Excerpt from Night

Sixth Paragraph

He reached the first cauldron. Hearts raced: he had succeeded. Jealousy consumed us burned us up like straw. We never thought for a moment of admiring him. Poor hero, committing suicide for a ration of soup! In our thoughts we were murdering him.

Wiesel tends to avoid the use of conjunctions between idependent clauses and phrases. Therefore, the prose has a choppy, disjointed quality.

1. Why is this the effect he is trying to create?

2. Join as many of the sentences with conjunctions as you can. What about the rhetorical effect now?

for number 9, I think Wiesel is trying to add drama, trying to convey the scene in the way he writes the sentence.

and for number 10, I think it reads more smoothly now.

Yes, Eli Wiesel was adding drama to his account based on his horrifying experiences.

If you add conjunctions, it reads more smoothly. But does Wiesel want you to read it smoothly? Doesn't he want you to have a taste of the chaos and confusion he experience?

Please let us know what YOU think the answers are (and you might keep in mind that there is probably no ONE right answer!), and someone here will be glad to critique your thinking.

=)

Yes, that's what I needed thank you for you help. It helped me alot!

You're very welcome. :-)

1. The effect that Elie Wiesel is trying to create with the choppy and disjointed prose is to convey the disoriented and fragmented state of mind that the prisoners in the concentration camps experienced. By avoiding the use of conjunctions, Wiesel mimics the chaotic nature of their thoughts and emotions, highlighting the harsh and dehumanizing conditions they endured.

2. By joining as many of the sentences with conjunctions as possible, the rhetorical effect changes. Here is an example of how some of the sentences could be connected:

"He reached the first cauldron, and our hearts raced because he had succeeded, but jealousy consumed us and burned us up like straw, so we never thought for a moment of admiring him, for poor hero was committing suicide for a ration of soup, and in our thoughts, we were murdering him."

When the sentences are joined with conjunctions, the prose becomes more fluid and coherent. It gives a sense of connectedness and a smoother flow to the narrative. However, this also slightly diminishes the original effect of conveying the disjointed and fragmented state of mind.