Night/The Hangman

[Ms. Wilbanks]

Holy Cow!  I hope you loved this poem as much as I do.  It always sends shivers down my spine.  I have a question...why did Ogden write that the Hangman smelled like gold and blood and flame?  Why the gold?  The flame and the blood are obvious...and how do we see that same theme throughout what we've learned about the Holocaust and in Night?  Both through the actions of the Nazis, but also the prisoners themselves? 

[Faven Woldetatyos]

Maybe the Hangman smelling of "gold" represented either the way the Hangman was paid for his work, or what he took from the people he hung. In Night, even though the new concentration camp inmates had almost everything taken away from them (their relatives, clothes, and shoes), the camp administrators demanded another thing from them. The gold in their teeth. Elie states, "I went to the infirmary block. Some twenty prisoners were waiting in line at the entrance. It didn't take long to learn the reason for our summons: our gold teeth were to be extracted."

[Faven Woldetatyos]

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Faven Woldetatyos]

My own question is: does the Hangman represent the SS? Or Hitler himself?

[Olivia]

I believe that the Hangman's smelling of gold because he was a powerful figure. Usually people in power have money, so he smelled like gold because he was wealthy. The theme of the smell of blood relates to the smell of death. The smell of flame relates to the general disposal of the corpses by the Nazi's. IN the way of prisoners, they were in degrading health and people died and were shot around them every day. In a way, fire could apply to the rage felt by many prisoners. 

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Sarah Bates =D]

I agree, because of the way the Hangman chose to kill his "victims" were similar to how Hitler chose his Jews. First the hangman chose foreigners, Like  Hitler choosing Moshe the Beadle and other Jew foreigner in "Night", then the remaining Jews. The hangmans affect of giving fear to the people were also similar to Hitler. The other Jews didn't do anything while they were being taken because of the fear. The people in the town didn't do anything either- "and so we ceased and asked no more,".

[Sarah Bates =D]

My question is what does the hangman mean in his riddle: "He who serves me best,"

[Sydney Comet]

The color gold is usually associated to power. Powerful people are rich, and rich people have gold. With that being said, he gained his power over them through blood and flame. He made them fear him, which gave him power. In the Holocaust and in Night, Hitler and the SS got their power through fear too. They killed innocent people to show that they were powerful.

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Sarah Bates =D]

I also would like to know if this "hangman" relates to the game hangman? Through out the poem, the town was guessing to who the person was, while in the game you are guessing the letters. The gallow hangman and the gallow of the hangman  in the game are the same. 

[Coree Morgan]

After reading Sydney, Faven, and Sarah's posts, I had a thought as to whether the gold could symbolize the hangman as being a person of higher authority or rule over the townspeople like the leaders in Germany during the Holocaust. These parts of Sydney and Faven's posts stood out to me, "The color gold is usually associated to power. Powerful people are rich, and rich people have gold. With that being said, he gained his power over them through blood and flame" and "Maybe the Hangman smelling of "gold" represented either the way the Hangman was paid for his work, or what he took from the people he hung." From both of these posts, the idea of the hangman being superior came to mind because a person with gold is normally associated as wealthy and have a lot of control meaning this person is considered higher in rank, power, or authority. Also, the hangman was taking the lives of the citizens. Whether it was out of the need to show power or just required, I do not know. However, both post also made me remember back to Night by Elie Wiesel and think about the guards of the concentration camps, how they were considered powerful and wealthy because they killed Jews at random just as the hangman. The hangman seems like the German leaders from the Holocaust because both took things away from a group of people,(QUOTE) "

Then through the town the Hangman came /

And called in the empty streets my name. /

And I looked at the gallows soaring tall /

And thought: “There is no left at all /

For hanging, and so he calls to me /

To help him pull down the gallows-tree." Not to mention, both killed people at random, "

He who serves me best,” said he, /

“Shall earn the rope on the gallows-tree.” /

And he stepped down, and laid his hand /

On a man who came from another land." He who serves me best could mean any of the townspeople. In addition, both equipped fear in people, (QUOTE) "

The next day’s sun looked mildly down /

On roof and street in our quiet town /

And, stark and black in the morning air, /

The gallows-tree on the courthouse square. /

And the Hangman stood at his usual stand /

With the yellow hemp in his busy hand; /

With his buckshot eye and his jaw like a pike /

And his air so knowing and businesslike. /

And we cried: “Hangman, have you not done, /

Yesterday, with the alien one?” /

Then we fell silent, and stood amazed: /

“Oh, not for him was the gallows raised…”

/

“…Did you think I’d gone to all this fuss /

He laughed a laugh as he looked at us: /

To hang one man? That’s a thing I do /

To stretch the rope when the rope is new." From my opinion, the hangman seems like e is in position of authority over the people and kills them if he feels the need.

