NIGHT
THE THEME OF DEATH
By:
Megan Grocki and Nicole Couture
“Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence
which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire
to live.” (pg.32)
 The memories of this
experience are burned in
his mind forever
 The torture he was
enduring made death
seem like an escape
 Death became desirable
“Not cry? We’re on the threshold of
death…Soon we shall have crossed over…”
(pg.33)
 Death consumed the
prisoners thoughts
 They would all face it
some point
 Time was running out for
the remaining prisoners
 They would all die in the
camp eventually
“Suddenly the silence grew oppressive. An SS
officer had come in and, with him, the odor of
the Angel of Death” (pg.35)
 Whenever the officers
were near they could feel
the tension even in
silence
 Odor refers to the officers
ability to kill any
prisoner at any time
 Always feared death
when the officers came
in their block
-“Here, you have got to work. If not, you will
go straight to the furnace. To the crematory.
Work or the crematory—the choice is in your
hands.” (pg 36)
 Quote from the SS officers to
the prisoners
 Telling them that they are
forced to work while in the
concentration camp
 If you were weak or fought
back you would be sent to
death
 Stronger you were and the
harder you worked meant you
could postpone death
-“We are all brothers, and we are all suffering
the same fate. The same smoke floats over all
our heads. Help one another. It is the only way
to survive.” (pg 38)
 Head of the block says
they are all to look out for
each other
 Helping each other will
give them a better chance
at survival and give them
hope
 They can lean on each
other for support since
they all share the same
fear
“Poor hero, committing suicide for a ration of
soup! In our thoughts we were murdering
him.”(pg.57)
 Man faced death for
stealing extra soup
 On the outside other
prisoners could show no
emotion
 On the inside they would
kill just for another
ration of soup
-“But we were no 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.” (pg57)
 Wiesel and the prisoners
no longer feared death
 Each bomb gave them
hope they could make it
through another day
 Staying positive made it
easier for them to stay
alive
-“The idea of dying, of no longer being, began to
fascinate me. Not to exist any longer. Not to feel the
horrible pains in my foot. Not to feel anything, neither
weariness, nor cold, nor anything. To break the ranks,
to let oneself slide to the edge of the road…” (pg 82)
 He had gone through so
much that death seemed
better than life
 He starts losing hope in
survival and thinks that
giving up will provide peace
 He feels like the idea of
dying is a positive thing
unlike before
“It’s dangerous to fall asleep in the snow. You
might sleep for good.” (pg.84)
 Many over tired from the
march and extremely
weak
 Even sleep became deadly
for them at this point
 Sleeping in the snow
would cause them to
freeze to death
“The dead stayed in the yard under the snow,
like faithful guards assassinated without
burial.”( pg.87)
 Dead were left behind in
the snow
 Left behind without a
thought as if their death
didn’t matter
 They had no proper
burial or grave for the
bodies
Image Bibliography
 "Google Images." Google Images. Web. 28 May
2012.
 "Public Domain Images, Public Domain Images.
Web. 28 May 2012.