Honors English Final Study Guide
As they pass through the gates leaving camp, Elie states: "It seemed as though an even darker night was waiting for us on the other side." What predictions do you have as to what will happen next?
Answers may vary; we can likely predict that the harsh conditions during evacuation will be excruciating, possibly worse ("even darker") than what they have already endured, and many will not make it.
Why do the words "bread" and "soup" become so important to Elie? How does his description of himself as a "famished stomach" further reveal his changing character?
Bread and soup have become his "entire life" - they are necessary for survival and have become all that matters to him each day. Not only is he literally starving, he has nothing left to his identity and feels as though he is only an empty body part.
How does Elie respond when he sees his father beaten for the first time? How does this incident reflect how Elie has changed as a person? How does it affect the way he views himself?
Elie did not react and remained silent as his father was beaten. He says that had this happened before, he would have jumped into action at the man who did this; however, he now chose to remain silent. "Only yesterday, I would have dug my nails into this criminal's flesh." He felt remorseful that he felt this way, saying, "Had I changed that much? So fast?" (39).
Why does Elie lie to Stein, Reizel's husband? Do you think he did the right thing? Explain your reasoning.
Elie did not want to hurt Stein's spirit by telling him that his family was gone, because he knew that the hope of seeing his family again was the only thing keeping him going at camp. Answers may vary as to whether he did the right thing.
In the beginning of this section, Elie seems angrier at God than he is at his Nazi oppressors. Why might that be? In what way does Elie feel human beings are stronger than God?
Elie feels angry because he believes that God is supposed to be almighty and merciful, and yet, He is letting the Jewish people suffer tremendously and is not ending the suffering. Elie believes that human beings are stronger than God because they are more resilient and forgiving. Even through their suffering, they are still praying to God and willing to forgive Him: "When Sodom lost Your favor, You caused the heavens to rain down fire and damnation. But look at these men whom You have betrayed, allowing them to be tortured, slaughtered... They pray before you!" (68)
Why might Elie find the soup tasted "better than ever" after witnessing the hanging of the fellow prisoner who stole soup? Explain why this is significant, supporting with evidence.
Elie is thankful just to be alive and to eat another meal. Even Juliek asked Elie during hanging "This ceremony, will it be over soon? I'm hungry..." (62).
What new challenge does Elie face upon the arrival at Gleiwitz? How does he manage to survive? Cite evidence.
Elie was in a pile of bodies and risked suffocating to death because he could not breathe while he was smothered by other bodies. He dug himself out of the pile of bodies, saying, "I scratched, I fought for a breath of air. I tore at decaying flesh that did not respond" (94).
Why does Elie's father desperately tell Elie about where the gold and silver are buried? What does this exchange reveal about his character?
Elie's father wants to make sure that when/if Elie is freed, he will know where to look to find valuables that he had hidden. This exchange reveals to us that even on his deathbed, Elie's father wants to look out for his son and make sure he is secure in his absence. Elie remains his father's top priority until his death.
Describe the tone of Elie's statement: "The SS offered us a beautiful present for the new year." What was that "present"?
Elie's tone was sardonic and mocking, an example of verbal irony. The "present" was selection; they would be examined by the SS, and those who were deemed too weak to work would be sent to the crematorium. "Whenever he found someone extremely frail-a 'Muselman' was what we called those inmates-he would write down his number: good for the crematorium" (70).
What thought does Elie have that makes him feel "ashamed of [himself] forever"? Do you believe his feelings are understandable? Why or why not?
For a moment, Elie considers leaving his father behind so that he can focus on his own survival. These feelings are understandable, as he risks losing his own strength and survival by taking care of his father.
How does Franek manipulate Elie into giving up his gold crown? Support with evidence. How is the tooth ultimately removed?
Franek told Elie if he did not give up his crown it would "cost him much more"; when Elie refused to give him the crown, Franek began savagely beating Elie's father for not being able to march in line - "Franek knew how to handle this; he knew my weak spot" (55). The tooth was removed with a rusty spoon by the dentist from Warsaw.