[Coree Morgan]

From my opinion, the hangman could mean that "he who serves him best, meaning the person who does everything he tells them to do then becomes a threat because they are now going to be viewed in higher respect by the townspeople, therefore they must die on the "gallows tree", "Shall earn the rope on the gallows-tree.”

[Coree Morgan]

My Questions:

(1) Why would the Hangman get a twinkle in his eye, get excited when someone asked who?

(2) What is stark and black?

(3)What is the hangman's cloak because everyone keeps referring to it as something to be fearful of?

(4)Metaphorically could this mean that because the hangman chose another person, his scaffold becomes larger to claim more people? (Quote: "

That night we saw with dread surprise /

The Hangman’s scaffold had grown in size. /

Fed by the blood beneath the chute /

The gallows-tree had taken root; /

Now as wide, or a little more, /

Than the steps that led to the courthouse door, /

As tall as the writing, or nearly as tall, /

Halfway up on the courthouse wall.")

[Coree Morgan]

In this part,"

The Hangman smiled: “It’s a clever scheme /

To try the strength of the gallows-beam.” /

The fourth man’s dark, accusing song /

Had scratched out comfort hard and long; /

And “What concern,“ he gave us back, /

“Have you for the doomed – the doomed and / black?”, it seems like the h

angman is questioning why the people still care for the chosen people to die just like the Germans asking Jews why they still have faith.

[Erikka]

To answer Sarah's question of what did the Hangman mean by his riddle "He who serves me best." He means that who ever is the most loyal to him will be the one who gets murdered. Someone asked, "Hangman who is he for whom you raise the gallows-tree?" which was asking who was going to be the victim and thats when he responded with "He who serves me best."

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Erikka]

My question: Why did The Hangman wait to kill the narrator till last?

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Viktor Gemelev]

I was wondering what the growing of the scaffold represented. I had an idea that it was the hangman's killing and earning power over the town and it's people, but I'm not sure. I was also wondering whether this symbolizes the growing power and the growing of people in concentration camps of the Nazis over the Jews.

[Viktor Gemelev]

To answer Erikka's question, I think that the hangman waited to kill the narrator last because he wouldn't be able to kill him earlier when he didn't seem to need help to take down the scaffold as he said the person he is going for is somebody who serves him. Also maybe the hangman wanted to kill the whole town as well as the narrator so he did it in this tricky way. Also maybe the hangman's killing of the narrator last is the final extermination of Jews by Hitler and the Nazis. The killing of all the townspeople could represent the Nazis killing of all the Jews by trickery and using them in an advantage to him because the extermination of the town seemed to entertain the hangman. The hangman also said that the Jews of the town would stick up for the narrator and give him trouble if they were still alive, shown in these quotes: 

“And where are the others that might have stood

Side by your side in the common good?”

“Dead,” I whispered; and amiably

“Murdered,” the Hangman corrected me;

“First the alien, then the Jew…

I did no more than you let me do.”

[Viktor Gemelev]

To answer Ms. Wilbanks, I think the gold smell of the hangman represents the power of the hangman, especially over the town. This maybe tries to show that the hangman is presented as better then the townspeople because he smells of gold. This connects to the Holocaust because the hangman and his smell of gold represents the Nazis who think they are better and they are the ones with the power over the Jews. This may also represent the Nazis taking the Jews' gold possessions or the fact that Nazis think they are cleaner and purer than the Jews as they smell of gold.

[Sarah Bates =D]

To your second question, I would have to say that it may represent death.

To your 3 question, I think it represents just the hangman's presence. 

To your 4 point, I agree with you because people viewed the hangman's gallow larger (scarier) each time someone was killed for what they were, ie colored, Jewish, foreigner. 

