Night

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Throughout the narrative, Wiesel grapples with Religion and the Loss of Faith.

• Describe Wiesel’s relationship with religion at the beginning of the memoir. (topic sentence)
• What is the turning point for Wiesel and his relationship to God? Cite specific events from the memoir that lead to this turning point.
• At the end of the memoir, how does Wiesel feel about his religion? Is this different from how he feels about God? If so, why? Summarize these points in your concluding sentences.

2. Wiesel describes in vivid detail the Dehumanization that the Jewish community experienced at the hands of the Nazis.

• Why did the Nazis want to dehumanize Jewish people? How did this dehumanization serve their purposes? (topic sentence)
• Describe three examples of the techniques that the Nazis used to dehumanize the people in concentration camps.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, explain the effect that such dehumanizing policies had on the Jewish community in the memoir.

3. After the early separation from his mother and sister, Wiesel is loyal to his father as they move from camp to camp.

• What kind of relationship do Wiesel and his father have? (topic sentence)
• Provide three examples of how Wiesel is loyal to his father. Does Wiesel’s loyalty to his father change as the story progresses? If so, how?
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, summarize how Wiesel’s relationship with his father relates to the theme of Loyalty and the Father-Son Relationship.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. Wiesel’s memoir includes many scenes or images of haunting pathos and astonishing violence. Some of these vignettes include the hanging of the young boy, Rabbi Eliahou searching for his son, prisoners in the cattle wagons beating each other to death for a morsel of bread, and Juliek’s farewell concert. Why does Wiesel include these particular episodes, and what is their significance to the overall message of the memoir?

2. The final image in the narrative is Wiesel looking at his face in a mirror. Why do you believe he chose this image to end his memoir? How have his experiences with death changed his perspective on life, survival, and liberation?

3. Why is the memoir called Night? Find three references to night throughout the account and discuss the intended effect of each one.