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Survival: A Matter of Life and Death Socratic Seminar Questions

We will be using the following questions in our Socratic Seminar. The Socratic Seminar is one of your
summative assignments for this reading unit. Come up with assertions (verbal topic sentences/claims)
that directly answer the question. Write notes with evidence to support your claim. The evidence is
REQUIRED because it will help back up your assertion and it will help keep the conversation centered
around the novel. The talking points are equally important. They allow you to elaborate on the so what
of your assertion and evidence. Without this verbal matters, your conversations will seem flat and
boring. Not all of the questions will be used but you need assertions, evidence, and talking points for
each one.

1. Make a clear, logical generalization about the way(s) people adapt for survival.

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

Humans change their
outlook on life and their
mentality to continue
moving forward.
The introduction on the
Radiolab video on Julie
Moss states, Her
finish, as she describes
in our Limits episode,
was a heroic and heart-
wrenching display of
one woman pushing her
body to the brink. After
a 2.4-mile swim and a
112-mile bike ride, Julie
struggled to complete
the last leg of the
triathlon.
Julie Moss, the triathlon athlete,
continued pushing herself forward
and fought against her own body
when it began shutting down. She
found determination and will within
her to pursue her goal of finishing the
race.
Humans have a fight or flight impulse
(they either run from their obstacles,
or face it head on.) But those that
fight, like Julie Moss, are able to
survive whatever obstacle is thrown
in their path.

2. Make a clear, logical generalization about the way(s) people adapt for survival.

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

In some cases people look
to family or friends for
guidance in their time of
fear or struggling.
But you must try to
increase your chances.
Before you go into the
next room, try to move
your limbs, give
yourself some color.
(on page 71, Wiesel)
(Explanation on the quote:) Elie uses
the Blockltestes advice to run as
fast as he can during selection in
order to pass the test and live.
Storage, or familial love gave Elie
Wiesel the fuel to survive during the
holocaust. When he was on the verge
of dying at selection, he remembered
that he had his father to reunite with.
That give him a reason to live and
influenced him to adapt for survival.

3. Make a clear, logical generalization about the ways) people adapt for survival.

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

 In order to survive,
people make connections
and form alliances with
those who can help them
achieve life.
I survived only after
a desperate half hour
during which I called
in even more favors.
(8-9 Rusesabagina)
Paul establishes alliances with
soldiers and generals. He does
everything in his power and uses
all the available resources in order
to protect the civilians in his hotel.
Not only does he provide the
guests (soldiers) with drinks and
favors, but he uses the popularity
and status of his hotel to achieve a
wall of UN soldiers.
This provides protection and
stability from the never-ending
genocide outside the doors of the
hotel.

Write your own open ended question for Socratic Seminar. This should not be something everyone
will agree on and should be connected to the play or the themes/ideas the play brings up. It should
not be the same as your peers, so think of this on your OWN.

Original Question:
When facing life and death does it make us selfish to choose to save our life rather than someone elses?

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

Society frowns on those But we still On an airplane they tell us to take

who choose to help
themselves rather than
others.
tend to laud those care of ourselves first and others
who risk or sacrifice Sometimes we cant help those
themselves to save around us
others Saving ourselves first could be the
in moments of danger logical response to the situation
or crisis and look less
kindly on those who
focus on saving
themselves, instead.
(14-17 Wallace )

Write your own open ended question for Socratic Seminar. This should not be something everyone
will agree on and should be connected to the play or the themes/ideas the play brings up. It should
not be the same as your peers, so think of this on your OWN.

Original Question: Does survival mean that a person has to go through pain?

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

 The sole purpose of
surviving something is to
overcome pain, whether it
be physical, mental, or
emotional.
This must be how This shows that when Elie faces
one stands for the selection, he is essentially facing a
Last Judgment. (pg matter of life and death. This can
71,Wiesel) night obviously take a heavy emotional
toll on a person and it can over
Choosing a path
time become too much to handle.
The holocaust was especially
emotional because there was no
way of predicting whether or not a
person would be able to survive.

Write your own open ended question for Socratic Seminar. This should not be something everyone
will agree on and should be connected to the play or the themes/ideas the play brings up. It should
not be the same as your peers, so think of this on your OWN.

Original Question: What if the death of one person meant the death of multiple?

Assertion Evidence Talking Points/Matters

In many cases most
people could not survive
without their family or
really close friends.
"Don't talk like that,
Father." I was on the
verge of breaking
into sobs. "I don't
want you to say such
things. Keep the
spoon and knife. You
will need them as
much as I. We'll see
each other
tonight, after work."
(pg. 75, Wiesel)
When familys all you have and
theyre gone it can be hard to
move on with life.
Your family would usually be the
one to help you through the grief
and move on unharmed, but if
theyre gone how are the people
grieving ever supposed to continue
with life?

Write your own open ended question for Socratic Seminar. This should not be something everyone
will agree on and should be connected to the play or the themes/ideas the play brings up. It should
not be the same as your peers, so think of this on your OWN.

Original Question: Does a matter of life and death affect our emotions?
Assertion
Over time, the thought of
having to go through such
extremes to survive may
crush the beliefs and souls
of many humans.
Evidence
I no longer accepted
God's silence. As I
swallowed my ra-
tion of soup, I turned that
act into a symbol of
rebellion, of protest
against Him. (pg. 69,
Wiesel)
Talking Points/Matters
Eli Wiesel did not spiritually
survive. In the beginning of the
excerpt he dismisses the idea of
God because he blames Him for
the situation he has been forced
upon.
He doesnt understand why God
would let his followers die so
hopelessly without a purpose, so
he lets go of his faith.