[Sarah Bates =D]

I was asking more along the lines of the meaning. How does the person serve him best, the most loyal, because the towns people were just standing and watching the hangman hang his victims.?

[Imane Elouadi]

Answering # 4: (Coree's question)  

The scaffold increasing in size symbolizes Hitler's concentration camps augmenting once the "pure" believed the propaganda he was spreading. However, because, a numerous of Jews were being murdered, plethora of people were frighted or  scared that they would be next. The scaffold in the story is used to murder these "imperfect humans," which is exactly what the concentration camps were used for. In other words, the scaffold did increase because the hangman was murdering others, but it was also symbolizing Hitler's or the in this case, the hangman's power augmenting because of the fear of others, which was caused by bloodshed. 

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 6:25:41 PM UTC-6, Coree Morgan wrote:

[Hanna Piilola]

I think the Hangman smelled of gold because gold often represents or is a symbol of power. He has power because he has everyone scared and controlled by fear that they might be picked next. They didn't know who would be picked next, though no one wanted to do anything about him because they were controlled by their fear. The poem says "so they ceased and asked no more."  The smell of blood and death go hand in hand. Hitler used death and the extermination and seperation of the Nazis and Jews to gain power using fear. The flames and blood relate to the Holocaust because they were killed with violence (blood) and burned (fire). 

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Hanna Piilola]

While reading the poem, I noticed the Hangman was punishing people who were minorities such as what had happened in the Holocaust. First, he hung "one man who came from another land". Then later that same person was referred to as an "alien". Second was the Jew, and third was the narrator. This made eme question who the narrator was or if the narrator was legitamate. The narrator being random came to question because in the first stanza, the Hangman gave a foreshadowing to the town saying, " He who serves me best,..Shall earn the rope on the gallows-tree." 

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

[Hanna Piilola]

I'm not sure what the Hangman's motives for killing the narrator, but he did give a warning. " He who serves me best,..Shall earn the rope on the gallows-tree." The narrator was his "assistant" because when the Hangman called for him, he thought he was being called to untie the rope and "pull down the gallows- tree".

[Hanna Piilola]

I agree with Sarah's question if the game Hangman and the poem are related because in the game, you choose letters at random, and here in the poem, the town was trying to guess on who the person was. It can also relate to the book "Night" and the Holocaust because Jews were selected and taken at random to the camps and were separated and transported from their homes. 

[Hanna Piilola]

I agree with Viktor, that the growing scaffold represented his power. As the Hangman hangs more people, the bi standards and townspeople become more scared of him, therefore giving him more power over them. 

[Faven Woldetatyos]

I agree with both Hanna and Viktor, that the growing scaffold symbolized the power he was getting from the townspeople's fear. But I think it also meant that the more hangings he did, the more people got used to it. Just like how the Nazis got away with their atrocities for years without justice, the Hangman continued to hang people. "

The gallows-tree had taken root; n

ow as wide, or a little more, t

han the steps that led to the courthouse door, a

s tall as the writing, or nearly as tall, h

alfway up on the courthouse wall." I think that symbolized how the Hangman covered up his crimes from justice, just like the Nazis did.

[Reuben E.]

After watching a video on this I now understand the relationship between the book night and the poem The hangman. Throughout the entire story no one spoke up to question why the hangman did what he did. The relationship is the fact that the hangman represented the nazis. For the holocaust for began with the nazis accusing the Jews to be the reason why the economy started to downfall and why Poland went through a great depression. In the hangman it said in the beginning it said that the hangman came smelling of gold, blood, and flame, commonly gold can symbolically resemble gold justice and power as blood can commonly resemble the essence of life and or life force. Finally flame can commonly resemble change and purification. When thought about deeply one should be able to connect the dots. As the hangman came bringing “justice” or smelling of gold he hanged those who were “guilty” As blood resembling life and or life force the hangman took blood or hanged the townsmen. Finally flame resembling change and purification shows that the hangman did indeed bring change just in a negative effect towards the townspeople. This all relates to the nazis due to the fact the first took the Jews one by one and because no one spoke up they ended up tricking millions of Jews by first spreading propaganda then putting on a ruse that they were to be given showers although in the end it led them to their deaths. This in turn would directly relate to the last citizen killed. What do you think?

