Moshe the Beadle escaped just to be labeled a lunatic, and the hope in God proved futile. In such circumstances, the most faithful of people would remind themselves to take joy in suffering for their faiths, to remind themselves that the Bible gives instructions for such difficult moments. Like Wiesel, I would have been able to cope in such a way for a while, but soon, my faith would be tested as well. As plague after plague continued to occur, just as it did in Wiesel's experience, my faith would begin to suffer, as I wondered why God was not saving those who were not only coming to him in their time of need, but had always been steadfast believers. Wiesel's faith continued to take hits as he and fellow Jews were transported to Auschwitz and Buchenwald. Not only did he then see his mentors' hope amidst their unanswered prayers, but also he began to witness as others not only turned from their faiths, but also began to abuse their fellow sufferers. For Wiesel, this begins first with Madame Schachter on the train that takes the Jews of the Sighet to Auschwitz. As the woman foretells the furnaces in which Jews' bodies are burned, she is tied, gagged, and beaten (Wiesel 23-24). Wiesel would continue to experience this phenomenon throughout his imprisonment the concentration camp. Those put in charge often conducted themselves even more severely than the non-Jewish prison guards. Men who were imprisoned for their faith abandoned that faith in order to survive, even to the extent of nearly killing or wishing a person dead for his daily ration. One incident in particular struck Wiesel as atrocious. After being forced to run miles in the snow on their way from Auschwitz to Burchenwald, Rabbi Eliahou, one of those who has managed to remain more pious in the midst of tribulation, comes searching for his son, and Wiesel concludes that his son must have left him purposely to...
In this instant, Wiesel forms a "prayer" to the God "in whom [he] no longer believed" not to do the same misdeed to his father (87).
Night by Elie Wiesel was first published in English in 1960 and gave the most chilling and most faithful account of his experiences during the Holocaust. We have heard a lot about concentration camps and how Jews were made to suffer simply because of their religion, however this book gives us something deeper to think about. The book studies the Holocaust experience in the light of Jewish beliefs and the
This apathetic sentiment even envelops the narrator, as the following quotation demonstrates by showing that Eliezer knew that "the child was still alive when I passed him." Despite this fact, the narrator does nothing to help the child due to his extreme apathy. However, the narrator's apathy is proven most effectively by his silent answer to the question as to God's presence, which the subsequent quotation suggests. "Where is
How the German army used this deception can be best quoted from Night when the Pole in charge of the block where Eliezer was kept with other men said, "Comrades, you are now in the concentration camp Auschwitz. Ahead of you lies a long road paved with suffering. Do not lose hope. You have already eluded the worst danger: the selection. Therefore, muster your strength and keep your faith.
Night," by Elie Wiesel, "The Plague," by Albert Camus, and the "I Have a Dream" speech, by Martin Luther King, Jr. Specifically, it will discuss the views of human nature held by Wiesel, Camus, and King. Are people basically good or bad? Who is more optimistic or pessimistic? Who is right? Martin Luther King, Jr. is the optimist of these three writers, but each author makes the reader think,
Night by Elie Wiesel [...] main ideas in the book and thesis of the Author, and then provide an evaluation of the book. Wiesel's book "Night" is a moving and poignant account of this time spent in German concentration camps during World War II. He chronicles how he managed to survive while so many other Jews perished, and what it meant to his family and his life. The extermination
Night by Elie Wiesel Though it is called a novel, Night (Wiesel 1982) is actually a memoir about Wiesel's experiences as a young, devout Jewish boy who is forced by World War II Nazis into a concentration camp, along with his family. The main character, Eliezer, is actually Wiesel, and through his descriptions and thoughts about his life before, during and after the concentration camps, Wiesel illustrates ways that people may
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