Section 3

At Birkenau, the Jews are seperated by their strength, and the weak ones are killed. Eliezer and his father get separated from Eliezer’s mother and younger sister, and he never sees them again. They meet a prisoner who forces them to lie about their ages. Another prisoner tells them they have been brought to Auschwitz to be killed and burned. Some young Jews begin to consider rebelling, but the older Jews advise them to rely not on rebellion but on faith and they listen. They then see Dr. Mengele determining whether new arrivals are fit to work or whether they are to be killed. Eliezer lies about his age, telling him he is eighteen.

As the prisoners move through Birkenau, they are horrified to see a huge pit where babies are being burned, and another for adults. Eliezer cannot believe his eyes, and it is clear that this is extremely hard for him to see. His father is equally emotional and begins to cry. Everybody in crys, and somebody begins to recite the Jewish prayer for the dead, the Kaddish. In the barracks, the Jews are stripped and shaved, disinfected with gasoline, showered, and put in prison uniforms. They are told by a Nazi officer that they have two options: hard work or the crematorium. Eliezer’s father asks about the bathroom and is beaten by the head prisoner. They move from Birkenau to Auschwitz, where they stay for three weeks. Then they are sent on a four-hour walk from Auschwitz to Buna, the camp in which they will be at for months.

This chapter was a big step for Eliezer. He begins questioning things, especially his faith. He cannot understand why things are happening, and why God would let them happen. He even is skeptical about reciting the death prayer. This is important for him, because it is going to be harder to survive when he knows what is happening to him is so wrong.