Pages 29 - 46

Mrs. Schachter’s prediction about the flames came true. When the Jews arrived at Auschwitz, they saw flames licking the skies from a tall chimney and smelled the scent of burning flesh. Mrs. Schachter fell silent with a blank gaze. Apparently, she had no purpose left.

When they arrived, they were separated by gender, and one by one, led off to either an incinerator to be burned alive, or the prison. Eliezer and his father were condemned to the fire, but narrowly escaped when a German soldier told them to go to the prison instead. There, they were forced to dress in the same clothes and all have their hair cut the same way. This is the Nazi's way of dehumanizing the Jews, in an effort to more efficiently torture (and exterminate) them and not feel as guilty about doing so.

All the Jews were herded together and told that they would be forced to work. They had numbers and letters tattooed on their arms to replace their names. This was yet another method of dehumanization by the Germans.

Pages 23 - 28

This section is about the deliverance of the Jews to the concentration camp in Auschwitz. At the point of their arrival, they had no idea about what would be in store for them. The heard rumors of good conditions, and children and adults being made to do nothing but work in fields and factories.

The Jews were sorely misinformed. On the journey there, one Mrs. Schachter went "insane" and screamed about fire. That she saw flames. Her son, in hysterics over his mother's mad ranting, was crying and clinging to her, telling her that there was nothing there... that there was no fire.


(CLICK HERE to view a video about the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps. NOTE: View the first video on the list.)

The Jews were terrified at the thoughts of what would surely come. The screams of Mrs. Schachter increased their fear, and when she screamed, they took to beating her until she fell silent. The Jew, at last, arrived at their destination and told to get off the train.

Pages 3 - 22

The book opens with a young boy named Eliezer wanting to learn more about God through his studies of a topic called Kabbalah. Eliezer lives in a Jewish town called Sighet. He asks his father to find him an instructor so he can be taught this subject. His father denies him the opportunity, so Eliezer finds a tutor on his own. He comes across a man named Moishe the Beadle, who is a man who tends to keep to himself. Moishe the Beadle helps him understand by way of asking unanswerable questions how this topic of Kabbalah helps understand the nature of God.
Elie Wiesel at age 15 (see above)

Eliezer has a mother, father, and three sisters. His two older sisters are named Hilda (the eldest) and Bea. His younger sister is named Tzipora. The Nazis are in control during this period of Eliezer's life. One day, despite the lack of fear from the Jews, it was decided that their community would be isolated and partially under control of German officials. These officials were quartered in Jewish homes, and , for the most part, polite to the Jews.

After a while, Hungarian police took the Jews from their town and transported them to places where they were, as it was rumored, be forced to work under harsh conditions. The herded up the Jews, took role call several times, and beat many women, children, elders, and cripples. The Jews were then transported from the ghetto that they were currently living in to the other Jewish ghetto nearby. From there they were to be taken to a place unknown by any of the Jews.
Location of Sighet (near boarder of USSR, Hungary, and Rumania.)

Introduction

Hi. Welcome to Joe Fleshman's blog on the book Night by Elie Wiesel.