NIGHT Study Guide

Night by Elie Wiesel- Study Guide

The following questions are meant to help you focus your reading for the upcoming summer reading test. If you can answer the questions after reading each chapter, you will clearly understand the novel and be prepared—perhaps over prepared—for the test on Monday, August 15, 2011.

Chapter 1
1. Who was Moshe the Beadle?
2. What does Elie Wiesel tell the reader of Moshe?
3. How does Wiesel describe himself as a boy of 12?
4. How does Wiesel describe his father?
5. Why did Elie’s father prohibit him from studying the Cabala?
6. How did Wiesel realize his wish to study the Cabala?
7. What happened to Moshe?
8. Several months later, Elie saw Moshe the Beadle again. What story did Moshe tell?
9. How was Moshe able to escape?
10. How had Moshe changed as a result of his experience?
11. How did people in the village react to Moshe’s story? Why do you suppose they reacted this
way?
12. In the Spring of 1944, what political changes occurred in Hungary?
13. What was the attitude of the Jews of Sighet?
14. What literary device does Wiesel employ to emphasize the foolish optimism and denial of
facts of the Jews living in Sighet? How is it used?
15. After the Germans arrived in Sighet, what was the prevailing attitude among the residents?
16. After Passover, Wiesel says, “the curtain rose.” (p. 8) What does this refer to? What
happened?
17. What was bitterly ironic about the comments that Wiesel’s father made regarding the
wearing of the yellow star?
18. What was the Germans’ next step?
19. How did the Jews react to this?
20. The Germans had other plans for the Jews of Sighet, however. What were those plans?
21. The Wiesel family was among the last to leave the large ghetto. Where were they sent?
22. Where did they go?
23. Despite all that happened, even after the Germans entered the capital of the Budapest,
Wiesel tell us that people still remained optimistic about their future. How can you explain
this optimism?
24. In this Chapter Wiesel uses images from nature. How does he use the sun?
25. What does this imagery of night suggest? Explain in detail.
“Night. No one prayed, so that the night would pass quickly. The stars were only sparks of
the fire which devoured us. Should that fire die out one day, there would be nothing left in
the sky but dead stars, dead eyes.” (p.8)
26. Given the fact that the title of this book is Night, what do you suppose a major theme in this
work will be?
27. A memoir is a story of one’s life told by the person similar to an autobiography. Describe
the tone of this memoir, and speculate on why Wiesel chooses to use this tone.
28. Identify each of the steps in the German plan, and point out how the cunning of the
German plan and the people’s human need for optimism in the face of danger led the Jews
of Sighet to the transports to Auschwitz?



