Saving someone other than yourself in a terrible situation is not something everyone thinks about doing, but in this case Stefania Podgorska not only saved herself but 13 others, and they all lived. Podgorska didn’t plan to save all those people it was more a spur of the moment thing, and not only did she help them by getting them food she saved every last one of them; and they all lived to see more days. In life, good deeds go unnoticed, the courage and unselfishness of her mind at that time should not be something someone just forgets about it’s a wonderful thing she did and everyone should know about her. By examining Podgorska and her moral courage it is clear that she deserves all the attention given, and or all the respect others show. Stefania came from a well known Catholic family that served the community, and so, when it came to do what she did i’m sure it wasn’t in her mind out of the ordinary/or heroism.
11 million people endured a violent murder at the hands of Hitler's Nazis without doing anything wrong. Around europe Jewish people suffered and slaughtered like animals under the Nazi and their concentration camps lived a life of death and horror, but some survived conquering death and abuse, resisting the odds and surviving. One of these people went by the name Elie Wiesel. Wiesel survived the oppression and insurmountable obstacles pushed in front of him by the Nazis because of his undying stamina.
" Elie had stepped into a situation that he was not supposed to be a part of. He later faced the consequences and would not have had to if he just did not intervene. Wiesel did not have to face a beating if he had not made a sound and kept walking on. This is not the only reason to intervene, people are, often, not the professional help someone could potentially need.
At the time of Hitler's reign six million Jews died and even more suffered, yet the world remained silent. Six million lives could have been saved by simply speaking out against these tormentors. Eli feels strong about this subject and says, "Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor never the tormented"(Wiesel Acceptance Speech, pg 1). This helps the reader realize if society doesn't speak it takes the side of the tormentor.
As stated in the text, “The 42-year-old U.S. Army veteran who served as a sniper in Iraq immediately began tending to the wounded, one of several heroes to emerge from the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.” This proves that Rob Ledbetter, the veteran, helped people in need without being asked or forced to, showing leadership and kindness. The text also states, “Thanks to a man who took the flannel shirt off his back, Ledbetter says he put a make-do tourniquet on a wounded teenage girl, whose face was covered with blood.” This illustrates the fact that The Golden Rule was also followed here when a young girl was helped by a stranger. Therefore, due to someone else’s malevolent and erratic behavior, many people were able to help others in the tumultuous environment they were
His experiences in the Holocaust changed his view on humankind. Not long after his arrival to Auschwitz he was on a procession heading to the crematorium. He noticed flames but soon saw the harsh reality of what humans are capable of “Babies! Yes, I did see this, with my own eyes… children thrown into the flames. (Is it any wonder that ever since then, sleep tends to elude me?)”
If people cared about what was going on in Germany, many would fight against them. In conclusion, indifference can make people be corrupt. Some people think if indifference was evil, then they wouldn't be doing it. However, according to Elie Wiesel's speech called, "The Perils of Indifference," he set forth, "every minute one of them dies of disease, violence, famine.
”(54) With the knowledge that he would be beaten if he had spoken up, Wiesel decided to stay quiet. If he were to be beaten, his ability to work would be impaired, leaving him vulnerable to the selection. Knowing this, he keeps silent– preserving his abilities to work and increasing his likelihood of survival. Through his act of remaining silent, Wiesel revealed thoughts
“ … The world has had to hear a story it would have preferred not to hear - the story of how a cultured people turned to genocide, and how the rest of the world, also composed of cultured, remained silent in the face of genocide.” - Elie Wiesel. The man behind that quote is one of the few people in the world to survive one of the worst tragedies in human history, The Holocaust. An event in which millions of people perished, all because of a crazed dictator’s dream. Elie Wiesel who amazingly survived the horrors, documented his experience in his book, Night.
He felt it was important to relay the lessons he learned, so that others will not have to go through the same hardship, in the future. This reflects Moishe the Beadle’s struggles “Infants were tossed into the air and used as targets for the machine guns” (Wiesel, 6). These monstrous events are the result of not acting because they felt no personal connection. This resulted in not bearing witness, and the massive loss of life during The Holocaust. Making the choice to bear witness needs to be made before it is too late.
The entire world was so ignorant to such a massacre of horrific events that were right under their noses, so Elie Wiesel persuades and expresses his viewpoint of neutrality to an audience. Wiesel uses the ignorance of the countries during World War II to express the effects of their involvement on the civilians, “And then I explain to him how naive we were, that the world did know and remained silent. And that is why I swore never to be silent when and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation” (Weisel). To persuade the audience, Elie uses facts to make the people become sentimental toward the victims of the Holocaust. Also, when Weisel shares his opinion with the audience, he gains people onto his side because of his authority and good reputation.
They could have saved many innocent lives by just speaking up, feeling empathy, and not remaining
Wiesel pinpoints the indifference of humans as the real enemy, causing further suffering and lost to those already in peril. Wiesel commenced the speech with an interesting attention getter: a story about a young Jewish from a small town that was at the end of war liberated from Nazi rule by American soldiers. This young boy was in fact himself. The first-hand experience of cruelty gave him credibility in discussing the dangers of indifference; he was a victim himself.
The speech, Mr. Wiesel showed to the audience that he knows of these events firsthand because he shared his own personal suffering and established ethos by telling the story in first person. He argued about the guilt of past violent events and proclaimed that said events could have been avoided if humanity had been less indifferent. He stated that had someone have intervened earlier, these events could have been avoided. Nonetheless, Mr. Wiesel still showed gratitude to those who intervened and fought those responsible for the hardship of himself and his people. However, he still did not understand why they did not do an intervention at an earlier time to avoid the suffering of thousands of people.
I wanted to find and read more non-fiction books and heard this was a great and interesting series. I was pleasantly surprised and loved reading about Albert Einstein’s life from begging to end. I was stunned to read about the Nazi’s reaction and hatred for him. This book describes Einstein’s childhood, family, education, marriages, trials, tribulations, failures, successes, and end of life. It explores the time period and the world he lived in and how he changed it.
