.) Why is celebrating Passover like playing a “comedy”?
Celebrating it is like playing a comedy, because they did not feel very joyful.
23.) What does the following mean? “On the seventh day of Passover the curtain rose.”
The Germans arrest the leaders of the community.
24.) Name the decrees (laws) the Germans put into place.
The decrees the Germans put into place is that they had to stay in there homes for three days, they had to give over any valuables, and they all had to wear yellow stars.
25.) Describe the ghettos.
The ghettos have two groups.
26.) How do the Jews of Sighet generally feel about the ghettos?
27.) Why do the Jews of Sighet think they are being deported and why is their destination kept secret from them?
The destination is kept a secret, because they were deported to a brick factory
28.) How could the Jews of Sighet have possibly escaped from the Germans?
The could have escaped the Germans, because they could have left instead of trusting the officers.
29.) How do they prepare for deportation?
they did not bring personal items with they and they only brought one backpack per person.
30.) Why is there “joy” when the signal finally comes for them to leave?
Moving is better then standing in the sun with crowds of people.
31.) How does Elie feel as he watches the procession or deportees?
32.) Who offers Elie and his family safe refuge?
33.) Why doesn’t Elie’s father accept the offer?
He does not want to be separated from his family, and he does not want to be selfish and abandon his community.
34.) On what day of the week is the family expelled and why is this ironic?
this is ironic, because they are forced to be executed on saturday which is called resting day.
35.) They spend 24 hours in a synagogue. What are the conditions like? Give examples.
in the synagogue they are separated from their families by gender.
36.) How are the Jews moved out of Sighet?
The Jews are moved out of Sighet by train.
37.) Why do you suppose no one tries to escape?
No one tries to escape, because they would have gotten shot.
38.) Why does the Hungarian lieutenant move among the prisoners with a basket?
The lieutenant has a basket, because it is to keep their valubles in.
39.) What actions do “those who no longer wished to taste the bitterness of terror” take?
They attempt to calm her down
40.) Who is Madame Schachter and why is she so upset?
she is upset, because she is separated from the rest of her family.
41.) How do the others treat her and why?
They tie her up and gag her so that she can not scream anymore. they treat her like this, because she is scaring everyone in the train.
42.) What is the first thing the prisoners see when they got to Birkenau?
The first thing they see is the fire and burning flesh.
43.) What do they smell?
They smell fire, and burning flesh.
44.) Who are the SS men?
It stands for soldiers of the german army.
45.) How do Elie and his father get separated from Mother and Tzipora?
he gets separated, because they made groups of men and woman.
46.) What is Elie’s last memory of them?
he remembers his mom stroking his sisters hair.
47.) Why do some of the younger men want to attempt an escape?
the younger men want to escape because they do not want to die that way and they do not want to be burned.
48.) Why don’t they go through with it?
the elders convince them not to and to be optomistic.
49.) What lies do Elie and his father tell to Dr. Mengale and why?
They lie about their age and occupation.
50.) Why does Elie’s father wish Elie has gone with his mother and why is this ironic?
His father wishes that he wouldnt have to see his son die, this is ironic, because now he chooses to save his children.
51.) What do you suppose Elie would say to those who claim that innocent children were not murdered during the Holocaust?
He would have said that it was true and that he has seen it with his own eyes.
52.) What is the Kaddish and why doesn’t’ Elie join his father in reciting it?
The Kaddish is a prayer for the dead. Elie does not join his father, because he does not believe that he will die.
53.) How do the prisoners who are already in the barracks treat the newcomers?
54.) What are Elie and the others ordered to do?
55.) How does Elie change by the end of the first night? (physically, emotionally, and spirirtually)
He sees their tormented souls and gives up hope and faith.
56.) How does Elie keep his his shoes from the “Kapos” at first?
He makes his shoes look older in the mud.
57.) According to the SS officer, what is the only way to avoid the furnaces?
The only way the avoid the furnaces is to work.
58.) Why does the gypsy strike Elie’s father and how does Elie react?
He strikes Elie's father because he asked to go to the bathroom. Elie just looks at him.
59.) To what new camp are the prisoners taken?
60.) Who is in charge of the block and what is his advice?
A polish guy is in charge of the block, his advise is to help each other.
61.) How does Elie become “A-7713”?
He becomes a number, because you don't feel anything if you call someone a number.
62.) Describe “roll call”.
An orchestra comes out during roll call and plays music.
