Darkness in the World
About the author
Elie wiesel was born september 30, 1928 in Transilvania. Born in a strongly religious family, he pursued religious study before the Nazis took them to the camps. His family consisted of his father(Shlomo), mother(sara), and sisters (Hilda, Bea, Tzipora). His family was deported in 1944 to jewish ghettos then to concentration camps. In 1945 his camp was liberated and Eliezer was moved to a French Orphanage. In France, Eliezer studied in sorbonne and later became a journalist for a french newspaper called L'arche. Here he first wrote about his experience in the camps and continued writing. He has published about thirty books and won a nobel peace prize.
Characters
Eliezer Wiesel
Yosi
Idek
Hilda Wiesel (eliezer's sister)
Béa Wiesel (Eliezer's sister)
Tzipora Wiesel (Eliezer's sister)
Tibi
Moshe the Beadle
Josef Mengele
Shlomo Wiesel ( Eliezer's father)
Akiba Drumer
Madame Schächte
Juliek
Franek
Rabbi Eliahou
Zalman
The image above is Eliezer as a child Meir Katz
Stein
(Sara Wiesel) Eliezer mother
Yosi
Idek
Hilda Wiesel (eliezer's sister)
Béa Wiesel (Eliezer's sister)
Tzipora Wiesel (Eliezer's sister)
Tibi
Moshe the Beadle
Josef Mengele
Shlomo Wiesel ( Eliezer's father)
Akiba Drumer
Madame Schächte
Juliek
Franek
Rabbi Eliahou
Zalman
The image above is Eliezer as a child Meir Katz
Stein
(Sara Wiesel) Eliezer mother
Setting
Dates: 1944 - 1945
Places: Transylvania(Jewish Ghettos)
Concentration camp ( Birkenau, Auschwitz, Buna, Buchenwald)
The image above is an example of
a Jewish Ghetto found in Night.
Places: Transylvania(Jewish Ghettos)
Concentration camp ( Birkenau, Auschwitz, Buna, Buchenwald)
The image above is an example of
a Jewish Ghetto found in Night.
One word that sums up the book
The book is unveiling of human nature. We see humans potential and the mind at work in harsh conditions. We see a darker side of humans where cruelty is used to gain something and humans give those people what they want are usually the ones who have something to lose.
Biopoem
Madame Schächter
Scared, crazy, damaged, beaten up
Daughter of pain
Lover of her husband, her children, and her family
Who needs medical care, a therapist, her family back
who gives commotion, worry, anxiety
who fears fire, cruelty, separation from her family
who would like to see her family
Resident of a cattle car
Night
Scared, crazy, damaged, beaten up
Daughter of pain
Lover of her husband, her children, and her family
Who needs medical care, a therapist, her family back
who gives commotion, worry, anxiety
who fears fire, cruelty, separation from her family
who would like to see her family
Resident of a cattle car
Night
Biopoem
Eliezer
Religious, observant, devoted, strong
Son of Sara and Shlomo
Lover of Kabbalah, his father, and religion
Who feels confused, abandoned, and afraid
Who needs to survive, food, and surgery
Who gives care, food, and doubt of god
Who fears losing his religion, death of his father, and his grip on humanity.
Who would like to see freedom
Resident of cruelty
Night
Religious, observant, devoted, strong
Son of Sara and Shlomo
Lover of Kabbalah, his father, and religion
Who feels confused, abandoned, and afraid
Who needs to survive, food, and surgery
Who gives care, food, and doubt of god
Who fears losing his religion, death of his father, and his grip on humanity.
Who would like to see freedom
Resident of cruelty
Night
Biopoem
Juliek
musician, kind, calm, talented
Brother of kindness
Lover of music, food, freedom
who feels oppressed, silenced, calm
who needs food, to play beethoven on his , rest
who gives music, peace of mind, his last respects
who fears losing his violin, death, running out of breath
who would like to see his violin
Resident of Gleiwitz
Night
musician, kind, calm, talented
Brother of kindness
Lover of music, food, freedom
who feels oppressed, silenced, calm
who needs food, to play beethoven on his , rest
who gives music, peace of mind, his last respects
who fears losing his violin, death, running out of breath
who would like to see his violin
Resident of Gleiwitz
Night
Summary
A religious, jewish, teenager is deported to several jewish ghettos and concentration camps during the holocaust. He experiences cruelty and injustice not only by the Nazis but by the prisoners as well. Faith is tested when he fails to see the mercy of god and hope towards freedom. All he has is his father to keep the will strong enough to survive and live on. They wait to be liberated by the russians but most fail to make it till then.
Themes
Questioning of faith: Eliezer and other prisoners start questioning god when it becomes unbearable in the camp. Eliezer loses his grip on his faith when he sees babies being thrown into the fire. He starts asking where is god and where is his mercy.
Cruelty towards other human: Cruelty is seen throughout the camp through the prisoners and guards The prisoners would be hostile to gain something such as food or eliezer's golden tooth. As it said that the calm and witful man turned greedy and cruel to get elizzers golden tooth to use it as bribery. There was also talk about sons abandoning and abusing their father for their own sake and selfishness.
