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  • Essay / Review of the autobiography “Night” by Elie Wiesel

    The autobiography “Night” by Elie Wiesel recounts the point of view of a young Jewish teenager and his time as a prisoner in the camps concentration during the holocaust. Eliezer grew up in a small community in Sighet, Transylvania. It was here that he studied two religions, the Kabbalah and the Torah. At the start of World War II, Eliezer devoted himself to his faith in God; as the war ends, his faith slowly begins to weaken. The main conflict that Eliezer goes through would be maintaining his belief in God. This becomes more difficult throughout the book, as he faces more and more challenges. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essayMoshe the Beadle teaches Eliezer his faith. Moshe teaches Eliezer that religion is based on two concepts: that God is everywhere and that faith is based on questions, not answers. Over the years of believing in a higher power, it became clear that prayer had become human nature to have a sense of devotion and to believe that their god would bless and save them. For Eliezer, prayer was a natural habit that he participated in daily even though he had no real reason to do so. The Nazis were merciless executioners. From the moment the Germans entered Sighet, they tormented the Jews. They forced them to leave their homes for the ghettos and took all their belongings. When Eliezer first observes the Germans, he learns to hate them. Their brutal attacks on children, women and the elderly fueled his anger. “I started to hate them.” When Eliezer arrives at Auschwitz, he sees evil. Shocked, Eliezer watches truckloads of young children being thrown into a pit of fire. The horror of Auschwitz is etched in Eliezer's mind and has a great effect on him. “How could they burn children? The murder of many innocent Jews by the Germans was a haunting experience that haunted him. “I will never forget.” The Germans had methodical means of torturing Eliezer. They took away his identity and he became number “A-7713”. During the selection process, Eliezer is forced to run naked in the freezing cold, like an animal. Yet Eliezer's "nightmare" continues when he accidentally catches Idek having sex with a Polish woman and is punished for it. Eliezer is brutally tortured with whips as an example by Idek. “I passed out.” Eliezer, once again, is brutally attacked by Idek in the warehouse when Idek is angry. Eliezer suffered greatly at the hands of the Nazis. The events witnessed by an innocent child exposed him to the dark side of humanity. At Auschwitz, Eliezer sees the brutality imposed by the Nazis and begins to question God. “but why should I bless him?” (page 67) the silence Eliezer hears from God causes him to slowly lose faith in Him. Eliezer begins to rebel against God. When Eliezer sees the merciless hanging of the Pipel, he turns against his convictions again. Elijah's faith weakens under the horrors he experiences. Yet he returns to his faith. He prayed to God to give him the strength “never to do what Rabbi Eliahu’s son had done.” Eliezer realizes how much he cares for his father. When the two arrive in Birkenau, Eliezer squeezes his father's hand so as "not to lose him." Throughout their life at the camp, the bond between the two grows stronger. When his father is chosen for selection, he gives Eliezer his inheritance. His father believed he was about to be killed, but he still tried to protect Eliezer. When Eliezer must give in.