[Trevor Gregory]

My question is why did it really take the Jews that long to know they were getting murdered?

[Brittany]

In the poem it said,"And we breathed again, for another's grief/ At the Hangman's hand was our relief." What were they being relieved from, the Hangman himself or something else? 

[Lacey Rigali]

I agree with Livi, the Hangman smelled like gold because typically a man in power is a man of wealth.  The hangman smelling like blood and flames relates to Hitler, the  Nazis and prisoners like Livi said was because blood represents death and flames represents the burning of corpses.

[Clinton]

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:41:28 AM UTC-6, Brittany wrote:

In the poem it said,"And we breathed again, for another's grief/ At the Hangman's hand was our relief." What were they being relieved from, the Hangman himself or something else? 

The relief is that they were not being hanged; they were spared and allowed to live another day. 

[Yalitza Topete]

Ogden wrote that the hangman had the smelling of gold because the color of gold represented power and wealth. This makes me think that the hangman gets paid in gold for murdering people since it's his job. We see the theme throughout what we've learned about the Holocaust and in Night is because the people in the concentration camps have leaders that can kill them. The Nazis and Hitler are the people who have power over the other people. This is similar to the poem because the hangman represented Hitler or the Nazis and the people living in the town represent the Jews.

[Trevor Gregory]

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 11:30:17 AM UTC-6, Faven Woldetatyos wrote:

My own question is: does the Hangman represent the SS? Or Hitler himself?
I think it represented Hitler because Hitler was the one that started the hate for Jews in the first place and he brainwashed Germany and convinced them that Jews were a danger to society. The SS are just trained Germans.

[Lacey Rigali]

I have a question/ comment,  do you think that this poem relates to Hitler because in the poem the more people the Hangman hung the more power he gained. I know this because we each day and more people he killed the scaffold and gallows got larger, representing his power over the town. So do you think it relates in that way because the more Jews Hitler killed the more power he gained?

[Markayla Canty]

[Lacey Rigali]

Another question I have is why do you guys think the Hangman went in the order he did of hanging the people? " First the alien, then the Jew...I did no more than you let me do."

[Reuben E.]

I think they were being relieved from being temporary killed so everybody else was thankful to live another day

[Lacey Rigali]

Did the Hangman hang all those people just to see how many he could until someone stood up against what he was doing? Testing the amount of power he had over the town? " And we cried out, is this one he who has served you well and faithfully? The Hangman smiled: it was a clever scheme. To try the strength of the gallows-beam."

[Yalitza Topete]

My question is, what did the poet mean when he said, "the fourths man's dark, accusing song/ Had scratched out our comfort long and hard." What do they mean by the fourth man and what about the fifth and sixth man? 

[Lacey Rigali]

I think that the Hangman was not the SS but Hitler because he was the one controlling everything as Hitler did and the gallows and scaffold were his puppets, as the SS were Hitler's. He controlled it to kill all the towns people and it followed his orders, just as Hitler controlled the SS to kill all the Jews.

[Reuben E.]

I agree with you I believe that the Hangman came to test how much "gold" or power he could collect until someone stood up

[Trevor Gregory]

I think that he smelled of gold because the people didn't necessarily smell of of power I think they just sensed his power and authority over them.

[Lacey Rigali]

To answer Yalitza's question, I think what the poet meant was that the fourth man knew that the Hangman was a murderer and was accusing his actions and the townspeople who let it happen.

[Briana Matarrese]

My question is: What does the line "the gallows tree had taken root" mean? Why?

[Clinton]

The gallows tree represented the growing power of the hangman, and the expansion of the of the concentration camps represents this aswell. 

[Jennifer]

I think the The Hangman represents Hitler more then the SS. The Hangman determined their faith & whether if they lived or not .It was also the person who would kill people,Hitler did the same thing . Hitler had the power over everything,the German soliders,the jJews.The Hangman had control over the Jews,he could decide if he wanted one to die and then just hang them . Hitler decided if he wanted to kill the Jews or not . He took control of all of them and took everything away from them.Such as their humnaity,like The Hangman did .