How has Wiesel's life been changed into "one long night"? What might "night" symbolize?
His life is turned into one long night because the terror that they faced seemed never ending, and even after being freed, they will never recover from the things that they have gone through and seen. Night symbolizes the death, darkness, and loss of faith that the Jews faced throughout the Holocaust
Why does Idek insist on going to the depot on a Sunday, a non-workday? Why does he beat Elie savagely afterwards? What does Elie worry about during the ordeal?
Idek insists on having them work on Sunday because he wanted to have sex with a young Polish girl in the camp and needed them to be out while he did this. Elie found this to be funny when he saw them and laughed aloud. Idek then beat Elie for being a witness to his dalliance. During the thrashing, Elie was worried that his father was suffering more than he was, having to watch his son be brutally beaten.
Why do you suppose the fellow prisoner tells Wiesel and his father to lie about their ages? Does his advice ultimately help them? Explain.
If they are to lie about their ages, they may be seen as more eligible to work. If they are deemed too old or too young to work, they may be sent to the death camps instead. His advice ultimately helped them, as they were not separated and were sent to a work camp.
What threat does the German office make towards the Jews on the train? How does he ensure that no one tries to escape
The German places one person in charge of the car and says that if they let anyone escape they would be killed.
What is the meaning of the inscription hanging over the Auschwitz gate? How is it ironic?
The inscription means "Work makes you free." This is ironic, as they are not actually free in the camps at all, and they are enslaved by the Nazi's. They are not working for freedom - they are only working to avoid death.
Do Elie and his father truly believe that Tzipora and her mother may still be alive? Explain.
They do not truly believe that they are still alive, but they want to appear hopeful in front of one another. "How we would have liked to believe that. We pretended, for what if one of us still did believe?" (46)
While on the cattle cars, the Jews never ate enough "to salisly (thein) hunger." wys what might this reveal about their cultural values?
They may be slightly glutton or over eat. This could also be a spiritual metaphor about how their spiritual life is dying.
What are the "eight words" Wiesel speaks about in the beginning of the chapter. Why are they so significant?
"Men to the left! Women to the right!" (29) These words are significant because this separation of men and women is the last time that Elie Wiesel saw his mother and his sister, Tzipora.
Throughout chapter 3, the newly arrived prisoners are forced through systematic processes that strip them of their identity and humanity. Describe at least three ways in which the Nazis dehumanize the prisoners. What might the effects of such treatment have on a person?
1. They are referred to by a number rather than a name 2. They are forced to shave their heads, strip down, and be disinfected 3.They are given ill-fitting prison uniforms inadequate for the work and weather. The effects of this treatment will weaken their psyche by making them feel as though they do not have an identity and that they are inferior.
Explain, citing evidence, the similarity between the German worker who throws bread to the prisoners and the Parisian woman who throws coins to the "natives." Explain the irony of the statement, "I like to give charity."
Both the worker and the Parisian woman see this as a form of entertainment and enjoy witnessing the suffering of others. Just like the "natives" strangling one another for the coins, the Jews fought one another for the scraps of bread. Wiesel describes this scene, saying "There was a stampede. Dozens of starving men fought desperately over a few crumbs..." (100). The irony is that they are not giving anything to those who are suffering, but rather, they are exploiting their situation.
What do Mrs. Schachter's screams and visions foreshadow? How do the other passengers treatment of her change over the course of their journey? Why is this significant—- what might it reveal about human nature?
Her screams and visions foreshadow the ovens where Jews were burned. The treatment of her because she wouldn't stop screaming was violet and selfish but it reveals to us that humans will always choose themselves over anyone else.
What is Elie's relationship with his father like?
His father is limiting him from exploring certain areas of his faith so Elie and him have a complex relationships. He respects his father and finds him to be highly intelligent.
Why does Elie's father give him a knife and spoon? What two words does Elie use to describe them? What is the significance of this exchange?
