5612ft+Whole+by+Whole+Essay

Rules: Rivka vs. Camp

The rules we see all around us serve a purpose. Rules such as no running by a pool, no diving in the shallow end of the pool, and no running in the hallways were made for your safety. In the book //The Devil's Arithmetic//, the concentration camp the Jews were moved to has made many rules for the prisoners, but Rivka, another prisoner, has made her own. The concentration camp and Rivka both want the prisoners to stay alive, but for different reasons. Rivka and the concentration camp want to maintain order throughout the camp. Both Rivka and the concentration camp want the prisoners to learn the number written on their arm. Each set of rules have purposes, and they are helpful in many ways to the prisoners' survival..

The official set of camp rules were given by people such as the three-fingered woman, the tattooist, Rivka, and the commandant. The three-fingered woman told the prisoners to remember their number so they wouldn't get into trouble. The general told the //zugangi// not say no or answer back, because if they will, they will be chosen. Rivka told the prisoners to memorize their bowl's shape, dents, and to always know where you put it so they will have somewhere to eat their little bit of food they're given. Some other rules were to not complain or question the Germans unless they want to be chosen. The intent, or purpose of some of these rules was to make the Jews do work and deprive them of freedom. The Germans probably also wanted to make the rules hard to follow so they would have a reason to discipline the Jews.

Rivka's rules were more useful to the prisoners. She said to make your number a part of you by making each digit mean something to you, like 2 for Rivka meant that there was only 2 people remaining from her family. Another rule Rivka mentioned was the need to organize; for example, Rivka organized shoes for Hannah, which means she was able to sneak them away from where they should be. A very important rule Rivka mentioned was to never go near the black door to Lilith's Cave, because if you do, you will be killed. Rivka made these rules not only to survive, but to keep hope and stay safe from the Germans.

Rules surround us in our everyday lives. They help keep us and others around us safe. In //The Devil's Arithmetic//, the prisoners at the concentration camp were told many rules. Rivka's rules were more useful to the prisoners because they were made to help keep hope, stay safe, and most importantly, survive. All rules that were made were somehow useful to the prisoners, even the camp's rules.