______ Furnaces Where Bodies of Prisoners Were Burned

The Devil's ArithmeticStudy Guide Chapters 16-20Name: ______

Date: ______

Vocabulary Matching

______–furnaces where bodies of prisoners were burned

______– (Yiddish) angel of death

______–someone who doesn't care about surviving; like a mummy

______– a special commander in charge of the SS units which carried out exterminations, disposed of dead bodies, and erased traces of mass murder.

Comprehension Questions

1. Explain Rivka's definition of The Devil's Arithmetic.

2. Why does Hannah think that Reuven's choosing was her fault?

3. How does Rivka respond when Hannah suggests that they should at least go down fighting?

4. The night she finds out her father has been chosen, Fayge finally speaks to the girls. What is her story about?

5. How does Hannah come to expect that something out of the ordinary will soon happen?

6. What was the plan?

7. Was it successful? Explain.

8. How did Fayge react to Shmuel's impending punishment?

Interpreting Chapter 18

“Silence!” Breuer said, his voice hardly raised at all. “If you are silent, I will let you watch.” They were all silent. Not, Hannah thought, because they wanted to watch, but because they wanted to be witnesses. And because they had no other choice.

9. What is the difference in watching and witnessing in this passage?

10. Why would it be important to witness what happened to Shmuel and the other five men?

The guards dragged the men to a solid wall that stood next to the gate. The wall was pocked with holes and dark stains. To the right and above, the sign ARBEIT MACHT FREI swung creakingly in the wind. Birds cried out merrily from the woods and the tops of the trees danced to rhythms all their own.

11. Why do you think the author chose to include the underlined part of this passage?

12. What happens at the end of chapter 18 to Hannah (Chaya)? How is she changing?

13. What did Hannah notice about the Kommando that carried Fayge's body to Lilith's Cave?

14. In what way did Hannah find irony in the everyday events of nature surrounding the camp?

15. What was Hannah trying to tell the girls when the new guard confronted them?

16. What does the new guard tell them?

17. How does Hannah change the course of events?

18. Explain what happens after Hannah takes Rivka's place with the other girls.

19. Where does Hannah find herself after the dark resolves itself?

20. After she sits down at the laden table with her family, at what does Hannah stare?

21. When Aunt Eva wants to explain it's meaning, how does Hannah surprise her?

22. What does Aunt Eva share with Hannah about her past when they were alone?

23. Who is Rivka?

24. What happened to Yitzchak?

25. What happened to Gitl?

26. Do you think Aunt Eva understands what happened to Hannah? Why or why not?

27. How do Aunt Eva and Grandpa Will interact with Hannah after herreturn compared to before she went back in time?