How does the author use snow in the book night as a symbol/motif?It would be apprecitated if you provided me with quotes along with explanations.

A motif is a recurring structure,
contrast, or literary device that is used to develop a theme in a book.  A
symbol is an object in the story that is meant to represent a
deeper meaning.  In this case, snow is more appropriately used as a symbol rather than a
motif, as it is not something that recurs throughout the story, but is basically
prominent in only one section of the book.

In Section 6 of
the story, Elie, his father, and the other prisoners, are forced to escape the camp on
foot, run many kilometers through a cold and snowy night, and finally seek rest in an
uncovered shelter where it is snowing heavily.  Many are dying all around him, from
severe exhaustion, starvation, and the cold.

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Heavy snow continued to fall over the corpses
(90).

In this case, the snow
provides a peaceful contrast to the chaos of the run and now the death that is happening
all around.  Though the bitter cold is actually speeding up death for many, it is as if
the snow is providing these victims the ability to simply fall asleep and never wake
up.  As the snow covers the corpses, they are forgotten.  If you look at this
symbolically, think about the snow, a white blanket, covering forgotten men who died for
nothing.  Also, the white snow is a stark contrast to the red blood which would have
been the result of these same men being shot to death (many while running through the
night).  This cold induced, peaceful, sleep-death heightens the sheer physical and
emotional exhaustion Elie is feeling as he slumps down next to his father, each
promising to stay awake while the other sleeps.  The reader can sense the quiet, calm,
acceptance of death in this scene.

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A thick layer of snow was accumulating on our
blankets (96).

Later, at the
end of this section, the prisoners who survive the selection are led out of the camp
with blankets on their backs.  They are not allowed to sit or bend over.  As the snow
accumulates on the shoulders of each prisoner, they eat it off each other with their
spoons to quench their thirst.  Here, the same symbol that brought a peaceful death to
many just pages earlier, is bringing a small amount of nourishment to those who still
live.  The soldiers laugh at the spectacle, but once again, the scene is viewed with a
sense of silent acceptance.

Snow, in this section, can be
symbolic in many ways.  It is cold, paralleling the cold hearts of the soldiers.  It is
clean/white, symbolizing the innocence of the prisoners.  It is silent, representing the
final acceptance of a fate brought on by so many months of fear and abuse.  And, it
covers everything equally, symbolizing both the lack of personal identity (especially in
death) of the prisoners, and the worldwide secrecy of what Hitler was accomplishing in
all of his death and concentration camps.