Author: Elie Wizel

Eliezer used to live in a good Jewish town but one day Germans came and made everyone in the town move to a ghetto. They stayed in the ghetto for two days then they were moved to a concentration camp where the Germans took everyone's belongings such as their watches, gold and silver. At the concentration camp, the Germans separated the men from the women and then, filed them up into lines for selection. Those that were not considered useful would be burned in a pit of fire. Eliezer and his father managed to be considered useful enough so they weren’t burned, but many women and children were burned in the fire pits. Eliezer and his father then headed to another camp where the Jews were put to work. He experiences some people getting hung, some bombings and some

very disgusting things. Rumors spread through the camp that the Russians were coming to kill them but in reality, the Russians wanted to free them. When they hear the battle coming closer, Eliezer gets hurt but is still forced to run to the next camp without stopping for about five miles. When they get there, his father becomes very ill and they take him away one night and kill him. A few days later Eliezer is freed and he tells the reader that the first thing he did was eat a lot of food. Eliezer then goes on to live his life the right way after being trapped in camps that long.

Author: Eliezer Wiesel

In Night, the author’s purpose is to tell people what really happened during the Holocaust by showing the cruelty that the Jews endured at the hands of the Germans. The source of this book is the author’s ordeal as a survivor of the Holocaust as he retells his account of what he witnessed and experienced as a 15-year-old Jewish boy during that time in history. The story is written from the viewpoint of Eliezer Wiesel. From the beginning, Eliezer lets the reader know what the purpose of his novel is in the preface where he describes how he feels about his experiences by using words such as “madness”, “terrifying”, “ordeal”, and “evil” (pg. vii). This is further supported when he states that he is a “witness who believes he has a moral obligation to try to prevent the enemy from enjoying one last victory by allowing his crimes to be erased from human memory.” (pg. viii). Early in the novel, Eliezer hints at the cruelty to come when he recalls the stories he heard from Moishe when he tells the Jews of Sighet about the Gestapo forcing Jews to dig their own graves before getting shot by them and using babies as targets [pg. 6-7]. German cruelty is described in detail throughout the book thus ensuring the reader does not forget what happened. Eliezer describes the atrocities he sees every day when he rebels against God because He allows the burning of thousands of children, keeps crematoria going day and night, allowed the creation of concentration camps and allows Jews to be tortured [pg. 67]. This passage shows the viciousness from the Germans is so great that at the time Eliezer feels that God has abandoned him and his people.

The story took place during the Holocaust which is the period of time between 1941 and 1945 during which the Nazi Germans committed genocide against the Jews in Europe. The author describes the atrocities that he experienced during his time in the concentration camp of Auschwitz which has been recognized in history as a concentration work and execution camp operated by the Nazi Germans during the Holocaust. Towards the end of the book, the author is in the Buchenwald concentration camp and describes the liberation of Jews by American soldiers in April 1945.

1. History.com. “The Holocaust.” 14 October 2009, www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/the-holocaust

2. “Elie Wiesel Fast Facts.” CNN, Cable News Network, www.cnn.com/2013/04/09/us/elie-wiesel-fast-fact/index.html

3. (pg. 6) Jews expelled from Sighet

4. (pg. 11-18) Jews’ life in the ghettos

5. (pg. 30-34) Jew’s arrival in Auschwitz (example of German cruelty and atrocities)

6. (pg. 100) Jews lived without food and survived on snow

7. (pg. 101) Germans enjoy watching Jews fight for bread crumbs

8. (pg. 144) Jews in his camp are freed

Author:

Elie Wiesel

Comparing Hitler and Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro

Source(s) Used:

* https://www.cnn.com/2013/04/26/world/americas/nicolas-maduro-fast-facts/index.html

* https://www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/adolf-hitler-1

* https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-press-in-the-third-reich

* https://www.britannica.com/biography/Adolf-Hitler/Hitlers-place-in-history

* https://www.pri.org/stories/2014-03-18/10-outrageous-quotes-venezuela-s-nicolas-maduro

Comparing and Contrast the events from your text to the event(s) from today: How are they alike? Why did they happen? How did they impact the world or the nation in which they took place? How are they different? How did they end—if they have ended already. Remember to cite text evidence from your NEW SOURCE!