His father is worried that he will not survive the next selection, and this is all he has left to give to Elie. Elie says, "my inheritance...", showing that he also is worried about the possibility of losing his father to the next selection. The statement is ironic, as an inheritance is typically one of valuable possessions, but the knife and spoon are the only possessions Elie's father has left at this point.
Describe Moishe the Beadle. How does he become a significant figure in Elie's life?
Moishe the Beadle is a meek man who doesnt have much to say. He's lowly and poor but the people tolerate him because he isn't a bother. He becomes significant in Elie's life because he was a religious leader at the synagogue he was attending.
What advice does the Blockalteste give Elie about his father? Do you think he was correct? Explain.
The Blockalteste told Elie to remember that in a concentration camp it is every man for themselves. He says that he needs to focus on his own survival rather than that of his father, and he should be keeping his bread and soup for himself. He is correct from a rational standpoint, as Elie's father is past the point of living, and Elie needs to keep the food for himself to have a chance at survival. However, from an emotional standpoint, it is not so clear-cut.
What are the prisoners ordered to do one hour before evacuating camp? Explain the significance.
The Blokalteste commanded the prisoners to clean the camp before leaving, saying to let the liberation army know "that here lived men, not pigs." Answers may vary as to its significance, but many students will recognize that the prisoners' efforts to clean the barracks was a way for them to assert their humanity and dignity in the face of complete dehumanization and show that they are civilized human beings, not animals. Wiesel states, "So we were men after all? The block was cleaned from top to bottom" (84).
How does the young French woman help Elie? Describe one possible theme that emerges from their exchange.
The French woman helped to wipe the blood from Elie's forehead and give him encouraging words after he is beaten by Idek. When Elie ran into her years later, he found out that no one else knew she spoke German because she was afraid people would become suspicious of her true identity. She spoke to him in German, even though it would risk her own self. The theme that emerges from this exchange is that even under dangerous circumstances, people will take great risks to show compassion to one another.
How did the Hungarian police the Jews as they cleared them out of the ghetto? why did the Jews feel "joy" as they were deported? Explain the irony.
The Hungarian Police treated them as though their were merely cattle to be herded. After being subjected to hours in the scorching hot sun for hours they were just thankful to go somewhere else.
What do the SS do when the resistance movement "decided to act"? What does this reveal about the SS?
The SS had fled at this point because they knew that they would be punished for their crimes against humanity. Fearful and relatively weak, they knew what they were doing was wrong and did not want to risk punishment by the resistance
Describe the condition within the cattle cars. Explain the irony of the following passage near the end of the chapter: "Two Gestapo officers strolled down the length of the platform. They were all smiles; all things considered, it had gone very smoothly.'"
The cattle cars were crammed and they can only stand. There was limited water and food which was rationed between 40-80 people The irony is that it was such a rough ride.
What can the reader infer about the Czechoslovakian dentist based on his appearance? Cite evidence for support. How is Elie able to escape tooth extraction at first? How does Elie feel when he learns the dentist is hanged? Why?
The dentist is described as having a face "not unlike a death mask" with "a ghastly vision of yellow, rotten teeth" (51). We can infer from this that he is likely not a trained dentist. Elie made the excuse that he was sick to avoid having his teeth extracted. Elie felt "pleased" when he heard the news, because he was hoping to keep his gold crown as it could be useful for him to use to buy food/time in the future.
What are the first things prisoners do upon being liberated? What don't they do? Does this surprise you? Why or why not?
The first things they do upon being liberated were to eat and find clothes for themselves. They do not think of either family or revenge after their liberation. This is surprising after all the horror that they have endured.
Why are Elie and the other prisoners so disturbed by the hanging of the "pipel"? What does Wiesel mean when he answers the other prisoner's demand to know where God is, with the response: "He is hanging here on this gallows"? Why might the soup now taste like "corpses" to Elie?
The hanging of the pipel was more difficult for them to witness because the pipel was young, innocent boy who was so young and so light that he struggled for a half an hour in the noose before finally dying. Wiesel feels that God has abandoned them in allowing these hangings and tragedies to happen. Elie cannot remove the bitter image of the young boy hanging from his mind, even as he is eating his portion of soup.
