What does the quote from the book "Night" by Elie Wiesel mean?

HELP! The book Night by Elie Wiesel?

• 1. Describe the conditions first at the Bikenau reception center, then at Auschwitz, and later at Buna. How does Wiesel's relationship with his father change during this time? 2. What events lead to the two hangings Wiesel describes? How does Wiesel feel about his evening meal after each hanging? What do his reactions suggest about how he is changing? 3.What are some ways that Wiesel and the other Jews at the camps try to observe their religion? How have Wiesel's feelings about God changes since his captivity began? 4. In the camps, Wiesel must struggle to stay alive and to remain human. in your opinion, how well does he succeed with his struggles?

• Answer:

  Sometimes in literature coursework, you have to read not only the book assigned but other books and articles that provide literary criticism and overviews of the work itself. Your library (college or public) most likely subscribes to databases such as the Literature Resource Center and Gale Literary Databases and makes these available through the library Web site. Here are a couple of excerpts from sources found in Literature Resource Center: The most important relationship in Night, and one which illustrates the power of faith and of disbelief, is Eliezer's relationship with his father. After the two are separated from the rest of their family, Eliezer's only thought is not to lose his father. Several times in the story, Eliezer saves his father's life, sometimes risking his own, as he does when he rescues his father from the line of men who have been condemned. As Ted Estess writes, "Eliezer makes only one thing necessary to him: absolute fidelity to his father. God has broken His covenant, His promises to His people; Eliezer, in contrast, determines...not to violate his covenant with his father. Source: Dougherty, Jane Elizabeth. "Overview of Night." Novels for Students. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Resource Center. Web. 16 May 2012. (Note: Novels for Students is a set of books often found in the reference collection of your library). Night is full of scriptural allusions, or hints of reference to biblical passages. In fact, the very timelessness of the constant night is reminiscent of supernatural tales. Hasidic tales especially do not follow Occidental notions but develop their own time according to the message of the story. "Time," says Sibelman, "is represented as a creative force, a bridge sinking man to eternity." Within the story time are more direct allusions to particular stories. Two of the most memorable examples will suffice to demonstrate. Immediately after realizing that the group is not marching into the death pit, there is the incantation, "Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp..."etc. This passage is a pastiche of Psalm 150. In French (and Wiesel writes in French or Yiddish), the start of each line begins with Jamais (meaning never). Psalm 150 praises God for his works and deeds while the "Never" passage commits just the opposite reality to memory. Another example of allusion is the execution of the three prisoners. One of these doomed prisoners is an innocent child, a pipel. This scene recalls the moment in the Christian Gospel when Christ is crucified. In the Gospel according to Matthew, he is accompanied by two thieves. At the point of expiration, Christ asks God why he has been forsaken. At death, the sky darkens and the onlookers murmur that this was definitely the Son of God. In contradistinction, the death of the pipel bothers the onlookers in the opposite way. There is still a look for God but this time, "[w]here is he? Here He is-He is hanging here on the gallows..." Source: "Themes and Construction: Night." Novels for Students. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Resource Center. Web. A source from the Open Web: Sparknotes http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/night/ Open a chat with a librarian near you for further assistance. EXamples of chat services: http://ask.highlands.edu/ http://library.csun.edu/ResearchAssistance/AskUs http://ncknows.org/