[Brittany]

I do think it relates in that way. When the Hangman hung more people the gallows got larger. The more people he hung, the people "shrank back in quick alarm" because he gained so much power. When Hitler gained more and more power the Jews "shrank back in quick alarm" because he gained more power with the amount of Jews he killed. 

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:48:12 AM UTC-6, Lacey Rigali wrote:

I have a question/ comment,  do you think that this poem relates to Hitler because in the poem the more people the Hangman hung the more power he gained. I know this because we each day and more people he killed the scaffold and gallows got larger, representing his power over the town. So do you think it relates in that way because the more Jews Hitler killed the more power he gained?,

[Yalitza Topete]

I agree with this statement because in my opinion, the hangman did represent Hitler since he gained more power by murdering the town's people. Hitler murdered the Jews because he wanted to get more power throughout Europe. Just like the Hangman murdering the town's people so he could have power over the town. 

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:48:12 AM UTC-6, Lacey Rigali wrote:

[Diamond]

I believe that the hangman smelled of gold because the hangman was being paid to hang people.The reason why the smell was so strong because he had killed so many peopled and was getting paid for each killing.

[Trevor Gregory]

The growing of the scaffold represented the growing of the threat that Hitler and the SS had over the people's life's 

[Briana Matarrese]

I agree with Yalitza because I think that the Hangman's smelling of gold represents power and wealth as well. And I like her idea that the Hangman was killing people for gold. It makes sense because it goes back to "Night" where the SS is killing Jews for some benefit or something that they think will benefit them. If the Hangman is getting paid that's his benefit for killing people. 

[Briana Matarrese]

I have another question: What do you think is the Hangman's benefit for killing people? What's in it for him?

[Matthew J.]

The people in the village did take long to know they were getting murdered it is because they trusted Hangman and worshiped him like a god.Just like the people in the holocaust, the Germans, they worshiped Hitler and followed every word he said. The fact that everyone took time out of their live's to listen to the words of Hangman means he must be significant to the town.   

[Jennifer]

My question is how did The Hangman trick him ? I tried to annotate the text in that section but I still don't seem to get it . "You tricked me, Hangman."I shouted then . "That your scaffold was built for other men.....And no henchman of yours ,I cried"  I don't understand what it means by that . 

[Matthew J.]

[Yalitza Topete]

To answer Briana's question, the line "the gallows tree had taken root" I think that this line means that the gallow tree is beginning to have effect because according to the text, after the line about the gallow tree taking root, it said, "Now as wide, or a little more/Than the steps that led to the courthouse door/ as tall as the writing, or neatly as tall/ Halfway up the courthouse wall" explains how the gallow tree has taken root.

[Diamond]

I feel like the Hangman represents the SS because Hitler only had a little part in saying who had to die.Hitler ordered the SS to kill all Jews,homosexuals,and people who were handicap.Hitler had no part in killing them besides ordering other people to kill them for him.The SS were the people who got blood on there hands not Hitler.The SS were the ones who decided who were to live and who were to die.Like in the book Night by Elie Wiesel right when he got to Auschwitz the SS decided who were to stay and work and who were to be gassed.   

[Briana Matarrese]

I think the Jews knew that after the first group of people were killed, that it was going to be their fate as well. I just think that they thought that there was no way to change their fate, that there was to much power over them. I think that they accepted their fate and thought that their was no way to change it. 

[Brittany]

In the poem were it said," Did you think I'd gone to all this fuss/ to hang one man?" I related that back to Hitler when he was carrying out the Final Solution. He wasn't going to just kill a couple thousand Jews to fix the depression, he was going to kill all the Jews to fix the depression in Germany. 

[Andrea Gonzalez]

Ogden said that the Hangman smelled of gold because gold usually represents power or wealth  The Hangman smelled of gold because he had the power to choose who he wanted to kill. The blood and flame, of course, represented the death of the people and the pain that they had to go through. Flames relate to fire and fire causes death and pain. The theme is seen in the actions of the Nazis from the Holocaust and in Night because just like the Hangman, they were able to choose who they were going to kill. The theme was seen within the prisoners of the Holocaust and Night because in the Holocaust there were some prisoners who gave up other prisoners in order to let themselves survive, just like the narrator did. The narrator, along with other people, let other people die in order to let themselves survive. The people of the Holocaust also witnessed the death of others and did nothing to stop it because all they wanted was to survive.

