Group Reader Response LC #2

1. Dehumanization means: the process of depriving a person or group of positive human qualities.
2. The way that their behavior changes is how they looked at the world around them. Before the officers took them away to the concentration camps, they all were clueless about what was happening. They thought they were just going to get a job, and remained positive with all that’s been happening. They used to pray before they slept, but it changes throughout the story. Throughout the course of adjusting to the new setup, they start to realize that it’s not just a job that they’re applying for. It was now a matter of life and death, and they all started to just stop praying at night, so that the nights could pass by quickly. But along with that, some of them learned to just stay strong, and to keep doing what they’re doing now so nothing bad happens.

Quotes	Commentary
“In front of us flames. In the air that smell of burning flesh.” (page 26)	This quote determines how dehumanization actually took place here. In the book, they were told that they had to be taken away, but they didn’t know why. All they thought was they were gonna get a job. Little did they know their journey was gonna be for life or death.
“No one prayed, so that the night would pass quickly.” (page 18)	Their behavior changed rather quickly, as the book just started off, and you can already see changes in the characters themselves. They started to lose faith in God, including Eliezer, who almost chose death instead of living.
“Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever.” (page 32)	Eliezer had found out the situation, that they were being held captive for their matter of life or death. He then thought about the things he would never forget, hence saying “never shall I forget” many different things.
“I glanced at my father. How he had changed! His eyes had grown dim.” (page 34)	Not only did the people change behaviors, but also changed appearances. They often grew weaker, but managed to fight through it and to keep themselves alive for a little while longer. But it didn’t mean that they didn’t think about choosing death. People started to think that death wasn’t at all a really bad option, because when people are dead, they feel no pain. They actually feel nothing, like they’ve escaped.
“In any case, he couldn’t have written you down, you were running too fast….” (page 68-9)	Although some people have been choosing death, there has been some cases where people really fought to stay alive. They were all tempted, but as much as they wanted to, they also wanted to be able to get up in the morning and just be alive. They may have gone a little “savage” at some point, fighting each other for food, but it was for their chance of survival.