JUSTIN

//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? Eliezer doesn't know why he prays and he cries because he feels that he needs to. 2. Why don’t people believe Moche’s stores? The people didn't believe him because the Germans were living with some of the towns people and they were very nice and polite so they didn't think that the Germans were evil. 3. Site examples of how the Jews gradually lose their freedom. All of the jews were put into gettos and had to live together even if there wasn't enough room. __Chapter 2, pages 23-28__ 4. What does Madam Shachter’s nightmares about a fire foreshadow? The dreams foreshadowed the smoke towers at the cremation rooms were they burned people. 5. Where does the train finally stop? The train finally stopped in Berkinow. __Chapter 3, pages 29-46__ 6. When questioned by the SS officer, why does Elie lie about his occupation and age? Elie lied about his age and occupation because if he told the truth then he would have been killed because he was to young. 7. Why does Elie disbelieve what his own eyes show him? Elie doesn't bealive his eyes because there is so much killing and sluaghter that he thinks that it is just a dream. 8. Why is Elie now reluctant to pray? Elie doesn't pray because he thinks if there is this much pain and suffering then there must be no god. __Chapter 4, pages 47-65__ 9. Why is Elie summoned to the dentist? Elie was summoned to the dentist because the dentists were looking for gold in jewish peoples mouths. 10. How does Elie react to his father’s beating? Elie got mad at his father because he could have avoided being beaten. 11. Why is the hanging of the “sad eyed angel” said to be one of the most profoundly moving events in the novel? The sad eyed angle was the most profoundly moving part in the book because the germans hung a child and he didn't even die it took him a half an hour to die and it was just cruel. __Chapter 5, pages 66-84__ 12. What is selection? Selection is when the doctors watch the prisoners run and they choose the weakest ones and write down their numbers. Then those prisoners are taken to be cremated in the crematorium.

__Chapter 6, pages 85-97__ 13. Why couldn’t Elie allow himself to die? Elie couldn't let himself die because if he died his father would surly die 14. Why does Juliek play the violin? Juliek plays the violin because he enjoys it and thinks its all he lives for. 15. Compare how the other boys treat their fathers with Eliezer’s treatment of his own father. Elie treats his father with care and kindness, but the others treat their fathers badly and even kill them. __Chapter 7-9 pages 98-115__ 16. Why can’t Elizer weep at his father’s death? Elizer has cried for so much nothing even matters anymore. 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 can't look back at the corpse in the mirror because he has lost so much and is ashamed.

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? For Elie night symbolizes fear and death which fits the title of this book. 2. What fires does he speak of that consumed his faith forever? Why do these fires consume his faith? The fires that he speaks of were the camps that consumed his faith and they kept him from getting away. 3. Do you find it difficult to believe that a boy so devout in his faith could lose his faith? Why? Yes i do think a boy so devout in his faith can loose it because what goes on at the camps can change anyone. 4. Why does he lose his desire to live? Elie looses his desire to live because he would rather die then have to suffer through the camps. 5. Elie spoke these words as an adolescent. Do you think that as an adult his feelings have changed? Why? I don't think that as an adult Elie's feelings have changed because he went through things that changed him forever. 6. Why do you suppose Elie wrote this novel? I think Elie wrote this novel to in form people of what was happening at the camps.

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:Elie started to eat all of his food at once. His father told him not to eat it all at once to save the rations for later in life.

What I think:I think that Elie's father was just trying to help him for future situations.

I would’ve done:I would have told my son not to eat it all at once because i would hate to see him starve.

2. Page 49-50

Relationship shown:Elie's father has lived through the whole thing when all of the other dads have died.

What I think:I think if his father didn't push himself then he would of died and Elie would have died because he had nothing to live for.

I would’ve done:If i were Elie's dad i would have pushed myself to the fullest because i would want my son to live.

3. Page 55-56

Relationship shown:Elie had to give someone his crown to defend his father because the man was beating up his father for not giving it to him.

What I think:I think Elie was just sticking up for his father and was trying to defend him from this bully.

I would’ve done:I wouldn't of given the man my crown he would have gotten tired after a while.

4. Page 90-91

Relationship shown:The rabbi Eliahu said that his son went ahead of him and let him fall behind so his father wouldn't hold him down.

What I think:I think the son was tired of fending for his father and decided to ditch him.

I would’ve done:I persanoly wouldn't of ditched my father i would stick by him to the end.

5. Page 101

Relationship shown:Meir was killing his father only to get a little bit of bread he had.

What I think: I think that this is a horrible thing to do no one should kill their own father.

I would’ve done: I wouldn't of killed my father because he would have given me some bread anyway.

6. Page 112

Relationship shown:

What I think:

I would’ve done:

__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 quote is ironic because They say work is liberty when liberty means freedom and working for someone isn't having freedom. 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 quote is ironic because in the story the yellow star means you are jewish and the Germans killed jewish people. 3. “On we went between the electric wires. At each step, a white placard with a death’s head on it stared us in the face. A caption: ‘Warning, Danger of Death.’ ” (page 40) This quote is ironic because every step the germans put up signs to protect the jews when they were trying to kill them. 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 quote is ironic because he didn't keep many promises with the jews and the ones he did make refered to killing them.

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 crematories.” (page 33) This quote is inhumanity because the Germans can do anything to the jews and no one will come to help and no one will care. 2. “Work makes you free.” (page 40) This quote is inhumanity because when you work you aren't free at all. 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 not 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 quote is inhuman because the Germans are treating the jews so badly that they are glad when they die. 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 quote is inhumanity because they were crying so much and saw so many bad things that they cant cry anymore and hanging mean nothing anymore.