How does Elie begin to feel about the prospect of his own death? Cite evidence. What is his only reason to try to survive?
The idea of death started to "fascinate" him, as he would no longer have to feel the pain of his foot, the fatigue, or the hunger. He knew he was the sole support for his father, and that is what kept him alive and continuing to run.
Why did the other prisoners begin beating Elie's father? What is Elie's reaction?
The other prisoners began to beat his father because he was too weak to go outside to relieve himself. Elie is angered by this, and even after offering his bread and soup to them to stop beating his father, they continued to laugh at him.
Though some of the younger, stronger male prisoners talk of revolt, in the end, they do not. Provide two possible reasons why. Support with evidence
The prison elders urged the young men not to fight: "But the older men begged their sons not to be foolish: 'We musn't give up hope, even now as the sword hangs over our heads...'" (31). Additionally, while the young prisoners had knives, they were greatly outnumbered and outgunned by the Nazis who could easily have killed them.
Near the end of this chapter, all the prisoners begin to imitate the death cry of one of the prisoners. Why do you think they do this? How do they view their own lives at this point? Explain, citing evidence.
The prisoners are beginning to feel as though they are at the end and some of them are giving up. They are in distress over the cruelty of their situation, and Elie mentions that their cries "seemed to come from beyond the grave" (103). It is as if they are collectively mourning their own lives which now seem more painful and cruel than death. Mier Katz even asks why the SS doesn't just shoot them now rather than letting them go on with their suffering.
In what ways were the prisoners stronger than the SS? Explain the meaning and irony of the following line: "We were master of nature, the masters of the world."
The prisoners were stronger than the SS because no matter how cold, hungry, or tired they were, they kept going. Unlike the prisoners, when the SS got tired, they were replaced by someone else. The SS also had warm clothing and food, which the prisoners did not have. When Elie says the were "master of nature, the masters of the world," he means that they feel as if they have overcome everything that could possibly defeat them in these extraordinary circumstances--death, fatigue and "natural needs" such as food and sleep. This is ironic because they are not masters of anything, as they are slaves to their cruel Nazi oppressors, and so many of them are dying.
By what "spectacle" are the SS "greatly amused" near the end of the chapter? Explain, citing evidence. What adjectives would you use to describe the scene?
The prisoners were using their spoons to eat snow off one another's backs to try and hydrate themselves. "As we were not permitted to bend down, we took our spoons and ate the snow off our neighbors' backs" (96). In terms of descriptive adjectives, answers may vary: upsetting, distressing, grim, pathetic.
In what ways did the Jews of Sighet find life in the ghettos "peaceful and reassuring"? What does Wiesel mean when he says that it was "delusion" that ruled the ghetto?
The reason they we subjected to wide spread delusion was because they were in their own self governed bubble, removed from all the violence.
Why does Elie become angry at his father when sees him beaten by Idek? How is the relationship between father and son changing? How does this affect Elie's views of himself? Cite evidence for support.
Unlike the first time he saw his father be beaten, this time Elie was angry that his father could not, or did not, avoid Idek's wrath. Elie is starting to realize that self-preservation is becoming more important than family commitment, and desperately wants his father to focus on surviving. He is disappointed in himself at these internal changes, saying "This was what life in a concentration camp had made of me..." (54).
What are the benefits of Elie's stay in the infirmary? What is frightening about his stay? Support with evidence.
Being in the infirmary had some benefits; there was no roll call, he was given more bread and soup than at camp, and he was able to sleep in a bed with sheets. However, it was frightening because those in the infirmary who were deemed too sick were still vulnerable to selection and could still be sent to the extermination camps. "Here too there is selection. In fact, more often than outside. Germany has no need for sick Jews" (78).
Wiesel leaves out historical background on the liberation of the camp—for example, he does not elaborate much on the resistance movement or the events at the close of the war that brought about liberation. Why do you think he chooses to leave out these details?