Hitler and Maduro are both dictators. Maduro has not committed genocide against his people while on the other hand Hitler committed genocide against the Jews. Maduro gained power because previous president Chaves decided to make Maduro his successor. Chaves died of cancer and it was said the Venezuelan people that a foreign power inflicted him with cancer. When Chavez died, Maduro  said “they inoculated Commander Chavez with that illness to get him out of the way, and create a situation of destruction for Venezuela and its independent revolution.”. On the contrary, Hitler rose to power because he served as chancellor and later declared himself ruler of Germany. Hitler also said “to conquer a nation, first disarm it’s citizens”. At the beginning of his presidency, Maduro expelled foreign diplomats from Venezuela and likewise, Hitler isolated Germany from foreign nations and withdrew Germany from the League of Nations. In various occasions, Maduro has revoked the press’ credentials in an attempt to control the press and the distribution of information about the crisis in Venezuela. Hitler also used his control of the press to his advantage.

Hitler had a very strong impact in the world as he was mainly responsible for starting World War II. He was also responsible for the genocide against the Jews and for making Germany the most powerful nation during his reign. However, once the war was over, the German economy was shattered and therefore, it can be said that he is also responsible for that. With the end of the war near, while hiding in a bunker, Hitler committed suicide on April 30th 1945. Maduro’s impact has been mostly on his country of Venezuela. During his rule, he has been responsible for the deaths of a number of opponents. The economy of Venezuela has also dramatically declined due to his chaotic government. Additionally, as the Venezuelan citizens starve, Maduro has declined all foreign aid. Because of all the controversy surrounding Maduro and his deranged rule, other countries have stopped buying oil from Venezuela thus further weakening the Venezuela economy and affecting the world's oil supply. At this time, Maduro is still in power in Venezuela although his people have chosen a different leader. These two men relate to my book because the issues presented in the story were all caused by Hitler, a dictator and Maduro relates to this topic because he is also a ruthless dictator.

Author: Elie Wiesel

Overarching Question: How can reading literature from the past help us understand our present?

Answer: Reading literature from the past can help us better understand what it took to get to the position that we currently are in the world. The past can be a window into the steps that got us to our current civilization. It helps us recognize things that are going on in the world now that might be similar to things that happened in the past. In doing so, we can avoid mistakes previously made in history. By studying the past, our generation and future generations can identify solutions to problems that were encountered before. If literature from the past was ever lost, we wouldn’t be able to learn from previous mistakes and we might, as a civilization, repeat the atrocities committed by our ancestors.

CONTENT SPECIFIC QUESTION: How does tone impact the mood of the story? What are the author’s feelings toward the subject?

Answer: The mood and tone of a story can change everything. If the tone of a story is dark it can set a sad mood for the story, allowing the reader to understand what the author is feeling. The reader can sympathize with the character and truly understand that this is a hard time that the character is facing. In Night by Elie Wiesel, the tone of the story is serious, honest and sad thus creating a depressing mood. The book describes very sad situations in a very honest and serious way. The author does not attempt nor does he intend to lighten the tone of the book because his intention is for the reader to feel what it was like during that time, thus setting the gloomy mood of the story.

Through the setting of the gloomy and depressing mood, it is clear that the author feels that the events described in the book were very sad for him. He feels that what happened has completely changed him and marked him in a way that could never be forgotten, similarly to the tattoo of his prisoner number on his arm. The fact that after so many years, he remembers the events so clearly and in so much detail to write the book, is a testament that he has been scarred by his experiences.

Personal Question #1

How does the Jews’ experiences during the Holocaust as described in Night show humanity’s ability to harm each other in despicable ways? How do you see evidence of this in today’s world events?

Personal Question #2

How can someone’s suffering, such as that experienced by Elie Wiesel in Night, challenge their belief in God? How could this affect the resilience of oppressed people today?