"Never Shall I Forget"

Elie and the others finally arrived at Auschwitz where they met soldiers that would point them into a direction if they were going to be killed or work. They were asked questions that determined whether they would work or die. If the Jew answered the question wrong then he/she would die and if the questions were answered correctly he/she would live. Elie and his father was ordered to go into a barrack. Elie and his father was then taken to get a haircut where all of their hair would be cut and would be used for war. They were then moved to another camp which was way more comfortable than the last one they had been to. The prisoner that was in charge of the barrack was really nice to Ellie and his group. He would warn them and tell them to have a good night. It made Ellie feel like a human again after being dehumanized in the other camp. Ellie and his group also got branded with a number. They had to go get a tattoo that displayed their names as a number usually on the back of their forearm. The prisoner that was in charge of the barrack was replaced with another because the previous one was too nice. There were some people in the barracks that believed God tested them just like in the book of Job. Ellie didn't accept it and only believed that their survival is only on themselves and not from God. Ellie and his father also met a relative named Stein. He was asking them if they had seen his other family members and if they were alive. Ellie said he hasn't seen his family members because it was the only thing keeping Stein alive, his own family. Stein would visit Ellie and his father from time to time but he finally found out the truth and was later killed because he had no reason to live without his family.

I feel bad for Ellie and for the other Jews. In the previous couple of days they were human and civilized until they were taken away and were dehumanized pretty quickly. It was like the Jews were turning into animals because they only cared about themselves rather than anybody else. That was how quickly they were dehumanized, that they would act like animals for their own protection and survival. The Jews were no longer human because they were branded with a number and wouldn't have a human name anymore. They were to be classified as a number. Elie was also describing that he will never forget everything he had experienced. He says today that he didn't deserve to be alive because God couldn't just pick who died and who lived. He believes that it was a miracle that he survived. In my opinion if I were in Ellies position I don't know if I could even get through all that he has experienced. I would of thought of ending my life then go through so much pain. It was very difficult for the Jews to be branded something that they are not. To this day Ellie still suffers from the pain of everything and still hasn't fully recovered. He may be alive physically but is very damaged mentally.