COMPARE ACCOUNTS

EXCERPTS FROM NIGHT & MAUS

Elie Wiesel's Night and Art Spiegelman's Maus are both memoirs that focus on the experiences of European Jews during the Holocaust. Each person who witnesses or participates in any event will remember it slightly differently. Factors that may influence a person's experience include his or her age, values, beliefs, and background. Comparing these two memoirs about the Holocaust can reveal the different ways people experience the same devastating events.

Answer the questions in the chart for the excerpts from Night and Maus. Be sure to support your ideas with text

Night + Maus

What specific events from
the Holocaust are described? (Write for both Night and Maus)

What genre (type of literature) features does the author use to share facts about the historical period? (Write for both)

What details about the Holocaust experience does the author emphasize? (Write for both)

What is the tone of each passage? What evidence do you have of the author conveying his attitude or tone about the events described? (Write for both)

Make it seem like a 9th grader wrote it!!)

3 answers

Compare Accounts: Excerpts from Night & Maus

| Question | Night | Maus | |------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | What specific events from the Holocaust are described? | In Night, Elie Wiesel describes his experience in the concentration camps, including the transport of Jews in cattle cars and the horrors of his time at Auschwitz. He also shares the loss of his father while they were at Buchenwald. | In Maus, Art Spiegelman depicts the life of his father, Vladek, as he navigates the harsh realities of life in Poland before and during the Holocaust, including the constant threat of being caught by Nazis and the struggles of survival. | | What genre (type of literature) features does the author use to share facts about the historical period? | Night is a memoir that uses a first-person narrative to convey personal experiences and reflections. Wiesel’s writing is deeply emotional and personal. | Maus is a graphic novel that combines visual art with storytelling. The use of anthropomorphic animals represents different nationalities and groups, which offers a unique perspective on the events of the Holocaust. | | What details about the Holocaust experience does the author emphasize? | Wiesel emphasizes the loss of faith, the brutality of the camps, and the struggle to maintain humanity in inhumane conditions. He often reflects on the dehumanization experienced by the Jews. | Spiegelman emphasizes the resilience of the human spirit despite extreme adversity, focusing on survival, memory, and the impact of trauma on subsequent generations. He also portrays the complexity of relationships under strain from the Holocaust. | | What is the tone of each passage? What evidence do you have of the author conveying his attitude or tone about the events described? | The tone in Night is haunting and sorrowful. Wiesel’s use of vivid, distressing imagery, such as describing the “night” that took away his humanity, conveys deep despair and loss. For example, he writes about “never again” seeing children play, emphasizing the tragedy of stolen innocence. | The tone in Maus is both serious and sometimes darkly humorous. Spiegelman includes moments of levity in the face of tragedy, which can be seen when Vladek’s character displays resourcefulness despite the dire situations, such as when he cleverly barters for food. |

Overall, both Night and Maus provide powerful insights into the Holocaust, but they do so through different lenses. Wiesel's firsthand account is filled with emotional pain while Spiegelman's graphic novel uses a blend of art and narrative to portray the complexities of historical memory and its impact on future generations.

Can u make it seem like a 9th grader wrote it?

Compare Accounts: Excerpts from Night & Maus

| Question | Night | Maus | |------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | What specific events from the Holocaust are described? | In Night, Elie Wiesel talks about his awful experiences in concentration camps. He describes being transported in cattle cars and the terrible things he faced at places like Auschwitz. He also shares how he lost his father at Buchenwald, which was heartbreaking. | In Maus, Art Spiegelman tells the story of his dad, Vladek, and what he went through in Poland during the Holocaust. It includes how he and other Jews were always afraid of being caught by the Nazis and the daily struggles to survive. | | What genre (type of literature) features does the author use to share facts about the historical period? | Night is a memoir, which means it's Wiesel’s personal story and his memories. He writes with a lot of emotion, and you can really feel what he went through. | Maus is a graphic novel, which is pretty cool because it combines drawings with the story. The author uses animals to represent different people (like Jews as mice and Germans as cats), which makes it easier to understand a complicated history. | | What details about the Holocaust experience does the author emphasize? | Wiesel focuses on the loss of faith, how brutal the camps are, and how hard it was to keep some sense of humanity in such terrible conditions. He talks about how the Jews were treated like they didn’t matter at all. | Spiegelman highlights how tough it was to survive and how trauma affects people even later in life. He shows how difficult it was for families to stick together or get along, especially when they faced so much fear and loss. | | What is the tone of each passage? What evidence do you have of the author conveying his attitude or tone about the events described? | The tone in Night is really sad and haunting. Wiesel uses really intense descriptions, like when he talks about the “night” that took away his faith and his innocence. This makes you feel how tragic and dark everything was. | The tone in Maus can be serious, but it also has some dark humor. This is shown when Vladek uses clever tricks to find food even in tough situations. It’s interesting because it mixes terrible experiences with moments that show how people can still laugh or be smart when everything around them is falling apart. |

In summary, both Night and Maus give us important perspectives on the Holocaust. Wiesel shares his painful personal memories, while Spiegelman uses a creative graphic novel format, showing how past trauma can affect families for years. They each have unique ways of telling their stories, making the experiences feel real and impactful.