63.) Who is Stein and why does Elie lie to him?
Stein is Elie's relative, and he lies to him so that he wouldn't lose faith.
64.) Why does Stein stop coming to see Elie?
Stein stops coming to see Elie, because he has given up and he found out that Elie lied to him.
65.) Akiba Drumer believes that God is testing the Jews and that this punishment they are enduring is actually a sign of love. What does Elie think of this theory?
Elite questions why he would test them in an awful way.
66.) How could Elie have bribed the assistant to arrange for him to go with his father to a “good unit”?
Elie could have given him his shoes.
67.) Why doesn’t he try the bribe?
The shoes are the only things he has left.
68.) Where is music played in the camp?
Music is played at the entrance of the camp.
69.) Why can’t the musicians play Beethoven?
Jews were not allowed to play German music.
70.) Why is Elie sent to the dentist?
He is sent to the dentist to remove his gold teeth.
71.) Why is he so desperate to keep his tooth and why doesn’t he succeed in keeping it?
He is desperate to keep his tooth, because it is his last possession, and he could use it to buy more food or to stay alive.
72.) Who beats Elie in front of the French girl and why?
Idek beats Elie in front of the French girl for no reason
73.) Why is she afraid to speak to him?
She is afraid to speak to him, because she was afraid she would get him into mora trouble.
74.) What advice does she give to Elie and what does this show about her?
The advice she gives Elie is to hold in his anger and wait.
75.) Why does Idek beat Elie’s father?
He thought that he wasn't working hard enough.
76.) Why is Elie angry at his father for getting beaten?
He is angry, because he thought that his father would have dodged his attacks.
77.) Why does Elie give his father “marching lessons”?
His father cannot march in place.
78.) Why does Elie laugh at Idek and what is the result?
He laughs, because he sent the whole Commando away, because he was with a girl.
79.) What do the air raid sirens signify?
80.) Why is this a particularly dangerous time for prisoners?
If a bomb hits a block it kills the prisoners and the SS officers are hiding underground
81.) How is “terror stronger than hunger”?
His fear is greater then how hungry he is and he thinks that is wouldn't be worth soup.
82.) How does the detah of that one man affect Elie and how does he react when the air raid is over?
It does not affect Elie because he knows that he shouldn't take the Soup.
83.) Who are some of the people who die on the gallows?
Some of the people who die in the gallows are, a young boy, because he stole during the air raid.
84.) What phrase so many repeat before their deaths?
"Long live liberty" it the phrase that many repeat before their deaths.
85.) Why are people hanged rather than being shot or killed some other way?
Being hanged is painful and gruesome rather than being shot.
86.) Whose death affects Elie the most and why?
The young boys death affects Elie the most, because he was around his age.
87.) Why does Elie find the soup “excellent” after one execution, but tasting of “corpses” after another?
The first one is usual and he is thankfull is wasn't him. The second on tasted like corpses because the boy reminds him of himself.
88.) What is Rosh Hashanah?
Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year.
89.) Why do you suppose even “Kapos, functionaries of death” come to the Rosh Hashanah service?
The Kapos go to the event because of supervision, and participation,
90.) What is going through Elie’s mind?
Elie is losing faith and he feels that he has been defeated.
91.) Is Elie in the minority when he “rebelled” inwardly and why does he call the place where the Kews meet to pray a “mirage”?
92.) What does Elie mean when he says of his father, “We had never understood each other so clearly”?
93.) What is Yom Kippur?
94.) Why doesn’t Elie fast?
95.) What is the “fine New Year’s gift” the SS gives the prisoners?
96.) What advice does Elie get from the head of the block about avoiding selection?
97.) What does Wiesel mean when he says, as the prisoners stand naked, “This must show how one stands at the last judgment”?
98.) What is Dr. Mengele’s attitude during the “selection”?
99.) What are Elie’s thoughts as he goes through the “race”?
100.) What sorts of “presents” and “inheritance” gifts does Wiesel’s father give Elie and why?
101.) Why does Elie return them to his father?
102.) What does this show about how life changes when mere survival is a struggle?
103.) What happens to many of the prisoners when they lose faith?
104.) Why does Wiesel tell the story of Akiba Dumer – and how everyone forgets to say the Kaddish for him?
105.) How does Wiesel end up in the hospital?
106.) What decision is Wiesel faced with while he is in the hospital?
107.) What is Elie’s choice and why does he choose this option?
