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Moshe the Beadle
Elie is taken under the wing of the pauper Moishe the Beadle as his student against his fathers wishes. With the expulsion of foreign Jews however, Moishe soon leaves. When he returns he tells the camp wild stories of how he was taken in by the German police at the Polish border and later forced to help dig mass graves for his fellow Jews who were slaughtered and thrown in. Moishe is ignored by the optimistic and arrogant people of the town and dismissed as a nonsensical crazy. -
Search and Seizure
Many years later, Germany has occupied Hungary and is moving ever closer to Sighet. Its people, however, refuse to acknowledge thier danger. When the Germans eventually get to Sighet, they are forceed under oppressive decrees (Jewish community leaders are arrested, valuables are taken, and lastly Jewish residents are forced to adorn the yellow stars). In the end, the Jews are forced into ghettos wherre they are to live until their later deportation to Aushwitz, declining an offer of rescue. -
Trains
On the way to Aushwitz in the trains, the capturred Jews are subjected to cattle like conditions. At the first stop, days later, the Jews are ordered to give up any valuables they still have to the Gerrman officer and if any of them try to escape, the whole car will be shot. -
Madame Schachter
A few days into their ride Madame Schachter has a breakdown, claiming to see a flame in the distance and screaming. The first night, she reminds the caaptured Jews that they are unaware of what is to come, but they reassue themselves by just blowing her off as crazy, tying her up. She breaks out of her gags and resumes scrreaming about their oncoming death via furnace, she's beat into silence. She resumes screeaming the next night. -
Birkenau
The Sighet Jews arrive at Aushwitz station. Ignorant of what is to come, they soon acquire information from locals that they are going to be kept together as families and treated well, allowing themselves to relax yet again. Madame Schachter screams again that night, beaten again into silence. When they roll into the camp, which is actually Birkenau, and smell what the eventially find out to be the odor og the buning of flesh. -
Selection
Imediately at Birkenau, a selection takes place to seperate the strong from the weak. In the selection, Elie and his father are forever seperated from his sister and mother. Knowing they will go through another selection to find those to be killed, a veteran informs Elie and his father to lie about their ages (18 and 40 rather than 15 and 50) to save them from what they are told Aaushwitz's purpose is, to be killed. Both are saved, taking the advice given. -
Survial
Elie is delighted to have stayed with his father, as they wzlk away, unknowing of what group they were placed in, they see the burining of dead adults and babies, bringing evveryone to tears. The Kaddish is recited but Elie does not, for he cannot understand what he possesses to thank God for. As they approach the pit, sure that they are to die, they are diverted to the barracks. -
Barrack Placement
Once at the barracks, the Jews are derobed, shaved, clensed with gasoline, and then given prison uniforms. Lectured by a Nazi leader, the Jews are told that the two options they now possess are to either work or die. Elie's father asks for the bathroom and is beaten by his Kapo while Elie watches in disgust at his own failure to defend his father. After the march to Aushwitz, they are tatooed with their numbers and also meet a distant relative. Elie gives him hope by lying about thier mortality. -
Buna
They stay in Aushwitz for 3 weeks. During their stay, prisoners continue to have faith in God even through all that they have endoured. At the end of the 3 weeks, Elie and his father among others take a lenghty walk to Buna, where they stay for most of the memoir. -
Arrival
The new arrivals are immediatly quarentined and inspected (especially for gold crowns). Elie and his father are assigned to work in an assembly line for electrical parts and arre bunked in the musician barracks. There is where they meet many prisoners. Elie is also soon called by the dentist to have his crown removeed, which he escapes by using the excuse of illness. The dentist was later hung for selling stolen teeth. -
French Girl
Idek, the Kapo of the barrack and work force, subjects Elie to a spout of rage that he had nothing to do with. It is the French Girl who shows Elie kindness and exposes herself as a Jew to help him. -
Idek and Father
Idek experiences another bout of rage, this time because of Elie's father's inability to march. As his father is beat, Elie exposes his digression at the expense of the camp. Hhe is no longer conccerned about the well-being of his father, only rage is in his mind. Rage becaause of his fathers stupidity and inability to counter Ideks attacks. -
Beatings
Franek notices Elie's gold tooth. He demands it, Eelie goin on his fathers advicce refuses to give it up. Elie eventually gives it to him after being beaten for it. Beforre his transfer, Idek is caught by Elie having sex with a prisoner. Idek decides to make an example out of him and lashes him in frot of everyone until he passes out. -
Tiny Rebellions and Consequences
Durring the bombing of Buna, the prisoners are immediatly told to take shelter in their barracks. Two pots of soup are left unattended in the middle of the camp. A starving prisoner tries to eat some, only to be gunned down by an SS. Elie has little reeaction to this, saying that the food eaten that night was good. However, when a young boy suspected of being a member of the resistenceis hung, Elie condems God, saying he was hung there with the child. -
Rosh Hannah
During the prayer, Elie finds himself mocking the fact that the Jews still claimed to the God's chosen people. After the service, when he finds his father they silently realixe they shared similar thoughts. -
Yet another selection
Soon after the holidays, another selection is announced. Elie is placed in a more intensive labor unit and to make matters worse, his father was among those selected out during the process. -
The miracle
There was another selection among the already selected out and Elie's father managed to pass. -
The operation
The cold weather made Elie's foot swell and he had to undergo an operation. The Russian army approaches and the camp will be evacuated, They decide to evacuate rather than risk staying behind. -
Endless forced march
Any one who stops is shot. They ran 42 miles. they then reached a village where they found shelter in a shed where the rabi came in asking if anyone had found his son. -
Gleiwitz Concentration Camp
They arrive and cram into the barracks. Juliek is crushed under the people. Elie's father is selected out but in the confusion they both slipped away and boarded another train heading further into Germany. -
The train ride
They are ordered to throw the dead men out of the car. Elie's father is almost mistaked for one. Locals also throw bread into the car to watch the fights. -
A son turns on his father
An old man takes hold of some of the bread, and then his son beats him to death only to then be beat himself. -
The long awaited arrival
Once at the camp, Elie's father seems to have given up. Elie tries to motivate him but leaves at the sound of the air raid horn. The next morning he finds him by chance -
Elie's father dies slowly
He is confined to his bed, and elie thinks about taking his rations to better sustain himself. He has dysentary and howls for water. An SS guard eventually beats him and Elie for being so loud. -
The cematorium
The next morning Elie's father was gone, instead of crying Elie regrettably feels relief. -
The final fight
The americans are approaching so the Nazis decide to liquidate the camp. Before the final killing there is an air raid and soon after the resistance group strikes back and drives them out. Hours later the Americans arrive