Chapter 2
1. After several days of the travel, what did the prisoners finally realize?
2. Wiesel’s description of Madame Schachter, “she looked like a withered tree in a cornfield’s is
an example of what figure of speech?
3. What happened to Madame Schachter, and what did she do?
4. Madame Schachter’s hysterical screaming of “Fire! Fire!” is an example of what literary
device?
5. How did this affect those in the cattle car with her?
6. When prisoners were finally unloaded from the train, where were they? What was significant
about the time?
Chapter 3
1. Immediately after the Jews were unloaded from the train, what do the German officers do?
2. The men were then marched before Dr. Josef Mengele. What did he do? What was his
purpose?
3. What did another prisoner say would happen to Elie’s group?
4. When some of the younger men wanted to rush the guards, even if they died in the effort,
what did the older people counsel?
5. What did Elie witness while he was standing in line? What was his reaction to what he saw?
6. When Elie realized that he and his father may be burned, what plan did he revise?
7. The scene of Wiesel and his father approaching the inferno is particularly vivid. How is such
artistry achieved?
8. What did Elie revolt against?
9. One way an author has to effectively emphasize a point is through selective repetition of a
word phrase. What phrase does Wiesel employ to highlight the horror of his first night in the
concentration camp?
10. List the things that Wiesel says he shall never forget?
11. Another method of emphasis is through the use of imagery. What images are used
frequently throughout?
12. Elie and his father are spared from the flames. What happened to them next in the course
of their processing at Auschwitz?
13. This marked the end of Elie’s first night at Auschwitz. What natural sign marked the
beginning of the next day? What does Elie tell us of the change in himself?
14. Why did Elie berate himself so severely?
15. Where were Elie and his father marched to?
16. What was Elie’s first impression of Auschwitz?
17. What was the unusual about the prisoner in charge of their barracks?
18. The next day, the prisoners underwent a last step in their admission process. What was it?
19. Who did Elie meet after several days at the camp?
20. What did Stein want?
21. How did Elie respond to Stein’s request for information?
22. Since the prisoner in charge of their block was kind, and since there was no work to be
done, Elie and his father tried to avoid being transported anywhere else. How were they able
to avoid being transported?
23. Why was the prisoner in charge of their block replaced? Find the ironic statement on page
41.
24. Stein continued to visit the Wiesels, but suddenly they no longer saw him again. What
happened to Stein?
25. How did some religious Jews see their troubles? How did Elie feel about God?
26. Finally, Elie and his father were moved from their barracks. Where were they taken?
ENGLISH II DeLong
Chapter 4
1. How did the new camp appear to Elie?
2. As part of their medical examinations, prisoners were examined by a dentist. What
was he looking for?
3. After several days, Elie and his father were assigned to a work detail. What were they
to do?
4. What potential problems were there in this job?
5. Why was Elie called to the dentist?
6. How did Elie avoid having his tooth pulled?
7. Why was Elie so pleased about saving his gold crown?
8. What finally happened to the dentist and why?
9. What happened to Elie one day at the factory?
10. Who cleaned the blood from Elie and soothed him with kind German words? What
was unusual about her?
11. Elie tells of meeting this same woman many years later in Paris. What important
question did he ask her, and what was her reply?
12. What else did Idek do to the Wiesels? How did Elie resond?
13. What did Franek, the Polish foreman, want from Elie? What was Elie’s response?
14. How did the foreman get revenge on Elie and his father for refusing to give up the
gold tooth?
15. How did Elie try to stop the beatings? Was he successful?
16. What did Elie finally do? What was the irony in all of this?
17. All of the Kapos were also prisoners, and most were Jewish, are you surprised about
how cruel and greedy they were?
18. Why did Elie’s unit have to go to the warehouse on a Sunday, even though they
were not required to work?
19. How did Idek punish Elie for spying on him?
20. Why was a prisoner shot during an Allied air raid on the prison camp?
21. Why were the prisoners happy about the air raid even though they might have been
killed by the bombs?
22. One day, the prisoners were told that soup would not be distributed until after roll
call. Why was this?
23. What other public execution does Wiesel write about?
24. Why was this execution particularly cruel?
ENGLISH II DeLong
Chapter 5
1. What literary devices does Wiesel use to illustrate his disillusionment with God?
2. Wiesel’s description of himself as “ashes” is an example of which figure of speech?
What does the term suggest?
3. Wiesel’s assertion that man (and thus Wiesel) himself is stronger than God is an
example of what literary device?
4. During Yom Kippur, what did the prisoners debate?
5. What “gift” did the Germans have for the prisoners for the New Year?
6. The head of Elie’s block gave some words of advice to the prisoners to improve
their chances and avoid being selected. What did he say?
7. When Elie’s number was not written down for selection what joke did his friend
make?
8. What did the head of the block tell everyone after the selection process was over?
Why did he say this?
9. Several days later though, some of the prisoners were told that they were not to
report to work but would instead stay in camp. Who were these prisoners?
10. What was to become of these men?
11. What did Elie’s father give to Elie, and what did Elie ironically call it?
12. What happened to Elie’s father?
13. Why was Akiba Drumer chosen for selection according to Elie?
14. What did Akiba Drumer ask of his fellow prisoners?
15. Why do you suppose they never honored the request?
16. When winter came to the camp, what happened to Elie?
17. What was the Doctor’s diagnosis?
18. Was the operation successful?
19. Two days after Elie’s operation, what rumor began circulating around the camp?
20. Why was this good news for the prisoners?
21. The prisoners had heard similar rumors in the past. Why were they particularly
hopeful this time?
22. Why did Elie’s hospital neighbor refuse to be fooled?
23. What bad news did the prisoners receive that day?
24. What choice did Elie and his father have to make that day? What was their decision?
25. What became of those people who stayed behind in the hospital?
ENGLISH II DeLong
Chapter 6
1. As the prisoners ran through the night, what orders were the S.S. guards under?
2. “Death wrapped itself around me…it stuck to me” is an example of what literary
device? (pg.82)
3. Although Elie felt that he could have easily given up and died, why did he run on?
4. Given the situation and their physical condition, what was remarkable about their
night’s journey?
5. Some time later, Elie was awakened by his father. Why would he not let Elie sleep?
6. What agreement did Elie and his father reach?
7. Who was Rabbi Eliahou looking for?
8. Elie told the Rabbi that he had not seen his son, but later remembered that he had
indeed seen the boy. What else did Elie remember about the Rabbi’s son?
9. What did Elie do in response?
10. The second night’s march is different from the first in what ways?
11. When the prisoners finally reached their destination of Gleiwitz, a new danger arose.
What was it?
12. Who was the boy underneath Elie?
13. Some time during the night, what did Elie hear?
14. After three days, what happened?
15. How did some of the prisoners try to distance themselves from the grim reality of
their existence?
16. This chapter is about hardship, perseverance, caring, and not caring. List some
quotes to support this generalization. Make sure to cite them!
Chapter 7
1. After the transport train stopped in the middle of the field, what orders were given?
2. How did the prisoners respond? How did Elie save his father’s life?
3. How long did they travel?
4. At one stop, a workman tossed in a piece of bread. What happened? How can you
account for the prisoner’s actions?
5. What happened next?
6. Why do you suppose Elie then tells the story about the woman throwing coins to the
natives?
7. Throughout this chapter, how does Elie view the average German civilian?
8. What scene did Elie witness? At the end of this scene why do you suppose Elie tells
us that he was fifteen?
9. During the last day of their journey, what happened?
10. Of the 100 men who had gotten on the train with Elie, how many got out? What
does the death of Meir Katz suggest?
11. Where did the remaining prisoners finally arrive?
ENGLISH II DeLong
Chapter 8
1. After they arrived, the prisoners were supposed to shower. What did Elie’s father
want to do?
2. Why did Elie shout at his father?
3. What finally forced them inside?
4. The next day when Elie went in search of his father, what was his fleeting hope?
5. Weakened further by dysentery, the father could not get out of his bunk? What
further injury did some of the inmates do him?
6. What advice did the block leader give Elie?
7. Of the advice, Elie says—“He was right, I thought in the most secret region of my
heart…” In what sense was the block leader right?
8. After lying ill for over a week, what finally happened to Elie’s father?
Chapter 9
1. How long was Elie’s stay at Buchenwald? What were his thoughts during his time?
2. How did the prisoners know that the end of the war was near?
3. What did the prisoners think was going to happen to them?
4. What did the Germans decide to do with the prisoners?
5. Before all the prisoners could be evacuated, though, what happened?
6. Several hours later, what happened?
7. What comments did Wiesel make about the prisoners’ actions after liberation?
8. What happened to Elie after liberation?
9. What does the last line of the book suggest?
10. Why do you suppose that Wiesel always refers to his persecutors Germans or S.S.,
but never as Nazis?