108.) Why is the camp being evacuated?
109.) Why do the prisoners want the Russians to arrive first?
110.) What is meant by the question the prisoners ask: “were they (SS) going to let the Jews hear the twelfth stroke sound?”
They want to know if they are going to live.
111.) How does the “face of the camp” change on the morning of the evacuation?
They get food and change and get more clothing.
112.) Why does the head of the block order the prisoners to clean the floor, and how do you think the prisoners feel about this task?
He tells they this, because they want the army to think that men were living there and not animals.
113.) Reread the description of the evacuation at the end of the chapter. Why does the author choose to use a series of short sentences in this passage? What is the effect?
It is like this, because it was all happening fast.
114.) What does Wiesel mean by the observations of the SS men “Their fingers on the triggers, they did not deprive themselves of this pleasure”?
Whoever slows down or stops running they would get ready to shoot. It also meant to show their power.
115.) What is sadism and where do you see evidence of it in the novel?
When you find pleasure in giving pain. When Idek randomly beats people is an example of sadism.
116.) What happens to Zalman?
He was trampled over the crowd.
117.) In what way are Wiesel and the other Jews who keep rushing onward “masters of nature” -then in the morning “without strength, without illusions”?
They are masters of nature,, because they figured out how to master everything they went through. They wake up without strength, because they were exhausted.
118.) How do Wiesel and his father help each other stay alive?
They help keep each other alive, by looking after each other and keeping each other awake.
119.) Why does Wiesel tell the story of Rabbi Eliahou?
He tells the story of him, because the story mirrors him and his fathers.
120.) Why is he glad that the rabbi “should continue to look for his beloved son”?
121.) Why do you think that “sons abandoned their fathers’ remains without a tear”?
122.) How does Wiesel avoid suffocation?
He separated the body's and makes himself a hole for air.
123.) Why does Wiesel think he is hallucinating?
He think he is hallucinating, because he hears a violin.
124.) Why is Juliek playing his violin in this terrible situation?
He is playing his violin, because he does it for himself and for the dead around him.
125.) What happens to Juliek
He dies.
126.) How does Wiesel’s father avoid being “selected” at Gleiwitz and why does Wiesel run after him to the left?
He avoids selection, by running after him and moving to the right.
127.) How does Wiesel convey a sense of hopelessness in this final section of the book?
They are all waiting to die at the end of the book instead of waiting to be saved.
128.) Why do the two men try to throw Wiesel’s father from the carriage?
The tried to throw him away from the carriage, because they thought that he was dead.
129.) Why do the living “rejoice” when the order comes to throw out the corpses?
They have more room to move.
130.) What is the author trying to say about the prisoners at this point?
131.) How do the prisoners in the wagon act like animals?
They begin to fight for a few crumbs of bread.
132.) Why do the German workmen take a “lively interest in this spectacle” when they have merely stopped and stared at marching prisoners before?
They think that it is interesting now, because it is a way to make fun of them.
133.) Why doesn’t Wiesel join in this scramble for food?
He knows that he is not strong enough.
134.) How are Meir and his son similar to other fathers and sons Wiesel describes?
They are similar to others, because it is the father providing the loyalty for his son.
135.) What is the author saying about how the concentration camp affects the bonds between loved ones?
136.) How does Meir Katz save Elie Wiesel’s life?
Meir Katz saves his life, by stopping someone from strangling him.
137.) What advice does Wiesel’s father give Katz in an attempt to save him?
The advice that he gives Katz is to not give up.
139.) Why is it that Wiesel “could have wept with rage” when his father begs for rest upon arrival at Buchenwald?
He is upset that he wants to rest, because he is slowly giving in to death.
140.) Why does Elie feel that he is arguing “with death itself”?
Elie feels that he is arguing with death itself, because his father no longer wants to go on.
141.) Why does Wiesel leave his father when the sirens wail, and how does he feel about this later?
Elie leaves his father, becasue he later feels relieved and guilty.
142.) Is his father angry at Elie for deserting him?
His father is not angry at Elie, becasue he just wants his son to survive.
143.) What emotions does Wiesel experience that last week as he watches his father die?
He feels guilty and afraid, becasue he was not able to do anything for his father.
144.) Why does Wiesel decide to be an “invalid”?
He wants to be there with his dad.
145.) Why doesn’t he see his father die and why doesn’t he cry?
He does not see his father, becasue he was taken to the crematorium. He does not cry, becasue he was out of tears.
