Alejandra Membreno
Period 2
Night  Elie Wiesel  Memoir
Literary Elements
Irony
Foreshadowing
-“I learned after the war the fate of those who
had stayed behind inn the hospital. They
were quite simply liberated.” Pg. 55
-“It was as though she were possessed by an
evil spirit which spoke from the depths of her
being.” Pg. 16
-“Jews, listen to me! I can see a fire! There are
huge flames! It is a furnace!” Pg. 16
-“…I have been saved miraculously. I managed
to get back here. Where did I get the
strength from? I wanted to come back to
Sighet to tell you the story of my death. So
that you could prepare yourselves wile there
was still time.” Pg. 4
Metaphor
-“He paid us about as much attention as a dealer
might who was just receiving a delivery of
old rags.” Pg. 33
-“We’re on the threshold of death…Soon we
shall have crossed over.” Pg.23
Simile
-“A man appeared, crawling like a worm in the
direction of the cauldrons.” Pg. 39
-“The antechamber of Hell must look like this.”
Pg 23
Imagery
-“Meir Katz, a giant had a child’s trousers, and
Stern, a thin little chap, a tunic which
completely swamped him.” Pg. 24
-“Perhaps it was because of the thick smoke
which poisoned the air and took one by the
throat…” Pg. 24
Literary Elements Cont.
Internal Conflict
Indifference
-“Why should I bless His name? The Eternal,
Lord of the Universe, the All-Powerful and
Terrible, was silent.” Pg. 22
-“I gave him what was left of my soup. But it was
with a heavy heart. I felt that I was giving it
up against my will. No better than Rabbi
Eliahou’s son had I withstood the test.” Pg.
72
-“He leapt on me, like a wild animal, hitting me in
the chest, on the head, throwing me down
and pulling me up again, his blows growing
more and more violent I was covered with
blood.” Pg. 35
-“They didn’t give us anything…they said that if
we were ill we should die soon anyway and I
would be a pity to waste the food. I can’t go
on anymore…” Pg. 72
Characterization
-“The student of the Talmud, the child that I was,
had been consumed in the flames. There
remained only a shape that looked like me.”
Pg. 24
-“A tall man, about thirty, with crime in scribed
upon his brow and in the pupils of his eyes.”
Pg. 25
Plot
-“Never should I forget that night, the first camp,
which has turned my life into one long night,
seven times cursed and seven times
sealed…” Pg. 22
-“Why should I bless His name?” Pg. 22
Theme Analysis
Elie was told
no one could
think of anyone
else, even their
father-Pg.74
Chlomo was
slapped and
fell to the
ground but Elie
didn’t do
anything-Pg.26
Rabbi
Eliahou’s son
leaves his
father during
the run-Pg.61
Self
Preservation
vs.
Family
Commitment
Meir kills his
father for a
small piece of
bread-Pg.68
Madame
Schachter was
tied up and
silenced, and
her son just
watched-Pg.16
Theme Analysis
1.
Elie Wiesel uses Self Preservation vs. Family Commitment a lot through Night.
He shows how hard it was for him and many other people to stay loyal to their
families in such harsh conditions. He gives examples of sons betraying their fathers.
Elie is very surprised when he is able to figure out that Rabbi Eliahou’s son left him
for dead. He is troubled later on when a woman throws money into a pit and sees
children fighting over it but keeps throwing more in. This was a difficult way for Elie to
learn how he should treat his father.
In the train ride to Birkenau, Elie witnesses what he would later be doing in the
story. Madame Schachter is beaten and tied up to be silenced and her son does
nothing to stop the men from hurting his mother. Once at Buna Elie Wiesel’s father,
Chlomo is slapped across the face by Idek so hard that he falls to the ground. Elie
does nothing in return and he isn’t sure why. His father is able to see that Elie feels
bad so he reassures him that it does not hurt.
2.
Elie Wiesel uses many literary elements throughout Night. He uses them to
express his feelings and show the reader what he saw. To me, Elie Wiesel’s use of
imagery was too little. He should have used more to really give the reader an idea of
what it was like to live in a concentration camp.
Internal & External Conflict
Elie questions his belief in God
Elie sees everything going on
and wonders why God is
letting it all happen
Elie tries not to betray his father
Elie has to fight his will so he
doesn't do what Rabbi
Eliahou’s son did
Elie did not want to loose his gold tooth
Elie’s gold tooth was taken from
him, he wanted to save it for
something important
Elie was whipped
Elie saw Idek with a girl and he
was punished for it
Motif
•
Night
Night time is important to Night because many
altering moments happened during this time.
Elie Wiesel uses night because he was
tortured at that time. He feels in the dark
during the Holocaust.
-”Night fell. There were twenty people gathered
in our back yard. My father was telling them
anecdotes and expounding his own views
on the situation” Pg. 7
Elie says this before his father finds out about
the ghetto.
-”An icy wind blew in violent gusts. But we
marched without faltering.” Pg. 57
They ran all through the night barley escaping
death because of the freezing temperature.
-“Total silence throughout the camp. On the
horizon the sun was setting.” Pg. 42
While the sun was setting two adults and one
child were hanged.
•
Eyes
Eyes are important in Night as well because they
express so much about a person. Wiesel
uses them to describe how people seem to
him in his opinion. Eyes are the window to a
person’s soul.
-“…with crime inscribed upon his brow and in the
pupils of his eyes.” Pg. 25
Elie can tell that the man is evil and does not
care for them.
-“One of his assistants--a hard-faced boy, with
hooligan’s eyes…” Pg. 31
Without even talking to the boy Elie thought he
was trouble and he was right.
-“…Facing me was a very beautiful woman with
black hair and dreamy eyes. I had seen
those eyes before somewhere.” Pg. 35
Elie was able to remember the girl ho had helped
him in Buna in 1944.
Who Is Responsible?
Red
Blue
10%
5%
5%
Green
5%
Yellow
10%
29%
Orange
Purple
10%
Brown
5%
1%
20%
White
Pink
Black
Hitler is most responsible for the Holocaust because he is the one who ordered
for it to happen; but he is not the only guilty one. The German citizens who
voted for him have a lot to do with the Holocaust as well. They were the ones
who voted and gave Hitler his power. Churches and people around the
concentration camps should also feel a sense of guilt because they knew what
was happening but they didn’t do anything. God has reason’s for all of his
doings. The Holocaust has taught many people about indifference and how
wrong it is. Lastly, the Jews were the victims of the Holocaust; they were
struck with terror and couldn’t do anything about it. If they tried o escape they
would have died, and if they didn’t they still had a great chance of dying.
Key
1. Sighet
2. Birkenau
6.
3. Auschwitz
4. Buna
5. Gleiwitz
5.
2. 3. 4.
6. Buchemwald
1.