The Tattooist of Auschwitz

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

1. In the words of the Jewish Virtual Library, tattoos of Holocaust survivors have come to symbolize “the utter brutality of the concentration camps and the attempt of the Nazis to dehumanize their victims.” What do you know about how the Nazis utilized tattooing in the Holocaust?

Teaching Suggestion: Central to the plot in The Tattooist of Auschwitz is the fact that protagonist Lale Sokolov is a tattooist at the Auschwitz concentration camp. This prompt will help students better understand the unique form of Trauma that Jewish people imprisoned at Auschwitz experienced there and allow them to grapple with the uniquely degrading experience of being branded by their oppressors.

• The Jewish Virtual Library’s “Auschwitz-Birkenau: The Evolution of Tattooing in the Auschwitz Concentration Camp Complex” describes the tattooing process specific to Auschwitz.
• “Proudly Bearing Elders’ Scars, Their Skin Says ‘Never Forget’” from the New York Times describes how Jewish young adults are getting their grandparents’ Holocaust tattoos on their own bodies as a tribute and a way of memorializing the Holocaust.