[Trevor Gregory]

I agree with Erikka's answer to Sarah's question about what the Hangman mean by his riddle "He who serves me best."

[50026762]

I think that the the smell of gold represents the power because whenever someone has absolute power in which the hangman did, they often have wealth and his smell of blood represents the many people that he has killed and I think that the flames represent the terror that he brings upon people when he comes to their towns.

[Diamond]

The question I had was what did the Hangman gain from killing all those people?

[Matthew J.]

My question was do you think there is any symbolization relating the characters in the story to characters in Night??

[Yalitza Topete]

The hangman tricked him because earlier in the poem he said, "He who serves me best, shall earn the rope of the gallow tree." This means that whoever treats the hangman best will be hung. So then the hangman hanged the alien and the Jew so he could have more power over the town's people.Which worked because the poet was then called to help the hangman to help him pull down the gallows tree, and was then about to get hanged.

[50026762]

I agree with you Reuben.

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:36:48 AM UTC-6, Reuben E. wrote:

After watching a video on this I now understand the relationship between the book night and the poem The hangman. Throughout the entire story no one spoke up to question why the hangman did what he did. The relationship is the fact that the hangman represented the nazis. For the holocaust for began with the nazis accusing the Jews to be the reason why the economy started to downfall and why Poland went through a great depression. In the hangman it said in the beginning it said that the hangman came smelling of gold, blood, and flame, commonly gold can symbolically resemble gold justice and power as blood can commonly resemble the essence of life and or life force. Finally flame can commonly resemble change and purification. When thought about deeply one should be able to connect the dots. As the hangman came bringing “justice” or smelling of gold he hanged those who were “guilty” As blood resembling life and or life force the hangman took blood or hanged the townsmen. Finally flame resembling change and purification shows that the hangman did indeed bring change just in a negative effect towards the townspeople. This all relates to the nazis due to the fact the first took the Jews one by one and because no one spoke up they ended up tricking millions of Jews by first spreading propaganda then putting on a ruse that they were to be given showers although in the end it led them to their deaths. This in turn would directly relate to the last citizen killed. What do you think?

[Andrea Gonzalez]

My question is what did the Hangman mean by the "fourth man's dark accusing song" and when he said "What concern/ Have you for the doomed- the doomed and the black"? What is the black? 

[Travis Simons]

I think that when the poem said 

“What concern,“ he gave us back,

“Have you for the doomed – the doomed and

black?”

I think that the "black" means the dead. I think that when she said the doomed, she meant the people that were going to be hanged.

[Heather S.]

I think that th "hangman" my relate to the game hangman because throughout the poem lots of people were being killed and it is a guess on who is going to be killed, but in the end there is the one guy left. With the one guy left it could represent that he had won the game he had won the game of "hangman" and hangman being the one who hangs the people. 

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 5:19:51 PM UTC-6, Sarah Bates =D wrote:

I also would like to know if this "hangman" relates to the game hangman? Through out the poem, the town was guessing to who the person was, while in the game you are guessing the letters. The gallow hangman and the gallow of the hangman  in the game are the same. 

[Hanna Piilola]

To answer Lacey's question, I am not sure if he went is a specific order for a specific reason, but he was separating minorities. This was exactly like what Hitler did during the Holocaust. He separated Jews and people with disabilities, and anyone who tried to help them from society. 

[Jared Clanton]

I'm not sure but what I think is that the hangman represents the Nazis and the gallows tree represents the devil.  I think this because when ever the hang man kills someone the gallows tree gets bigger and bigger.

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 11:30:17 AM UTC-6, Faven Woldetatyos wrote:

My own question is: does the Hangman represent the SS? Or Hitler himself?

[Travis Simons]

I think that there is supposed to be a connection between Night and The Hangman, but no direct relationship, if that helps. The Hangman was killing the people in the town, just like the Nazis.

[Sydney Comet]

If the Hangman represents Hitler, does that mean the narrator represents the SS? The SS helped and followed Hitler throughout the Holocaust. Although the Narrator didn't follow the Hangman, he did help him. In the poem it states, "'He who serves me best,' said he, 'Shall earn the rope on the gallows tree.... For who has served me more faithfully, Than you with your coward's hope?" And though he may not have done the killing, he didn't speak out for the innocent that were being murdered. "I did no more then you let me do."

