Essay, Research Paper: Elie Wiesel’S "Night"

Elie Wiesel’s is a powerful novel that describes the occurrences during the Holocaust. The story takes place in the times of WW II in the concentration camp at Auschwitz. Night can be interpreted as an autobiography of the author’s personal experiences during his captivity by the Nazis in the concentration camp at Auschwitz.
The simple language, Wiesel uses, captures in great detail and deepness the cruelties, suffering, and torturing the Jews lived in the concentration camps. The story, from the first pages, catches the reader attention, and makes a person wonder how the Holocaust could ever happen. How it was possible that a civilized world could permit such atrocities? What influenced the Nazis’ into killing the Jews? The Holocaust could be considered an antonym of progress. The holocaust is an example that even in times of intellect humans are still capable of such horrible barbaric acts. Innocent people including women and children were disposed with no mercy, burning them alive.
One of the most powerful scenes is when the Jews, at the beginning, are on the train and arrive at the concentration camp and see the smoke of burning corpses coming out of the chimneys. The way Wiesel describes the environment and the detail he gives with the smell and ashes in the air is amazingly lived by the reader.
Another power event is when the innocent boy is hanged and his neck does not break so he struggles dieing for half an hour. At this moment Elie refutes what little is left from his belief in god. He says, can a god possibly exist and let this cruelty happen. This is important because as a young Elie was deeply religious and now not only dieing physically but also morally.
This can also be observed when Elie’s father is in last moments laying on his deathbed, he calls on Elie but Elie does not respond. The next morning Elie wakes up to see that someone else is in his father place. Elie did was not able to shred a tear or have any feelings for his father.


Word Count: 347