146.) What are Wiesel’s thoughts during the months after his father’s death?
147.) What would have happened if the children had gone to the assembly place, as ordered?
They would have been killed if they have gone to the assembly place.
148.) Why do the SS men flee the camp?
The SS men flee the camp, becasue the resistance had taken over.
149.) When is Wiesel finally freed?
He is finally freed when the tank shows up.
150.) Why is Wiesel sent to a hospital after his liberation?
He is sent to a hospital after liberation, becasue of poisoning.
151.) The book ends with a haunting sense of hollowness. Why do you think the author ends with this tone?
He ends with this, becasue he wil never forget what he went through.
PREFACE to the NEW TRANSLATION:
1.) Read the preface by Elie Wiesel. Why do you suppose Wiesel imposed a ten-tear vow of silence?
He was probably still processing what he had seen, and in memory of the people that died.
2.) Why did he have trouble finding a publisher?
He had trouble finding a publisher, because it was too sensitive of a topic and it was unpopular at the time.
3.) What is the “devastation that will never end”?
His memories would be the devastation that will never end.
4.) What is Wiesel saying about how we can make sure that something this horrible is never repeated?
He is saying to inform horrible things so that they do not repeat ever again.
FOREWARD:
5.) Read the Foreword by Francois Mauriac. Why is Mauriac so moved by Wiesel’s book – of all the Holocaust literature he had seen?
6.) How do you explain the “inconceivable passivity” with which the Jews of Sighet yield themselves to the Nazis?
The inconsiderable passivity the Jews yield is fear and hope.
7.) What aspects of Wiesel’s experience does Mauriac find most disturbing?
The aspects that Maurac finds most disturbing is that the sister and mother are burned to death, and children are being hung and transported. He also
NIGHT:
8.) When and where does Elie Wiesel grow up? (city, country and time period) How old is he?
He grew up in Sighet.
9.) Try to picture Elie’s childhood. How is his childhood like yours and how is it different?
His childhood is like mine because he goes to school and he is religious. His childhood is different, because he is Jewish and I did not grow up in Sighet.
10.) Who is “Moshe the Beadle” and why does Wiesel begin the story with him?
Moshe the Beadle is his religious mentor and he is not very respected. He starts with this character because it shows how much he wants to learn about his religion.
11.) What do Eliezer’s parents and the other in the community think of Moshe?
The community thinks that he is strange and do not give him respect.
12.) Why does Elie spend so much time with Moshe?
Elite spends a lot of time with Moshe, because he wants to learn more about his religion.
13.) What is Elie’s father’s profession?
He is a store owner
14.) Is Elie’s father highly respected in the Jewish community?
Elise's father is highly respected in the Jewish community.
15.) What has happened to Moshe that caused a great change in him?
He was taken out of town and escaped and watched people die in the holes they dug.
16.) How does this experience change Moshe?
This experience changed him becasue he lost his faith and joy.
17.) How does the rest of the community react when he tells them what has happened to him?
They do not believe him and they think that he is still crazy.
18.) The Jews of Sighet are optimistic because of the news they hear on the radio in late 1942 and 1943. What is the news and why are they so optimistic?
They were optimistic, because they thing that someone is going to save them.
19.) With an ironic tone, Wiesel says, “Besides, people were interested in everything – in strategy, in diplomacy, in politics, in Zionism – but not their own fate.” What does he mean?
It is ironic because they think that they have nothing to do with it.
20.) Berkovitz brings news from Budapest that anti-Semitism (hostility or discrimination against Jews) war is rampant. Why then, is “optimism soon revived”?
They still think that they have nothing to do with it and they think that they would be saved.
21.) Why do “the optimists rejoiced” even three days after the German soldiers appear in Sighet?
They believe that they would be saved and they are hopefull.
22.) Why is celebrating Passover like playing a “comedy”?
Celebrating it is like playing a comedy, because they did not feel very joyful.
23.) What does the following mean? “On the seventh day of Passover the curtain rose.”
The Germans arrest the leaders of the community.
24.) Name the decrees (laws) the Germans put into place.
The decrees the Germans put into place is that they had to stay in there homes for three days, they had to give over any valuables, and they all had to wear yellow stars.
25.) Describe the ghettos.
The ghettos have two groups.
26.) How do the Jews of Sighet generally feel about the ghettos?
27.) Why do the Jews of Sighet think they are being deported and why is their destination kept secret from them?
