Elie Wiesel

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Elie Wiesel

Night is Wiesel’s memoir of his experiences under Nazi terror

Night was written as a memorial to his parents and youngest sister

Wiesel was fifteen when he was forced on the railroad car headed for Auschwitz.

Literary Terms

Memoir (p. 913) – a true account of a personal experience

Video

Watch excerpt from Seventh Heaven, second season, disc 3.

As we read from Night, notice how the story told by the woman in the video excerpt correlates with Wiesel’s experiences.

from Night

1. Where is Wiesel when the story opens?2. What advice is Wiesel given before the

process of selection?3. What inheritance does Wiesel’s father give

to Wiesel?4. Why does Wiesel not tell Rabbi Eliahou

about seeing his son?5. What causes the death of Juliek?

Activity

Writing p. 924– Comparing Texts

The following comment was made by a German Lutheran pastor Martin Niemoller, who found the courage to resist the Nazis during World War II. Read Niemoller’s cautionary tale carefully. In a brief paragraph, explain the main point of the tale, and tell how it connects with Wiesel’s experiences. How might the tale also connect with world events today?

P. 923 – 924 Questions 1-11

By Martin Niemoller

In Germany, the Nazis first came for the Communists and I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist. Then they came for the Jews and I did not speak up because I was not a Jew. Then they came for the trade unionists and I didn’t speak up because I was not a trade unionist. Then they came for the Catholics and I was a Protestant so I didn’t speak up. Then they came for me: By that time there was no one left to speak up.