Night

=**Title:**= =//Night//=

=Author:= Elie Wiesel =Nationality/Ethnic Background:= Hungarian/Jewish = = =Genre and Sub-genres:= Autobiography, Memoir = = =Pertinent Biographical Information:= Lived in a small village called Sighet. It was located in the Carpathian Mountains. Town contained up to 20,000 jews. He lived with his very close-nit family of 6. =Literary Historical Period/Movement and Pertinent Background:= During World War II.

=Main Characters, Their Relationships, and Conflicts:= Chlomo, Elie's father, was eventually killed by Dysentery. The mistreatment, malnutrition and overall horrible conditions sped up his death. Elie Wiesel himself was the only other main character. He was rescued when his camp was liberated by American forces. =Brief Plot Summary:= Elie is a young man of 15 years old when he and his family are forced to leave their home with the rest of the Jewish families in the small village of Sighet. He is forced to leave his mother and three sisters. He lives in several different concentration camps with his father throughout the years. When there is word of soldiers coming to free the men in the concentration camp, the prisoners are then forced on the "Death March." Right after, Elie's father dies of dysentery in Buchenwald. The camp where Elie Wiesel was was liberated by American forces.

=Motifs (Recurring Images, Ideas, Figures of Speech, Symbols, Colors) & Their Thematic Significance:= Silence is one of the major motifs within the novel. It is used to present to the reader a disconnectedness to the outside world. Fire is also a very significant motif because through the presence of fire the reader knows something bad is going to come. There is also, obviously, the motif of night which is used to symbolize sadness and darkness throughout the book.

=Other Significant Thematic Elements (Significant Character's Names, Significant Quotations, Significant Actions/Events):= "Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed. Never shall I forget that smoke." Through the quotation above we can see that the event taking place is one of the main stepping stones for, not only, the plot but the development of the main character.

=Major Themes:= Human's inability for humane and conscious behavior needs to change. This is one of the most profound themes in the book along with the fact that faith can and should be held through struggles make this book, essentially, what it is.