The destination is kept a secret, because they were deported to a brick factory
28.) How could the Jews of Sighet have possibly escaped from the Germans?
The could have escaped the Germans, because they could have left instead of trusting the officers.
29.) How do they prepare for deportation?
they did not bring personal items with they and they only brought one backpack per person.
30.) Why is there “joy” when the signal finally comes for them to leave?
Moving is better then standing in the sun with crowds of people.
31.) How does Elie feel as he watches the procession or deportees?
32.) Who offers Elie and his family safe refuge?
33.) Why doesn’t Elie’s father accept the offer?
He does not want to be separated from his family, and he does not want to be selfish and abandon his community.
34.) On what day of the week is the family expelled and why is this ironic?
this is ironic, because they are forced to be executed on saturday which is called resting day.
35.) They spend 24 hours in a synagogue. What are the conditions like? Give examples.
in the synagogue they are separated from their families by gender.
36.) How are the Jews moved out of Sighet?
The Jews are moved out of Sighet by train.
37.) Why do you suppose no one tries to escape?
No one tries to escape, because they would have gotten shot.
38.) Why does the Hungarian lieutenant move among the prisoners with a basket?
The lieutenant has a basket, because it is to keep their valubles in.
39.) What actions do “those who no longer wished to taste the bitterness of terror” take?
They attempt to calm her down
40.) Who is Madame Schachter and why is she so upset?
she is upset, because she is separated from the rest of her family.
41.) How do the others treat her and why?
They tie her up and gag her so that she can not scream anymore. they treat her like this, because she is scaring everyone in the train.
42.) What is the first thing the prisoners see when they got to Birkenau?
The first thing they see is the fire and burning flesh.
43.) What do they smell?
They smell fire, and burning flesh.
44.) Who are the SS men?
It stands for soldiers of the german army.
45.) How do Elie and his father get separated from Mother and Tzipora?
he gets separated, because they made groups of men and woman.
46.) What is Elie’s last memory of them?
he remembers his mom stroking his sisters hair.
47.) Why do some of the younger men want to attempt an escape?
the younger men want to escape because they do not want to die that way and they do not want to be burned.
48.) Why don’t they go through with it?
the elders convince them not to and to be optomistic.
49.) What lies do Elie and his father tell to Dr. Mengale and why?
They lie about their age and occupation.
50.) Why does Elie’s father wish Elie has gone with his mother and why is this ironic?
His father wishes that he wouldnt have to see his son die, this is ironic, because now he chooses to save his children.
51.) What do you suppose Elie would say to those who claim that innocent children were not murdered during the Holocaust?
He would have said that it was true and that he has seen it with his own eyes.
52.) What is the Kaddish and why doesn’t’ Elie join his father in reciting it?
The Kaddish is a prayer for the dead. Elie does not join his father, because he does not believe that he will die.
53.) How do the prisoners who are already in the barracks treat the newcomers?
54.) What are Elie and the others ordered to do?
55.) How does Elie change by the end of the first night? (physically, emotionally, and spirirtually)
He sees their tormented souls and gives up hope and faith.
56.) How does Elie keep his his shoes from the “Kapos” at first?
He makes his shoes look older in the mud.
57.) According to the SS officer, what is the only way to avoid the furnaces?
The only way the avoid the furnaces is to work.
58.) Why does the gypsy strike Elie’s father and how does Elie react?
He strikes Elie's father because he asked to go to the bathroom. Elie just looks at him.
59.) To what new camp are the prisoners taken?
60.) Who is in charge of the block and what is his advice?
A polish guy is in charge of the block, his advise is to help each other.
61.) How does Elie become “A-7713”?
He becomes a number, because you don't feel anything if you call someone a number.
62.) Describe “roll call”.
An orchestra comes out during roll call and plays music.
63.) Who is Stein and why does Elie lie to him?
Stein is Elie's relative, and he lies to him so that he wouldn't lose faith.
64.) Why does Stein stop coming to see Elie?
Stein stops coming to see Elie, because he has given up and he found out that Elie lied to him.
65.) Akiba Drumer believes that God is testing the Jews and that this punishment they are enduring is actually a sign of love. What does Elie think of this theory?
Elite questions why he would test them in an awful way.
66.) How could Elie have bribed the assistant to arrange for him to go with his father to a “good unit”?
Elie could have given him his shoes.
67.) Why doesn’t he try the bribe?
The shoes are the only things he has left.
