Survival in Auschwitz
1. The physical space of Auschwitz seems to be very, very small with just enough
room for everyone to live. There are numerous times throughout the book where
Levi describes how miserable and uncomfortable the sleeping and living
arrangements are. When describing the topography of his Lager, he says, “The
corridors are so narrow that two people can barely pass together; the total area of
the floor is so small that the inhabitants of the same block cannot all stay there at
the same time” (Levi: 19). All of these terrible conditions are on top of the
dehumanization process that the prisoners dealt with upon their arrival. They were
all striped of their clothes and shaven bald so that everyone was essentially the
same person. The Germans took away all of their rights and privileges right then
and there. Levi describes this feeling as, “…now it is all over and we feel outside
this world and the only thing is to obey” (Levi: 13). I think this quote describes
perfectly the purpose these things serve in the camp. The Germans are trying to kill
the prisoners’ souls and make them forget who they were and what the world was
like before the Germans came to ultimate power.
2. I completely agree with Levi as he described this situation as a gigantic biological
and social experiment. This whole situation was happening in Hitler’s peak of
power and he was a very smart man. Had he stayed alive and in power, there is no