Elie leaves out these details because he does not want to end the book on a happy note - he wants people to remember how horrific this experience was, and does not want those horrors to be overlooked by the liberation of the camp. Others may say those details simply didn't matter to him at that point in his life.
What inference does Elie make about Rabbi Eliahu's son? What inferences can you make regarding Elie's prayer? What might it reveal about his own feelings for his father? About his faith?
Elie believes that Rabbi Eliahu's son may have purposely kept running further away from his father because he wanted to rid himself of him; his father may have become a burden to him and was hindering his survival. Elie prays, "Oh God, Master of the Universe, give me the strength never to do what Rabbi Eliahu's son has done" (91). We can infer from this that Elie is starting to realize that he may share some of those feelings. His commitment to his father is starting to become less important to him than self-preservation, but he is praying and trying to not have those thoughts. We can also infer that, by virtue of him praying to God, that Elie still has a glimmer of faith left, however dim, even if he insists he no longer believes in Him
Explain Elie's dilemma when the camp prepares for evacuation. What does he ultimately decide? Was it the right choice?
Elie could have stayed in the infirmary, but he would risk not only separation from his father, but also possibly risk death by staying, as it was likely most of the patients would be sent to the crematorium. If he left, it would also be difficult for him to walk due to the healing wound on his foot. While he was not separated from his father, he learned years later that those in the infirmary were liberated two days later, making leaving the wrong choice.
In the beginning of the chapter, how does Elie feel about the SS forcing the prisoners to run? Cite evidence.
Elie does not mind having to run, because "moving fast made us a little warmer. The blood flowed more readily in our veins". In the freezing cold, running made their bodies slightly warmer and gave them "the feeling of being alive" (85).
Explain what Wiesel means in the line, "Just like Rabbi Eliahu's son, I had not passed the test." How do you think Elie compares to the rabbi's son from a moral standpoint?
Elie feels that he is becoming like Rabbi Eliahu's son because he "grudgingly" gave his soup to his father instead of simply being happy to help him. Elie shows that he has morals above Rabbi Eliahu's son because although he is having these thoughts, he is still trying to do anything he can to keep his father alive and not abandon him.
After the scene in which father and son die battling for bread, Wiesel adds the line, "I was sixteen." Why do you think he added this line? What is its effect?
Elie has just witnessed the worst of humanity in watching a young man kill his own father for a piece of bread, as his father begs him for mercy. The son is then killed by two others for the same crumb. Adding the line "I was sixteen" emphasizes the barbarity of the situation by juxtaposing this atrocity with Elie's young age of just sixteen. Clearly, he is leading anything but the typically innocent, carefree life of a teenager.
Why does Elie have nothing to say about the months he spent at Buchenwald? What does this reveal about his change in character?
Elie has nothing to say about his time in Buchenwald because nothing in his life mattered to him anymore during that time after his father's death. He has changed from a innocent, spiritual young boy who loved God and his family, to one who has lost hope and faith. Death has replaced those things in his life, and he has nothing left to live for at this point.
What does Elie see when he looks into a mirror for the first time in the past year? What is the significance?
Elie sees a corpse in the mirror when looking at himself. Death has consumed him after all he has experienced so that he feels as if he might as well be dead. After witnessing the ultimate evil and experiencing the unimaginable, the young, innocent, spiritual boy he was before the camps has died and been replaced with the empty, soulless corpse he sees before him, devoid of faith, love, joy, and humanity. It is important to note that Elie adds the final line: "The look in eyes as he gazed at me has never left me." This is because, while the book ends on a bleak and hopeless note, it is Elie's burden to remember these events and their effects on him that is crucial; only by remembering and bearing witness to these horrors can survivors like Wiesel ensure that atrocities like the Holocaust never happen again.
Towards the end of the chapter, Wiesel says he "ceased to pray," and instead, "sympathized with Job." What is the significance of this allusion--what happens to man named Job in the Bible? (You make look it up.) Why does Wiesel connect with him?
Elie sympathizes with Job because his faith in God has been altered by his silence in this situation, and just as Job did during his hardships, he questioned God.
