Night

Chapter 1

...

When and where did Elie Wiesel grow-up?

1928-1943; Sighet, Transylvania

Who was Moshe the Beadle?

Poor man who lived in the synagogue

What did the other people in the community think of moshe?

He was well-liked

Why did Elie spend a lot of time with him?

He was willing to teach Elie the mysticism of Judaism.

What was Elie's father like?

"...Cultured, but rather unsentimental man"

What was elie's father's position within the Jewish community?

"Held in great esteem" (1); people went to him for advice

What happened to Moshe that caused great change in him?

Deported and witnessed a great slaughter in the forest

How did moshe change?

No longer happy; wants to tell his story

How did the rest of the community react when moshe told them what he experienced?

They thought he had gone crazy!

Why were the Jews of Sighet heartened by the news on the radio in 1942-1943?

The allies were winning even as Germany invaded Hungary.

Why did the Jews of Sighet think they were being deported?

The front was moving closer; moved for their own safety.

Why do you suppose their destination was kept secret from them?

Prevent rebellion; keep them calm.

How did they prepare for deportation?

Baked, packed, buried valuables

Who offered Elie's family safe refuge?

martha

On what day of the week was Elie's family expelled

saturday

What was ironic about the day they were expelled?

Jewish Sabbath-day of rest

What were the 24 hours in the synagogue like?

Horrible, unsanitary, packed

Chapter 2

...

Who was Madame Schachter?

Woman on the train who kept yelling, "Fire!"

Why was she so upset?

She had been separated from her family.

How did the others treat her?

Bound, gagged, kicked her

What was the first thing the prisoners saw upon arriving at Birkenau?

The fires of the crematories

Chapter 3

...

Who were the SS men?

Hitler's private army

How did Elie and his father get separated from Mother and Tzipora?

Dr. Mengele's selection

What was Elie's last view of them?

His mother patting Tzporia's fair hair

Why did some of the younger men want to escape?

The prisoners told them of the crematories

Why didn't they go ahead?

The older men told them to refer to their religious teachings—to stay calm

Why did Elie and his father lie to Dr. Mengele?

He gave an older age to avoid the furnace.

Why did his father wish Elie has gone with his mother? Why is this ironic?

So he would not be burned alive. Ironic because his mother and Tziporia went to the crematories.

What is the Kaddish?

Jewish prayer for the dead

Why didn't Elie join his father in reciting this?

He rebelled against a god that would allow babies to be murdered before his eyes.

Why did the gypsy strike Elie's father?

His father asked to go to the lavatory

How did Elie react?

He stayed silent

To what new camp were the prisoners marched?

Buna—the work camp in Auschwitz

Who was in charge of the block?

Young Polish man

What was his advice? Why was he replaced?

To treat each other well; he was too kind

Who was Stein?

A relation of Wiesel's family

Why did Elie lie to him?

to keep his hope alive

Why did Stein stop coming?

He found out his family died, presumably.

Akaba Drumer's believed God was testing the Jews. What did Elie think of his theory?

He did not believe that merciful God could allow so much suffering why the world kept silent to the horrors he witnessed.

Chapter 4

...

Where was music played in the camp?

On the march to the warehouse

Why couldn't the musicians play Beethoven?

Beethoven was a German composer, and the Jews were not permitted to play his music.

Who beat Elie in front of the French girl?

Idek in one of his fits of madness

Why was she afraid to speak to him?

She was a German Jewess disguised as an Aryan

What did her advice show about her?

She shows the kindness and patience that is lacking in the camps.

Who ended up with Elie's gold tooth?

Franek

How did this person get the tooth from Elie?

Began to beat Elie's father for marching out of step

Why did Elie laugh at Idek?

Caught him having relations with a young girl in a closet

What was the result?

25 whip lashings

Chapter 5

...

What is Rosh Hashanah?

Jewish New Year's Eve

What is Yom Kippur? Why didn't Elie fast?

Jewish New Year's Day! Day of Atonement; he felt he fasted everyday

What sort of "inheritance" gifts did Elie's father give him?

Knife and spoon

Why did Elie give the presents back?

His father survived the second selection

What happened to many prisoners when they lost faith?

Lost their will to live. Example: Akaba Drumer

How did Elie end up in the hospital?

Infected foot

What decision did he face there?

Whether to stay, or leave with the evacuees

How did he make his choice to leave the hospital so soon after the operation?

The man with dysentery told him the camp was to be mined, and the ones left in the infirmary would be a "final batch for the crematory."

Why was the camp being evacuated?

The Russians were advancing

Why did the prisoners want the Russians to arrive first?

They would be liberated!

Chapter 6

...

What happened to Zalman?

Had intense stomach pains and had to stop as the prisoners evacuated. Trampled to death.

How did Elie and his father help each other stay alive?

They were each other's will to live, keeping each other awake in the snow.

Why does Elie tell the story of Rabbi Eliahou?

To show the betrayal of his son

Why was he glad the rabbi "should continue to look for his beloved son"?

It showed his persistence and love for his son.

How did Wiesel avoid suffocation?

He clawed and bit the "dead flesh"

Chapter 7

...

Why did the two men try to throw Wiesel's father from the carriage?

Thought he was dead

Why did the living "rejoice" when the order came to throw out the corpses?

Created more room for the prisoners

How did the prisoners in the wagon act like animals?

Fought over bread with nails and teeth

Why did the German workmen take a "lively interest in this spectacle" when they had merely stopped and stared at the marching prisoners before?

Tossing the bread into the cars was a game to the Germans

Why didn't Wiesel join in the scramble for food?

He knew he would not survive as a 15-year-old boy

How were Mier and his son like the other fathers and sons Wiesel has described?

There is both protection and betrayal

How did Mier Katz save Elie's life?

He saves him from strangulation

How did Elie's father try to save Mier Katz?

Mier Katz had lost his will to live

How do you know he didn't succeed?

Meir Katz was unable to get out of the train

Chapter 8

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Why is it that Wiesel "could have wept with rage" when his father begged for rest upon arrival at Buchenwald?

They had come so far, only to give up at the final leg

Why did Wiesel feel like he was "arguing with death itself"?

His father just wanted to rest, but Elie knew that was to die in the snow.

What emotions did Wiesel experience as he watched his father die the last week?

Conflicting emotions. Was told to take his father's ration for himself, but he continued to feed his father out of love.

Chapter 9

...

What were Wiesel's thoughts during the months after his father's death?

Numbness and secret relief

How did he "cope"?

He tries to forget and focuses all his energy on finding food.

On what note did this book end?

Incredibly tragic