Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Survival in Auschwitz, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Dehumanization and Resistance
Adaptability, Chance, and Survival
Moral Relativity
Racial Hierarchy
Oppression, Power, and Cruelty
Summary
Analysis
Levi becomes bunkmates with Resnyk, a Polish Jewish man who lived in France before he was arrested. Although Resnyk is large and takes up much of the bunk, he is kind and courteous, and Levi appreciates his company when they are assigned to the same Kommando. The Kapo accompanies his Kommando to the worksite, hands them off to a civilian supervisor, and goes to sleep in a toolshed. The Kapo has no need to be cruel since he is not a Jewish Kapo and he has no fear of losing his position. The civilian supervisor sets the prisoners to work unloading iron pipes from a transport, one of which is several tons. Although dangerous, this is a fortunate task, since the prisoners will have proper tools and it is less fatiguing to work with large loads than small ones.
As a prisoner of the camp who suffers like everyone else, Resnyk is uncommonly human and decent, proof that the human goodness can endure even the dehumanization and suffering inflicted by the Nazis. Levi’s brief observation that Jewish Kapos tend towards cruelty so as to protect their own position hints at an idea that will be explored further later in the narrative. In the midst of oppression, those few individuals who gather power for themselves tend to become even more oppressive out of fear of losing their position which has temporarily reduced their own suffering.
Themes
When the men are set to carry 175-pound timbers to build a pathway for the pipes to travel, Levi tries to pair himself with Resnyk since he is large and strong. Resnyk accepts, to Levi’s surprise, and voluntarily carries most of the load without complaint since he knows that Levi is weaker and clumsier. As Levi stands, exhausted, Resnyk gently encourages him, and walks with him as slowly as possible to retrieve their next load. After their second trip, Levi requests to be taken to the latrine, “an oasis of peace,” which offers another respite from work, since their site is on the opposite end of the camp.
Once again, Resnyk demonstrates a kindness and propensity for self-sacrifice rarely seen amongst the prisoners in the camp, proving that such human goodness can still endure in extraordinary individuals. Levi’s description of the latrine as an “oasis of peace” once again seems ironic, indicating the way in which the Lager flips normal life upside-down. Normally, the latrine would be a foul but necessary utility, but in the camp it represents shelter and rest.
Themes
Returning from the latrine, Levi carries two or three more timbers with Resnyk until it is time to receive the lunch ration and feel the bliss of temporarily-sated hunger and a brief respite indoors. As camp custom dictates, each man eats quickly and then falls asleep where they are sitting within a minute. No one speaks so as not to disturb the brief reverie. After the period is up, the Kapo quietly, almost apologetically, tells his men to get back outside and work once more. “Oh if one could only cry!” thinks Levi.
The Kapo’s gentle command suggests that, unlike the German guards, the Kapos—at least the benevolent ones—are not interested in inflicting pointless suffering on the Jewish prisoners. This indicates that the quest to dehumanize the Jews is a uniquely German pursuit that is typically not undertaken by the various other ethnicities at the camp.
Themes