68.) Where is music played in the camp?
Music is played at the entrance of the camp.
69.) Why can’t the musicians play Beethoven?
Jews were not allowed to play German music.
70.) Why is Elie sent to the dentist?
He is sent to the dentist to remove his gold teeth.
71.) Why is he so desperate to keep his tooth and why doesn’t he succeed in keeping it?
He is desperate to keep his tooth, because it is his last possession, and he could use it to buy more food or to stay alive.
72.) Who beats Elie in front of the French girl and why?
Idek beats Elie in front of the French girl for no reason
73.) Why is she afraid to speak to him?
She is afraid to speak to him, because she was afraid she would get him into mora trouble.
74.) What advice does she give to Elie and what does this show about her?
The advice she gives Elie is to hold in his anger and wait.
75.) Why does Idek beat Elie’s father?
He thought that he wasn't working hard enough.
76.) Why is Elie angry at his father for getting beaten?
He is angry, because he thought that his father would have dodged his attacks.
77.) Why does Elie give his father “marching lessons”?
His father cannot march in place.
78.) Why does Elie laugh at Idek and what is the result?
He laughs, because he sent the whole Commando away, because he was with a girl.
79.) What do the air raid sirens signify?
80.) Why is this a particularly dangerous time for prisoners?
If a bomb hits a block it kills the prisoners and the SS officers are hiding underground
81.) How is “terror stronger than hunger”?
His fear is greater then how hungry he is and he thinks that is wouldn't be worth soup.
82.) How does the detah of that one man affect Elie and how does he react when the air raid is over?
It does not affect Elie because he knows that he shouldn't take the Soup.
83.) Who are some of the people who die on the gallows?
Some of the people who die in the gallows are, a young boy, because he stole during the air raid.
84.) What phrase so many repeat before their deaths?
"Long live liberty" it the phrase that many repeat before their deaths.
85.) Why are people hanged rather than being shot or killed some other way?
Being hanged is painful and gruesome rather than being shot.
86.) Whose death affects Elie the most and why?
The young boys death affects Elie the most, because he was around his age.
87.) Why does Elie find the soup “excellent” after one execution, but tasting of “corpses” after another?
The first one is usual and he is thankfull is wasn't him. The second on tasted like corpses because the boy reminds him of himself.
88.) What is Rosh Hashanah?
Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year.
89.) Why do you suppose even “Kapos, functionaries of death” come to the Rosh Hashanah service?
The Kapos go to the event because of supervision, and participation,
90.) What is going through Elie’s mind?
Elie is losing faith and he feels that he has been defeated.
91.) Is Elie in the minority when he “rebelled” inwardly and why does he call the place where the Kews meet to pray a “mirage”?
92.) What does Elie mean when he says of his father, “We had never understood each other so clearly”?
93.) What is Yom Kippur?
94.) Why doesn’t Elie fast?
95.) What is the “fine New Year’s gift” the SS gives the prisoners?
96.) What advice does Elie get from the head of the block about avoiding selection?
97.) What does Wiesel mean when he says, as the prisoners stand naked, “This must show how one stands at the last judgment”?
98.) What is Dr. Mengele’s attitude during the “selection”?
99.) What are Elie’s thoughts as he goes through the “race”?
100.) What sorts of “presents” and “inheritance” gifts does Wiesel’s father give Elie and why?
101.) Why does Elie return them to his father?
102.) What does this show about how life changes when mere survival is a struggle?
103.) What happens to many of the prisoners when they lose faith?
104.) Why does Wiesel tell the story of Akiba Dumer – and how everyone forgets to say the Kaddish for him?
105.) How does Wiesel end up in the hospital?
106.) What decision is Wiesel faced with while he is in the hospital?
107.) What is Elie’s choice and why does he choose this option?
108.) Why is the camp being evacuated?
109.) Why do the prisoners want the Russians to arrive first?
110.) What is meant by the question the prisoners ask: “were they (SS) going to let the Jews hear the twelfth stroke sound?”
They want to know if they are going to live.
111.) How does the “face of the camp” change on the morning of the evacuation?
They get food and change and get more clothing.
112.) Why does the head of the block order the prisoners to clean the floor, and how do you think the prisoners feel about this task?
He tells they this, because they want the army to think that men were living there and not animals.
113.) Reread the description of the evacuation at the end of the chapter. Why does the author choose to use a series of short sentences in this passage? What is the effect?