Silence: silence effects eliezer many times in the story when he loses something that he loves the most. THe silence of god and his lake of mercy questions eliezer's faith and others in the camp. The silence of his father causes him to realize that he is dead and his father will not be with him anymore.
Cruelty towards other human: Cruelty is seen throughout the camp through the prisoners and guards The prisoners would be hostile to gain something such as food or eliezer's golden tooth. As it said that the calm and witful man turned greedy and cruel to get elizzers golden tooth to use it as bribery. There was also talk about sons abandoning and abusing their father for their own sake and selfishness.
Silence: silence effects eliezer many times in the story when he loses something that he loves the most. THe silence of god and his lake of mercy questions eliezer's faith and others in the camp. The silence of his father causes him to realize that he is dead and his father will not be with him anymore.
Literary devices
Anaphora
"Never shall I forget those things, even were I condemned to live
as long as God Himself. Never" (32).
Personification
"Around me everything was dancing a dance of death. It made my head reel" (84).
Verbal Irony
" He begged the woman to stop, to which she replied, "Why not, I like to give charity" (95)
Foreshadowing
"Jews, listen to me! I see fire! I see flames, huge flames! ."(53)
Similies
"He looked at us as one would a pack of leprous dogs clinging to life."(68)
"Never shall I forget those things, even were I condemned to live
as long as God Himself. Never" (32).
Personification
"Around me everything was dancing a dance of death. It made my head reel" (84).
Verbal Irony
" He begged the woman to stop, to which she replied, "Why not, I like to give charity" (95)
Foreshadowing
"Jews, listen to me! I see fire! I see flames, huge flames! ."(53)
Similies
"He looked at us as one would a pack of leprous dogs clinging to life."(68)
Famous quote in the book
Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky.
Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever.
Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.
-It gives meaning to the title, we see why he picked it for the book. It explains the darkness he underwent in the camp.
"So much has happened within such a few hours that I had lost all sense of time. When had we left our houses? And the ghetto? And the train? Was it only a week? One night- one single night"
-This quote also gives meaning to the title and why he picked it. His questioning of the pace of night shows that events can happen in a short time(blink of an eye).
"It was like a page from some story book, from some historical novel about the captivity of Babylon or the Spanish Inquisition."
-Eliezer's description of the scene in the street when the Jews of Sighet assemble for deportation. It shows a connection in time and how it is not occurring in his time but also throughout history. Shows how men have been cruel to other men more than once.
. "I've got more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He's the only one who's kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people."
-A Hungarian Jew in the camp hospital tells Eliezer he expects Hitler to annihilate all the Jews before the end of the war. Shows how faith has deteriorated and how religion is tested in harsh conditions. We also see a large doubt in eliezer's mind of gods mercy and what this man said might put some more doubt in him.
"Long live liberty! A curse upon Germany!"
-The words of the man from Warsaw the moment before he is hanged. Shows how the prisoners still have hope in them even though they have been through much.
Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever.
Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me, for all eternity, of the desire to live. Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never.
-It gives meaning to the title, we see why he picked it for the book. It explains the darkness he underwent in the camp.
"So much has happened within such a few hours that I had lost all sense of time. When had we left our houses? And the ghetto? And the train? Was it only a week? One night- one single night"
-This quote also gives meaning to the title and why he picked it. His questioning of the pace of night shows that events can happen in a short time(blink of an eye).
"It was like a page from some story book, from some historical novel about the captivity of Babylon or the Spanish Inquisition."
-Eliezer's description of the scene in the street when the Jews of Sighet assemble for deportation. It shows a connection in time and how it is not occurring in his time but also throughout history. Shows how men have been cruel to other men more than once.
. "I've got more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He's the only one who's kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people."
-A Hungarian Jew in the camp hospital tells Eliezer he expects Hitler to annihilate all the Jews before the end of the war. Shows how faith has deteriorated and how religion is tested in harsh conditions. We also see a large doubt in eliezer's mind of gods mercy and what this man said might put some more doubt in him.
"Long live liberty! A curse upon Germany!"
-The words of the man from Warsaw the moment before he is hanged. Shows how the prisoners still have hope in them even though they have been through much.
Similar Books
If you liked My brothers voice, Anne Frank's Diary, All rivers run to the sea: memoirs, Hiding places, and survival of Auschwitz then you'll love Night.
Related links
If you would like to learn more about the book click here
If you would like to learn more about Jewish Ghettos click here
If you would like to learn about Birkenau click here
If you would like to see interviews with the author click here
If you would like to look at more books by elie wiesel click here
If you would like to learn more about Jewish Ghettos click here
If you would like to learn about Birkenau click here
If you would like to see interviews with the author click here
If you would like to look at more books by elie wiesel click here
Books Citation
APA Citation
Wiesel, E. (1982). Night (excerpt). New York: Caedmon.
Wiesel, E. (1982). Night (excerpt). New York: Caedmon.