Why does Elie become so angry at his father for wanting to rest in the snow? Explain, citing evidence.
He became angry because he felt that he had helped keep his father alive for so long and his father was ready to give up living. He says, "I could have screamed in anger. To have lived and endured so much; was I going to let my father die now?" (105). He wants his father to regain the will to continue living.
How does Elie feel about his religion as a young boy?
He has deep feelings towards religion almost as though it's a key piece of his identity.
Not long after his arrival at camp, Wiesel witnesses an unimaginably horrific sight at the fiery ditches. What does he see? How does this experience change him? How does it change his faith? Cite evidence for support.
He sees children being thrown into the fiery ditches and burned. This experience changes him forever; he loses both his faith in God and his innocence forever. He says shall "never forget" these moments that "murdered [his] God and turned [his] dreams to ashes" (34).
What is the irony presented in whether or not the Jews should follow their religious practices for Yom Kippur? Why does Elie choose to eat?
It is ironic that they are supposed to be fasting, because they are always fasting at the concentration camps. Elie chose to eat in an act of rebellion against God. Also, he wanted to please his father who forbid him to fast.
What do you think prompts Juliek to play the Beethoven concerto on his violin that night? What does the music mean to Elie? To the other prisoners? To Juliek?
Juliek plays the Beethoven concerto on his violin to remind himself and his fellow captives of their humanity, to impart something beautiful during a night of intense, unimaginable suffering. Hearing this, a moved Elie says, "Never before had I heard such a beautiful sound" (95). Elie cannot forget the music, the beauty Juliek shared "before an audience of the dead and dying" (95). For Juliek, the concert was not only his assertion of their humanity, but his swan song, his performance of a lifetime before his death the next morning. Elie says, "He was playing his life... His unfulfilled hopes. His charred past, his extinguished future. He played that which he would never play again" (95).
Describe a theme that emerges from the passage about Akiba Drumer. Support with evidence.
One theme that emerges is that the chances of survival plummet when one loses the will to live. Akiba Drumer no longer valued life and had given up hope. "Poor Akiba Drumer, if only he could have kept his faith in God, if only he could have considered this suffering a divine test, he would not have been swept away by the selection. But as soon as he felt the first chinks in his faith, he lost all incentive to fight and opened the door to death" (77).
Of the hundreds of prisoners loaded onto the trains, how many survived? Does this surprise you? Why or why not?
Only 12 of the prisoners survived. Answers will vary, though most will agree this is not surprising, as they were facing harsh, cold temperatures and were not given adequate food and water. In addition, many were giving up and had lost their will to live
Think about the character of Mrs. Schachter. In what ways is she similar to Moishe the Beadle? Do you think she is a madwoman or a prophet? Explain.
She is similar to Moishe in the way that she wasn't believed and and the way she was treated socially. She could be both but I am leaning more to prophet because of her visions.
The SS shot prisoners who could not keep up. What were other causes of death along the march? How did the prisoners feel about their fellow deceased?
Starvation and dehydration killed many of the prisoners, and many were trampled to death if they collapsed from pain/fatigue/hunger. Elie says that no one paid attention to those who were dying; this is likely because they were so focused on their own survival at this point.
Describe the absurdity of the final scene of chapter 3 in which the prisoners are marched to the new camp. How does Wiesel use setting, irony, and juxtaposition (two elements placed together for a contrasting effect) to create the absurd?
The scene is absurd because Wiesel juxtaposes the dehumanization and oppression that the Jews are living through, such as their march to the new camp surrounded by armed SS with only a piece of bread to nourish them, with the beautiful "countryside" setting, the "sunny road" with a few "small clouds" in a blue sky (46). Additionally, their miserable existence is juxtaposed with that of the guards who are enjoying themselves, teasing the girls who "giggled," as they are "kissed" and "tickled" and "bursting with laughter," while the prisoners were just happy to avoid "shouting" and "blows" (46). It is also absurd to think the German onlookers observed "showing no surprise" the entire procession of hungry prisoners marched through the village because they have already seen so many of them. Finally, there is irony in the passage that adds to its absurdity--the sign proclaiming "work means freedom," the prisoners being "glad" as they were forced to march to their next concentration camp (46).