[Travis Simons]

My own question is what does the poem mean when it says 

“For who has served me more faithfully

Than you with your coward’s hope?”

Does this mean that the people who think they'll come out alive have coward's hope? That they are serving him for no reason? Do you think they know that?

[Coree Morgan]

In response to Diamond's question, I think the Hangman gained a sense of power and control because he had killed everyone in the town except the last man and leaving him with shame believing the man was the murderer because he was the one who didn't shout out against the death of anyone.

[Jordan Maestas]

Does anyone believe that this poem has anything religious? They began to talk about how the hangman came to kill people unfaithful as here, "He who serves me best shall earn the rope on the gallows-tree.” Possibly the hangman was the devil and the people were getting closer to him instead of god. 

[Viktor Gemelev]

I have an idea about what happened in the end of the poem to answer Yalitza's question. The lines "

Beneath the beam that blocked the sky,

None had stood so alone as I –

And the Hangman strapped me, and no voice

there

Cried “Stay!” for me in the empty square.

Are saying that the hangman strapped the narrator, the last person in the town square, to hang him. The narrator was trying to say that he was strapped up to the scaffold with nobody around to help him because the hangman had exterminated the whole town progressively until he got to his servant; the narrator.

[Brittany Cornett]

The question that intrigues me most is from the poem Hangman; What do colors have to do with the appearance and the actions of the hangman? You would need to read in between the lines to find what the colors are trying to say but, I do not know how a person can smell like a color.

[Travis Simons]

I think that he thought that someone would stop him, or at least try. When he said "I did no more than you let me do..." I think he meant that someone could have stopped him if they tried.

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:49:57 AM UTC-6, Lacey Rigali wrote:

Another question I have is why do you guys think the Hangman went in the order he did of hanging the people? " First the alien, then the Jew...I did no more than you let me do."

[Jenna Larson]

On Wednesday, April 24, 2013 10:46:04 AM UTC-6, Ms. Wilbanks wrote:

Holy Cow!  I hope you loved this poem as much as I do.  It always sends shivers down my spine.  I have a question...why did Ogden write that the Hangman smelled like gold and blood and flame?  Why the gold?  The flame and the blood are obvious...and how do we see that same theme throughout what we've learned about the Holocaust and in Night?  Both through the actions of the Nazis, but also the prisoners themselves? 

The hangman smells like gold because he takes the gold from the cowards that he kills. Those who help him kill are the ones that need to be killed and the hangman gets paid to do such things by taking the gold off of the dead. This relates to the theme of Night because the Nazi's took all of the gold. The prisoners were forced to give up everything they had to the Nazis before going to camp. When possessions are taken from people they lose their pride. The Nazi's get paid by taking everything from the Jews including their pride. 

[Jared Clanton]

I think he smells like gold because people know that he has taken everyone's prized possessions.  He kept the clothes and money from everyone that died.  If the person who des had a gold tooth the hang man would keep it.  

[Hanna Piilola]

To answer Andrea's question about who is the black, when in the poem it says, "What concern/ Have you for the doomed- the doomed and the black". To answer the question, I thought back to the Holocaust to find that the doomed were the Jews because they were being punished and killed and separated from society because the Germans were blaming them for their economy. They wanted someone to blame, so they used the excuse that their religion and their beliefs were bad and unnatural  therefore, making them "black". In the poem, it was the same way. They were being punished and blamed because they were different (the alien & the Jew). 

[Travis Simons]

I think that when the poem said that he smelled like gold and blood and flame, it meant that he was getting paid to kill others. That's maybe why she included blood in that sentence.

[Jordan Maestas]

The smell of gold was provided because that represents all the things that the people owned. The hangman took them for himself so he could make money. This relates to Night because Elie Wiesel had to get his gold crown taken. The things that the people brought also were left behind once they were at the camp. Everyone's stuff was taken by the hangman or Nazis. 