It is like this, because it was all happening fast.
114.) What does Wiesel mean by the observations of the SS men “Their fingers on the triggers, they did not deprive themselves of this pleasure”?
Whoever slows down or stops running they would get ready to shoot. It also meant to show their power.
115.) What is sadism and where do you see evidence of it in the novel?
When you find pleasure in giving pain. When Idek randomly beats people is an example of sadism.
116.) What happens to Zalman?
He was trampled over the crowd.
117.) In what way are Wiesel and the other Jews who keep rushing onward “masters of nature” -then in the morning “without strength, without illusions”?
They are masters of nature,, because they figured out how to master everything they went through. They wake up without strength, because they were exhausted.
118.) How do Wiesel and his father help each other stay alive?
They help keep each other alive, by looking after each other and keeping each other awake.
119.) Why does Wiesel tell the story of Rabbi Eliahou?
He tells the story of him, because the story mirrors him and his fathers.
120.) Why is he glad that the rabbi “should continue to look for his beloved son”?
121.) Why do you think that “sons abandoned their fathers’ remains without a tear”?
122.) How does Wiesel avoid suffocation?
He separated the body's and makes himself a hole for air.
123.) Why does Wiesel think he is hallucinating?
He think he is hallucinating, because he hears a violin.
124.) Why is Juliek playing his violin in this terrible situation?
He is playing his violin, because he does it for himself and for the dead around him.
125.) What happens to Juliek
He dies.
126.) How does Wiesel’s father avoid being “selected” at Gleiwitz and why does Wiesel run after him to the left?
He avoids selection, by running after him and moving to the right.
127.) How does Wiesel convey a sense of hopelessness in this final section of the book?
They are all waiting to die at the end of the book instead of waiting to be saved.
128.) Why do the two men try to throw Wiesel’s father from the carriage?
The tried to throw him away from the carriage, because they thought that he was dead.
129.) Why do the living “rejoice” when the order comes to throw out the corpses?
They have more room to move.
130.) What is the author trying to say about the prisoners at this point?
131.) How do the prisoners in the wagon act like animals?
They begin to fight for a few crumbs of bread.
132.) Why do the German workmen take a “lively interest in this spectacle” when they have merely stopped and stared at marching prisoners before?
They think that it is interesting now, because it is a way to make fun of them.
133.) Why doesn’t Wiesel join in this scramble for food?
He knows that he is not strong enough.
134.) How are Meir and his son similar to other fathers and sons Wiesel describes?
They are similar to others, because it is the father providing the loyalty for his son.
135.) What is the author saying about how the concentration camp affects the bonds between loved ones?
136.) How does Meir Katz save Elie Wiesel’s life?
Meir Katz saves his life, by stopping someone from strangling him.
137.) What advice does Wiesel’s father give Katz in an attempt to save him?
The advice that he gives Katz is to not give up.
139.) Why is it that Wiesel “could have wept with rage” when his father begs for rest upon arrival at Buchenwald?
He is upset that he wants to rest, because he is slowly giving in to death.
140.) Why does Elie feel that he is arguing “with death itself”?
Elie feels that he is arguing with death itself, because his father no longer wants to go on.
141.) Why does Wiesel leave his father when the sirens wail, and how does he feel about this later?
Elie leaves his father, becasue he later feels relieved and guilty.
142.) Is his father angry at Elie for deserting him?
His father is not angry at Elie, becasue he just wants his son to survive.
143.) What emotions does Wiesel experience that last week as he watches his father die?
He feels guilty and afraid, becasue he was not able to do anything for his father.
144.) Why does Wiesel decide to be an “invalid”?
He wants to be there with his dad.
145.) Why doesn’t he see his father die and why doesn’t he cry?
He does not see his father, becasue he was taken to the crematorium. He does not cry, becasue he was out of tears.
146.) What are Wiesel’s thoughts during the months after his father’s death?
147.) What would have happened if the children had gone to the assembly place, as ordered?
They would have been killed if they have gone to the assembly place.
148.) Why do the SS men flee the camp?
The SS men flee the camp, becasue the resistance had taken over.
149.) When is Wiesel finally freed?
He is finally freed when the tank shows up.
150.) Why is Wiesel sent to a hospital after his liberation?
He is sent to a hospital after liberation, becasue of poisoning.
151.) The book ends with a haunting sense of hollowness. Why do you think the author ends with this tone?
He ends with this, becasue he wil never forget what he went through.