DAN+W.

//NIGHT// PREREADING ACTIVITY

Imagine yourself in the following situation: You and your family have been driven from your home. Now separated from them, you are suddenly alone. Shoved into a train like cattle, you are surrounded by screaming women, weeping children, silent old men, and ruthless soldiers. There is no food, no water, horror, and madness everywhere. Having arrived at your destination, you smell the stench of burning flesh: babies, children like yourself. Men and boys are hanged daily. There is only soup and perhaps a few morsels of stale bread to eat. You work until exhausted and are beaten for not marching in step. The gold in your teeth is extracted without anesthesia. Frozen and broken bodies surround you. Weekly you must run like a madman to escape being selected to die in the gas chambers or to burn in the crematory. You can’t even wonder if it will end, and you know that God has deserted you. You try to survive each day and lie through each night!

1. Do you believe something like this could ever happen to you? Why or why not?

2. What would be your first reaction to this horrifying experience?

3. What means might you use to deal with what is happening (example: would you lie, cheat, steal)?

4. Do you think it would be better to give up and die or try to survive?

5. Inhumanity means being inhumanly cruel and brutal. Do you think the world could ever allow this kind of inhumanity to happen again?

6. What kind of punishment do you feel would be suitable for this kind of inhumanity?

7. Do you think this kind of inhumanity could exist in our day and age?

Reading Guide

The following questions are thought questions that relate to various themes and ideas in the reading. Use these questions to guide your reading and better understanding of the novel. Be prepared to share your responses in class discussion or in a writing assignment. Please answer all questions in COMPLETE SENTENCES.

__Chapter 1, pages 1-22__ 1. Why does Eliezer pray and why does he cry when he prays? Elie prays because he is faithful to his religion. Eliezer does not know why he cries, he just feels like he should. 2. Why don’t people believe Moche’s stories? People don't beleive Moche's stories because they think he has either gone mad or he wants pity. 3. Site examples of how the Jews gradually lose their freedom. Jews gradually lost their freedom by being put in Ghettos and then being crammed into Cattle Cars. They weren't allowed to go to school or work. __Chapter 2, pages 23-28__ 4. What does Madam Shachter’s nightmares about a fire foreshadow? Madam Shachter's nightmares foreshadow the Creametories. 5. Where does the train finally stop? The train finally stops in Birkenau, a camp in Auschwitz. __Chapter 3, pages 29-46__ 6. When questioned by the SS officer, why does Elie lie about his occupation and age? Elie lies about his age because the inmate told him to do it. If he hadn't, then he would've been taken to the gas chambers. 7. Why does Elie disbelieve what his own eyes show him? Elie thinks that what his eyes show him is a nightmare because he cannot believe the inhumanity. 8. Why is Elie now reluctant to pray? Elie is reluctant to pray because he doesn't think that G-d is doing anything to stop the terrible things that are happening. __Chapter 4, pages 47-65__ 9. Why is Elie summoned to the dentist? Elie is summond to the dentist because he has a gold krown that they want to yank. 10. How does Elie react to his father’s beating? Elie is silent when he witnesses his dad being beaten. He is mad at his father for not avoiding the beating. 11. Why is the hanging of the “sad eyed angel” said to be one of the most profoundly moving events in the novel? The hanging of the "sad eyed angel" was one of the most moving events in the book because it was increadibly powerful and it made you realize how bad things actually were. __Chapter 5, pages 66-84__ 12. What is selection? Selection is where the SS Doctors would come to the blocks. They would look at the prisoners. If they found extraordinarily weak people, they would take them to the crematorium.

__Chapter 6, pages 85-97__ 13. Why couldn’t Elie allow himself to die? Elie doesn't allow himself to die because he looks at his father next to him and realizes that they need to stick together. 14. Why does Juliek play the violin? Juliek plays the violin because that is how he copes with the torture. 15. Compare how the other boys treat their fathers with Eliezer’s treatment of his own father. Other boys treat their fathers horribly. They do what they can to survive while Elie looks out for his father and helps him. __Chapter 7-9 pages 98-115__ 16. Why can’t Elizer weep at his father’s death? Elie can't weep at his father's death because he is out of tears. 17. When he is finally free, Elie wishes to see himself in the mirror. Why can’t he ever forget the look in the eyes of the corpse that gazes back at him? Elie will never forget what he say in the mirror because it did not look like anything he remembered. He look like a dead man.

Literary Analysis Characterization/Author’s Purpose After page: 34

Elie is a Jewish child who is extremely strong in his faith. He often spent nights in the synagogue weeping and praying. He was preparing himself to be initiating into “eternity.” Then came night.

Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky. Never shall I forget those flames, which consumed my faith forever. Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments, which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.

Answer the following questions in complete sentences.