Describe the condition the synagogue in which Wiesel and the other Jews were held for 24 hours. How is the treatment of this holy building symbolic?
The synagogue they were held in for 24 hours was in deplorable condition. There was no bathroom so they were made to urinate and deficate in a corner. This is symbolic of the disrespect of the religious aspect and the racial aspect of Judaism.
There are several incidents in chapter 1 in which we see Wiesel and his family miss opportunities to escape from the Germans. Describe at least two of these. What is your reaction to these missed chances? How do they fit into your understanding of the Jewish experience of the Holocaust overall?
There was one incident where they could've slipped away during the lineup before they left and a second time when they had just arrived at the camp and no one was being killed yet and they could have slipped out the gate. My reaction to these missed opportunities is sympathy. They didn't know what horrors they were walking into so they didn't know they could've escaped. My overall understanding of the holocaust was that it was all so well played out that the Jews didn't even know what they're were walking into.
What did Elie have in common with Yossi and Tibi that made them become friends?
These three friends had all lost family members in extermination camps. Additionally, they all knew similar Hebrew songs from childhood. Finally, all of them had asked their parents to pack their things and move to no avail before coming to the camps.
Throughout Chapter 1, townspeople face increasingly alarming evidence of the advancine German army and Anti-Semitic acts against the Jews. Why are they not fearful of Hitler and the Nazis? What do you think might be the reason behind their widespread denial?
They don't believe that Hitler can touch them because they are God's chosen people. They may be in denial because of what is being preached in their churches.
Why do the prisoners feel "joy" when they hear the bombs dropping around them during the air raid? Why did Elie and his father "cheerfully" clear away the ruins?
They felt joy because they no longer feared death; they were just happy about the possibility that this might damage or destroy their Nazi oppressors. Elie and his father were happy to clear the ruins because of the destruction the bombs caused the Nazis.
Why don't the townspeople believe Moishe's story?
They think he's gone crazy
What were the final circumstances behind Elie's father's death? Why was Elie unable to cry?
While on his deathbed dying of dysentery, Elie's father was violently hit in the head by an SS officer. Elie was unable to cry for several reasons: he said he has "no tears left," meaning that he is unable to feel emotions at this point after witnessing so many horrors. Additionally, he felt a small sense of relief at his father's death, saying, "And deep inside me, if I could have searched the recesses of my feeble conscience, I might have found something like: Free at last!" (112).
What is Wiesel referring to in the line "hundreds of naked orphans without a tomb"? Why might he have chosen the word "orphans" to describe them? How is Elie's father able to escape being one of those "orphans"?
Wiesel is referring to the corpses that have been thrown from the train and left without burial. He may have chosen the word "orphans" because they have been abandoned by God and left without a family. Elie's father narrowly escaped being one of the "orphans" because Elie hit him repeatedly until he "half opened his eyes" and was "breathing faintly" (99).
Metaphorically speaking, what does Wiesel mean by the line, "The night was growing longer, never ending"? Explain, citing evidence.
Wiesel is referring to the grim situation that they were all facing. Men were dying at a faster rate due to the harsh cold and lack of food and water, and it seemed there would be no light at the end of the tunnel; everyone would die sooner or later. "Here or elsewhere, what did it matter? Die today or tomorrow, or later?" (98) Their suffering, the dark "night" their lives had become, seemed endless, almost worse than death itself.
At this point in the story, we read one of the most famous passages from Night, beginning with the words, "Never shall I forget..." Summarize this passage. What is Wiesel's likely purpose of the repetition of the phrase "never shall I forget"? In what way is he "condemned to live" from here on?
Wiesel says he will never forget his first night in camp that changed him forever. He uses repetition to emphasize how the horrors are burned forever in his mind. He feels that he is being punished or "condemned" to live because his life, rather than his death, has now become a sentence because he cannot forget his experience that cost him everything.
