I Have Lived a Thousand Years

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the bulleted outlines below. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. The Nazi Aryan ideal was blond hair and blue eyes, taken to be signs of the “superior” race.

• When and how do Bitton-Jackson’s blond hair and blue eyes impact her experience during the Holocaust? (topic sentence)
• How does this special treatment affect her relationship with other Jewish people in the camps?
• In your conclusion, describe how Bitton-Jackson’s being singled out for her appearance helped heighten the Survivor’s Responsibility within her.

2. The night before Markus leaves for a labor camp, he studies the Talmud with Bubi and tells him, “Remember this passage when you remember me” (50).

• Why does Markus want Bubi to remember him this way? (topic sentence)
• What does this statement say about the importance that Markus places in his faith?
• In your conclusion, reflect on how Jewish Identity is a source of strength for Markus, and how he encourages Bubi to adopt this attitude as well.

3. Bitton-Jackson’s relationship to her own Jewishness evolves throughout I Have Lived a Thousand Years.

• How does Bitton-Jackson’s relationship to her Jewish identity change from the beginning to the end of the book? (topic sentence)
• What are the key moments in the book that serve to strengthen her Jewish identity?
• In your conclusion, explore how Bitton-Jackson’s Jewish Identity and her Survivor’s Responsibility now go hand-in-hand, as she seeks to preserve the memory of the Holocaust with this memoir.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by textual details, and a conclusion.

1. When Bitton-Jackson refuses to leave her house wearing the yellow star, Laura tells her, “What’s a yellow star on a jacket? It does not kill or condemn. It does not harm. It only says you’re a Jew. That’s nothing to be ashamed of. We’re not marked for being criminals. Only for being Jews” (31). Why does Bitton-Jackson disagree with her mother about the impact of the star? What does her reaction say about Bitton-Jackson’s sense of Jewish Identity? How does her sense of Jewish identity evolve from this moment over the course of the book?

2. What does Bitton-Jackson mean when she says, “Leah Kohn’s coat is no longer a source of delight for me. It has become an agonizing burden. And so has the pretty pink dress of a nameless owner”? (143) In what ways does the revelation that the coat and dress had an owner before Bitton-Jackson affect her? Describe how Bitton-Jackson’s response to the coat and dress contribute to the book’s themes around The Loss of Innocence and The Survivor’s Responsibility.

3. Bitton-Jackson often uses German words without directly translating them. At what points in her story does she do this, and what is the effect? How does language either bestow or erase identity? How does it connect or divide people? In your answer, reflect on how Bitton-Jackson asserts her own Jewish Identity through specialized language and terms throughout the book, and why it is important.