1. What does “night’ symbolize to Elie? Why do you think he selected it as the title of his memoir? "Night" symbolizes pain and torture to Elie. I think he chose this as his title because most of the major plot changes take place at night. 2. What fires does he speak of that consumed his faith forever? Why do these fires consume his faith? The fire that he speaks of that consumed his faith forever were the fires from the Cremetory. The consume his faith because he thinks that G-d is not helping prevent it. 3. Do you find it difficult to believe that a boy so devout in his faith could lose his faith? Why? I do not think it is difficult because he is seeing terrible things happen that are demolishing his race. 4. Why does he lose his desire to live? He loses his desire to live because he thinks that he is going to die anyway. 5. Elie spoke these words as an adolescent. Do you think that as an adult his feelings have changed? Why? I do think that he has the same feelings. I think this because the way he speaks is so vivid and it tells that he still understands what it was like to wittness such horrible things. 6. Why do you suppose Elie wrote this novel? I think he wrote this novel to make sure that nobody forgets what happened and to share his story.

Literary Analysis: Characterization

Elie explicitly recounts events that describe his relationship with his father during imprisonment in the camps. He also describes events in the relationships of other fathers and sons in the camps.

In your book there are many examples of father-son relationships. Give examples, including the page number of a father son relationship and tell what you think about that relationship, tell why you might or might not have acted in a similar way. This does not have to be done on Elie and his father. There are many other examples of father-son relationships as well. An example has been done for you.

Example: Page 39:

Relationship shown: Elie’s father is struck, but Elie does not move to help him. His father whispers that the blow does not hurt. Although Elie does not move, he feels remorse and hatred toward the gypsy. He is angry and unforgiving.

What I think: Elie is a child and probably fears that if he helps his father, he too will be beaten. His father does not blame him and does not want to see him beaten or do something he might regret; thus, he tells Elie that the blow des not hurt.

I would’ve done: This seems to be a relationship where the father is protective of the son who is young and frightened. I would have acted in the same way if I were the father, thinking that I need to protect my child.

1. Page 43-44

Relationship shown: When Elie's cousin Stein asks them about his son, Elie lies so that Stein can be happy.

What I think: I think that Elie does this so that Stein doesn't worry and can feel happy. I don't know if it is the right thing to do though.

I would’ve done: I probably would have done something similar to that. I would do this because it would make Stein happy and give him a little bit of joy.

2. Page 49-50

Relationship shown: Elie is assigned to a corner of the room, but asks if he can be with his father, his only family left.

What I think: I think that this is a good relationship because it shows that no matter what, Elie does not want to be separated from his father.

I would’ve done: I definitely would have done the same thing because I too, would want to be with my father.

3. Page 55-56

Relationship shown: Elie teaches his father how to march in step.

What I think: I think this is good because Elie is trying to prevent his father from being beaten.

I would’ve done: I would have done the same, to help my father and to keep my gold krown.

4. Page 90-91

Relationship shown: Rabbi Eliahu's son ditched him during the march because the Rabbi was falling behind.

What I think: I think that is very bad.

I would’ve done: I would never do that because I think that family should try to stick together.

5. Page 101

Relationship shown: A boy kills his own father for a scrap of bread.

What I think: This is absolutley horrifying.

I would’ve done: I would have offered that we split the bread.

6. Page 112

Relationship shown: Elie did not cry when his father died.

What I think: I think that this is very sad, but I understand that he just couldn't cry anymore.

I would’ve done: I really don't know what I would have done, but if I had to guess, I would most definetly think that I would cry.

__Night__ Irony

Read each passage below. Explain what is //ironic// about the meaning of the passage.

1. “but we had been marching for only a few moments when we saw the barbed wire of another camp. An iron door with this inscription on it: ‘Work is liberty!’ “ (page 40) This is ironic because the statement "Work makes you free" was not true. Work didn't make you free. 2. “Some of the prominent members of the community came…to ask him what he thought of the situation. My father did not consider it so grim…’The yellow star? Oh well, what of it? You don’t die of it…’ ” (page 11) This is ironic because in the end, you did die of it because you were Jewish. 3. “On we went between the electric wires. At each step, a white place card with a death’s head on it stared us in the face. A caption: ‘Warning, Danger of Death.’ ” (page 40) This is ironic because the whole camp is a danger zone for death. 4. I’ve got more faith in Hitler than anyone else. He’s the only one who’s kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people.” (page 51) This is ironic because Hitler's promises were of death. Usually a promise is positive, not negative. Inhumanity // Night // is filled with thoughts and comments that reflect inhumanity of World War II. Explain what each of the following excerpts from the novel mean.

1. “The world? The world is not concerned with us. Today anything is allowed. Anything is possible, even these crematorias.” (page 33) This is inhuman because the Nazis are actually doing this. It's even more inhumane that no one else is doing anything to prevent it. 2. “Work makes you free.” (page 40) This is inhumane because it made them work and it gave them false hope. 3. “we were not afraid. And yet, if a bomb had fallen on the blocks, it alone would have claimed hundreds of victims on the spot. But we were no longer afraid of death; at any rate, not of that death. Every bomb that exploded filled us with joy and gave us new confidence in life.” (page 60) This is so inhumane because they were so happy to see so much horror and bombing towards others. 4. “I witnessed other hangings. I never saw a single one of the victims weep. For a long time those dried up bodies had forgotten the bitter taste of tears.” (page 63) This is inhumane because the victims have been beaten so much in past that do not care anymore. They almost wanted to die.