Night Study Guide. A Voice From Auschwitz

Transcription

1 A Voice From Auschwitz Eliezer, a character based on the author himself, is a Jewish teenager living in Hungary during the Second World War. When he is shipped to death-camp Auschwitz, he must rely on grit, determination, and luck to survive the horrific tragedies of the Holocaust. Will Eliezer survive, and what will his experiences teach us about the horrors of war? Be a Better Reader As you work through the study guide for Night, you ll also practice these skills, which will help you when you read novels in the future, for school assignments or just for fun. 1. Describe how characters in a novel are developed. 2. Describe the plot development and structure of a novel. 3. Describe and analyze the role of setting in a novel. 4. Identify and analyze the themes in a novel. 5. Identify and analyze an author s purpose and perspective. 6. Explain how historical context affects readers understanding and appreciation of a novel. Behind the Scenes Although not technically a memoir, Night is based on the exact experiences of Hungarian Jewish author, Elie Wiesel. Wiesel has stated that minor details have been altered, but for the most part, this is the true story of what happened to him during the Holocaust. Like Eliezer, Wiesel grew up in Sighet, Hungary. In May, 1944, Wiesel and his family were deported to Auschwitz, the largest Nazi death-camp. Auschwitz was the murder site of 1.3 million Jews, including Wiesel s father, mother, and sister. Wiesel was the only survivor from his family, and upon liberation by American troops in January Nearly 15 years later, Wiesel became an American citizen and moved to New York City. Night remains one of the most widely read and taught texts on the Holocaust. It is important to remember that while Night is clearly based on Wiesel s own experiences, it Is not a memoir. Wiesel changed seemingly insignificant details about Eliezer s experiences and his own Eliezer injures his foot at Auschwitz while Wiesel injured his knee perhaps to create an emotional distance from his past. Although Wiesel has published widely on his experiences at Auschwitz, the subject matter remains unimaginably painful to relive. Discussing his experiences through the eyes of a fictionalized narrator allows Wiesel to hold the memories at a distance, and process the events of his survival as if he were an outsider.

2 The Plot When the Nazi movement reaches Hungary, Eliezer s life takes a terrible and tragic turn. Do you think Eliezer will survive the Holocaust? What do Eliezer s experiences teach the reader about the horrors of war? As you read Night, fill in the boxes for each element of the novel s plot.

3 The Characters Throughout Night, the reader is exposed to a variety of haunting characters whose stories whether real or fictional will be impossible to forget. Use the space below to help organize your thoughts on each character. In the second column, write or type the lesson readers learn about life, death, and faith through this character s story. Character Eliezer Lesson Learned Sholomo Moshe the Beadle Akiba Drumer Madame Schächter Juliek Dr. Josef Mengele Idek Franek Rabbi Eliahou Zalman Meir Katz Stein

4 The Setting Night could only be told in one place: Auschwitz the death camp during World War Two. All of the novel s themes, conflicts, and characters are directly related to the setting. Understanding the setting is one of the keys to understanding the novel as a whole. Use the spaces below to describe the setting of Auschwitz and the events that take place there. In the first column, type or write direct quotes from the novel phrases and sentences that are used to show what it s like in a barrio throughout the story. In the second column, explain in your own words what these details show or suggest about the novel s themes and characters. Remember your description should include details about the historical, political, and physical setting of Night. Direct Quote Related to Setting Your Explanation

5 Tracking Themes What is Elie Wiesel trying to say about the changes humanity endures when faced with the horrors of war? The main themes in Night are related to the loss of faith and the loss of humanity. See if you can identify and analyze those themes. Step 1: What parts of the plot seem related to a possible theme in the novel? (Think about the main conflict and how it get resolved or worked out.) Step 2: Which characters seem related to a possible theme? Which characters change, and what do those changes suggest about either the loss of faith or the loss of humanity? Step 3: How does Elie Wiesel use symbols to hint at the novel s themes? What objects, people, or places stand for something bigger in the story? Step 4: What does the novel s title suggest about the novel s themes? Why do you think Weisel entitled his novel Night? Step 5: Write about one or two of the novel s main themes in your own words.

6 Talk About It What do you think of Elie Wiesel s account of his Holocaust experience in Night? Does it shed new light on the horrors of the Second World War? In the space below each question, write an answer based on your own experiences and your own understanding of the plot. Include some textual evidence or examples that helped you arrive at your answer. 1. One of Eliezer s greatest struggles during his time in Auschwitz is his conflict with God. Eliezer cannot comprehend why the God he dedicated his life to studying would turn his back on the Jewish people. Describe Eliezer s personal relationship with his Jewish faith before, during, and after his time at Auschwitz. What events most shake Eliezer s belief in God? Textual Evidence: 2. During the Second World War, the Nazis sought not only to exterminate the Jews of Europe but also to dehumanize them. Describe the systematic way through which the Nazis sought to dehumanize the Jews. What effect did this gross mistreatment cause in the way the Jews viewed themselves? Overall, did the Jews presented in Night behave more like animals or humans? Textual Evidence:

7 Represent! Show what you know about Night and the lessons it teaches readers about the Holocaust. Choose one of these projects to complete and share with your teacher, classmates, and others. Choice 1: Document of Faith Many authors have written about their struggles with religion, and published faith-based documents to guide readers in their spirituality. The Jewish Holocaust Museum is looking for a report of how the Holocaust has shaken the faith of Jews, aimed specifically at teenagers. Since you have just finished reading Night and have a deep understanding of the novel s themes, the museum has chosen you to write the report. For this project, write a three-page report on how the Holocaust affected Eliezer s faith in God, and how this experience might represent the spirituality of other Jews during World War Two. The report should summarize Eliezer s experiences, his spiritual journey, and how his journey might be similar to others. Ensure that the report embraces the novel s themes, and suggest what the Jewish Holocaust Museum might do to fight against lost faith. You may upload your report as a Word document, or upload a video of yourself reading the report aloud. Choice 2 Artistic Expression Many great memoirs have been re-created as graphic novels: a series of pictures telling the story. The Jewish Publishing House of New York City wants to publish a kid-friendly version of Night to help explain the horrors of war to middle-school students. Now that you have finished reading Night, you are in a good position to advise The Jewish Publishing House on how to adapt the novel in a way that appeals to young readers. If you know how to use pictures to tell a story, you are even more suited for this task: to create a graphic or animated version of Night for posting on the Internet as either a photo slide show or a video. Your visual version of Night can be simpler and shorter, but the novel s purpose and message should be just as clear in the slide show or video you create. The audience for your presentation will include teens assigned the novel who have decided not to read it as well as students who did read the book but didn t get the message Wiesel hoped to send. If you decide to draw a series of images that tell the story, deliver your scanned images in a compressed folder (such as a zip file) and name the files in a way that shows the order in which the images should appear. If you create an animation, instead, compress your video to make it less than 10 MB, and upload your video file.