Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Chapter 3 (pages 29-46) -- Arrival

Describe the Wiesel family's arrival in Auschwitz-Birkenau. Select one member of the family and write what you think he/she is feeling/thinking.

9 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  2. When Elie's family arrived in Auschwitz the mom and sisters where immediately separated from the dad and Elie. Even though the mom would also be worried about her husband and Elie I think that the dad is the one that is going through the hardest times. One of the reasons I think this is because I think he feels responsible to take care of his only son, Elie. I think Elie's dad does not want to show Elie that he is tired and scared because his son will get scared too. Also, I feel like the dad is always trying to give up what he has for Elie. For example, even though the dad was hungry he gave up his bread so Elie could eat more. I also think the dad is always wondering about how his wife and his daughters are.
    -Eun Biy-

    ReplyDelete
  3. The family arrived in Auschwitz completely unaware of what was going on and what was going to happen to them. Months before they had been living their lives normally, without any worries. I believe Elie especially felt that everything that was happening to them was just unreal. He believes that it is all a dream and that he will wake up and be back at home in Sighet. After awhile he begins to realize that everything that is happening is in fact very real. Elie begins to change the longer he stays in the camp. He becomes used to the way he is treated in the camp. When the guards beat him he "ceased to feel any pain from their blows"(34). Even after seeing his father be hit right before his eyes, he does nothing about it. I believe Elie feels that his life is no longer in his hands, and that there is no one left who can save him. He even begins to question his religious beliefs. Elie's spirit becomes broken as he enters Auschwitz and witnesses how cruel the world can be.

    - Katie :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  5. After a long journey from home we finally arrived in Auschwitz. Immediately you smell the sent of burning flesh and you can see the source of the smell. The first orders that were yelled to us were "Men to the left! Women to the right!" (27). Are family was split my father and I went to the left while my mother and sisters went to the right. I held on to my father in order to not get separated. We were asked our ages upon telling them they were changed, I got 3 years older and my father got 10 years younger. How is that fair? Suddenly this other man came and started to ask us questions about why we came, one man answered him. At the end of the conversation we found out our demise, burning to ash. Wispers of revolt arose among the young men with weapons, but it soon died down at the request of their fathers. We were once again divided; one would go to prison and the other to the crematory. But I felt that as long as my father was with me everything would be fine. I believe this was what Elie was thinking.
    -Nancy Joykutty

    ReplyDelete
  6. The journey to Auschwitz was probably the least insensitive out of all that the Wiesel family had to endure during their new dreadful life. The trip to the camp was just a small taste of the suffering that they were about to undergo. As the train got close to the gates of Birkenau, reception center of Auschwitz the first thing they saw was the blazing flare of the flames that were consuming the bodies of children, mothers, grandparents, the flames that were burning human beings! But the thing that none of them will ever erase from their minds was, “that smell of burning flesh” (Wiesel 26). The horrors that they saw, felt, and endured just on that first day at Auschwitz was enough to scar them for life, and leave them wounded with horrific memories of hatred. Of course the whole family was impacted in horrible ways, but the person that really made me go into deep thought was Tzipora, the baby of the family, the youngest daughter, she was only about 7 or 8 years of age when she had to go through these terrors. Or maybe she didn’t even have to go through much, except for seeing her own death reveal itself right before her eyes.

    I held on close to my mother, her warmth and smell helped me forget of all the bad things that were going on around me; she made me remember of the days when everything was perfect, everything was normal. The SS officers pushed us out of the cattle car with their guns, the shove threw me to the ground and ripped my new red coat that my father had got me for the holidays. I was so scared. I held tighter to the hand of my mother, I didn’t want to lose her. After getting off the car the SS soldiers separated my dad and my brother from us, my heart pounded heavily at the thought of never seeing them again. (I never again saw my father and brother.) We walked away from them, I felt a part of me ripping away and staying behind with them. After leaving them we were taken to a large brick building that had flames bursting out, I wondered with horror what was about to happen to me, my mother, and my sisters. I did not have to wait for long to find the answer. We were being taken to our death. My life had consisted of seven short years, and now my whole existence was being taken away along with the ashes in the sky.
    -Cecilia

    ReplyDelete
  7. At the beginning of the arrival in Auschwitz a SS officers yells out "women to the right and men to the left". Brutally and carelessly the woman, men and children were immediately separated. As soon as the Wiesel family was separated, a veteran prisoner advised both Elie and his father to lie about their age so they could stay together. Close to committing suicide, Elie decides to stay alive and watches as night comes around and that night had he never forgotten.

    ReplyDelete
  8. When the Wiesel family arrived at Auschwitz- Birkenau they were oblivious of what was going on. Right when they had arrived, the Wiesel family had been estranged. Eli was with his father, and his mom and sisters were sent to another place. Eli was very anxious about his separation within his family.
    The one person of the family who I think is going through a lot is Eli’s father. In my point of view, I think its Eli’s father because he is a very clever man who wants his whole family to survive and be together after this horrible mess is over. I think Eli’s fathers’ goal, is to get his son protected until the war is over.

    ReplyDelete
  9. When Elie and his family arrive to the concentration camp Auschwitz the mother and sisters are emediatly seperated from the father and Eli,
    Eli felt very dissapointed of what had happened because felt responsible for his mother and sisters that had been taken away and seperated. I believe the mother and father were the persons that had the most weight on their back of pressure and stress, anxiaty also. it was a very tough seperation for the Weisel family especially not knowing that they wouldn't see eachother again.

    ReplyDelete