1. The Cambodian Genocide and Night: Comparison of Imagery and Motif
Justin Mecca
Genocide Presentation
English 9-1

2. What is it? Began in 1975 and lasted for 4 years.
Started when the Khmer Rouge took over the Cambodian government.
Khmer Rouge began a “new age” dedicated to a peasant oriented society.
Outlawed education, religion, health care, and technology
Evacuated all Cambodian cities and forced the people to do labor without much food and rest
They targeted political figures, doctors, teachers, and those who were educated and when found, were subjected to torture
Estimated 1.7 million to 2 million people were killed

3. Art of the Cambodian Genocide
Artist: Vahn Nath: A survivor of the genocide
Title: Classroom Turned Prison
Made in 1980, after the genocide was over
Vahn is one of the only 7 survivors of a secret prison called S-21

4. Visual Imagery in “Classroom Turned Prison
The visual imagery in this painting of all the dead bodies laying on the floor of the classroom.
All the bodies being in a row shows the organized killing of all the people

5. Visual Imagery in Night
“The dead remained in the yard, under the snow without even a marker, like fallen guards.” (Wiesel 92).
All the people who have died on this march are left there in the snow.
They are left behind without any recognition, like most people who die in these genocides.

6. Comparing and Contrasting of the Two Images
Both are the showing of the dead bodies of people from the two genocides
The art shows the organized killing of people because they are all in rows and orderly
The imagery in Night shows that the SS had no care for the people that they were killing

7. Motif in Classroom turned Prison
The motif is the fact that the bodies are all in a classroom
By putting the bodies here, it shows that even a safe haven like a school is to children cannot be safe from the horrors of a genocide.

8. Motif in Night
A motif in Night is watching the people close to you die.
“When I awoke at daybreak, I saw Juliek facing me, hunched over, dead.” (Wiesel 95).
“I woke up at dawn on January 29… Perhaps he was still breathing.” (Wiesel 112).

9. Comparing and Contrasting the Motifs
Both motifs are used to portray that no one and nowhere can be safe from the pain of a genocide
The school one shows that even a safe place will be violated and turned evil
In Night, because Elie’s father and neighbor have died, it shows that no matter how hard people would try, they can’t save the people they care about the most

10. Works Cited Nath, Vahn. Classroom Turned Prison. 1980. Illustration.
"Past Genocides and Mass Atrocities." United to End Genocide. N.p., n.d. Web. 25
Feb <
Wiesel, Eliezer. Night. Translation ed. N.p.: Marion Wiesel, Print.