Page 80-81
"It wasn't the first time that false prophets announced to us: peace-in-the-world, the-Red-Cross-negotiating-our-liberation, or other fables… And often we would believe them … It was like an injection of morphine." What does the simile above mean?
The simile represents how they used the rumours as a way to get past the hardships of the Holocaust.
"AFTER THE WAR, I learned the fate of those who had remained at the infirmary. They were, quite simply, liberated by the Russians, two days after the evacuation."
What example of figurative language is evident in this quote? Explain.
PATHOS
It causes the reader to feel terrible because Elizer could have escaped, but he didn't know that in the moment.
"' Let them know that here lived men and not pigs".
How is this ironic?
This is ironic because the prisoners were treated like animals rather than people.
"I have more faith in Hitler than in anyone else. He alone has kept his promises, all his promises, to the Jewish people." How does this quote convey the Jewish people's journey with their faith?
"It reminded me of my mother's last recommendations in the ghetto. But I couldn't fall asleep. My foot was on fire."
What figurative language is evident
Metaphor
"AT six O'CLOCK the bell rang. The death knell. The funeral. The procession was beginning its march."
Why is the march compared to a funeral?
The march is compared to a funeral because it is like a funeral procession- slow and agonizing. They knew that many would inevitably die.
"That news made us wonder. Were the SS really going to leave hundreds of prisoners behind in the infirmaries, pending the arrival of their liberators? Were they really going to allow Jews to hear the clock strike twelve? Of course not." How does this show the effects of the Holocaust on those affected?
This shows that the S.S. and camp workers treated the Holocaust prisoners so harshly that they lost faith in life and hope.
"Poor clowns, wider than tall, more dead than alive, poor creatures whose ghostly faces peeked out from layers of prisoners' clothes! Poor clowns!"
How does the word "clowns" characterize the prisoners?
The word clowns shows that the prisoners have had their dignity stripped from them.
"It seemed as though an even darker night was waiting for us on the other side."
What is this sentence trying to get the reader to infer?
The sentence shows that something bad is about to happen. It's also foreshadowing.
"My faceless neighbor spoke up..." This is an example of....
Figurative Langauge
"The last night in Buna. Once more, the last night. The last night at home, the last night in the ghetto, the last night in the cattle car, and, now, the last night in Buna."
Why does the author repeat "the last night"?
The author uses the last night because it shows that each time it is the last night in a place, it only gets worse.
Why is the word "snow" repeated on pages 83 and 84?
The word snow is repeated because it shows that the world was still going on as usual while they were struggling. It also makes the scene feel heavier because it evokes the novel's silence and indifference to death. It is a motif.