[Erikka]

Going off of what Sydney said, I do not believe the narrator was following The Hangman and I think he didn't stand up for the innocent because he was trying to avoid being a victim. He figured that if he did what he was told by the Hangman then he wouldn't be murdered. I think that was why he did whay he did because he said at then end he was tricked. 

[Heather S.]

I agree with Hanna and Victor, that the growing of the scaffold symbolized the power he was getting from the people. The more people the Hangman would hang the more scared people would become. Therefore the more power he has over the townspeople  with fear the more they will do for them. For example, the amounts of people getting hung got larger and larger. He said, " Did you think I'd gone through all this fuss/ TO hang one man? That's a thing I do/ To stretch the rope when the rope was new." Saying that his purpose wasn't just to kill one man and by him saying that he scared the townspeople even more.

[Selena Gochenour]

So my question is why did it smell like gold and blood and flames all that the same time? Wher there other things going on at the same time? How would they have gotten gold ? 

[Lexi Phillippi]

I feel like the Hangman smelled of gold to show his greed and power. I think the gold symbolizes greed and power because with power comes money, and a lot of the time, greed. Everyone in the town was afraid of him because his method of choosing his victims were like Hitlers way, he picked at random. The Hangman had a lot of power over the town because, in a similar way as Hitler, he used fear to fuel his power. Greed goes along with power because once you have power you want more.  Like the prisoners from the Holocaust, the towns-people coward in front of the Hangman and were to afraid to stand up to him because they were thinking about their own lives being at stake. The towns-people willingly gave up his victims because they were afraid that they would get selected if they didn't.

[Jenna Larson]

One question that I had was why did the narrator help the hangman in the first place? He didn't like the fact that the hangman was killing people at random. The narrator decided to help the hangman even though the hangman gave everyone a warning. "Those who serve me best, shall earn a  rope on the gallows." The hangman said that whoever helps him kill should be killed and the narrator decided to help the hangman. Even if the hangman was going to kill him if he said no, he still could have died with pride. In the end the narrator became a coward. 

[Erikka]

I believe The Hangman smelled like gold because he was powerful and I think he smelled like blood and flame because he killed people.

[Selena Gochenour]

If the people get all their things taken away that the beginning then why would they represent all the things they had as gold? Maybe it represents something completely different. It might represent what they wish they could have because in there they don't have very much stuff and maybe they with they could have everything they DID have back. 

[Sarah Bates =D]

I don't think that he had a purpose for the order. I think it was at random just to scare the towns people, like Hitler did in the Holocaust. If he did it in a certain order, then the townspeople/ Jews wouldn't fear as much and give him as much power over them as possible. For example, in the poem when the hangman chose his victims randomly, they began to silence themselves. If they did know that they were going to be hung in a certain order, they would most likely not obey the Hangman because they know they would die in the end.

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:49:57 AM UTC-6, Lacey Rigali wrote:

Another question I have is why do you guys think the Hangman went in the order he did of hanging the people? " First the alien, then the Jew...I did no more than you let me do."

[Coree Morgan]

Or could the hangman represent not only Hitler but every person who killed the Jews during the Holocaust and the man left standing at the end of the poem was the men who stood and watched the deaths of the Jews? The man left standing could represent the Kapos because they were Jews themselves but were in place of control of the Jewish inmates. The Kapos generally lasted longer than the Jews, in the instance of death, and did not protest against the killing of the Jews just as the last man in the town from The Hangman did not fight or stand up against all of the townspeople being hung.

[Sydney Comet]

I think that the Hangman just continued to hang people, until it was clear who his most faithful follower would be. The one who "serves him best" would be the last person to be hanged because the last person would be the only one who never spoke out against the  Hangman, never showed anything of  seeing how wrong it is or trying to stop it. In the poem it states, "Then one cried 'Murder" and one cried "Shame" And into our midst the Hangman came....And he laid his hand on that one's arm And we shrank back in quick alarm." The hangman was still killing people even after someone stood up against him.

On Thursday, April 25, 2013 8:53:21 AM UTC-6, Lacey Rigali wrote:

Did the Hangman hang all those people just to see how many he could until someone stood up against what he was doing? Testing the amount of power he had over the town? " And we cried out, is this one he who has served you well and faithfully? The Hangman smiled: it was a clever scheme. To try the strength of the gallows-beam."