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Analysis Of Elie Wiesel's The Perils Of Indifference

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On April 12, 1999, Elie Wiesel delivered a poignant speech during the Millennium Lectures. (Wiesel 1) In his effective speech, the author emphasizes the word “indifference” in order to establish a closer connection between the past and the present – contrasting what we, as a country, have done and what we should do going forward. “The Perils of Indifference” is a call to action in order to defend human life in the new millennium. Wiesel captures his audience with facts, appeals to the human conscience, and utilizes many strategies to add weight to his words.
From the very first line, Wiesel targets his audience effectively. By directly addressing authorities and governors, like “Mr. President, Mrs. Clinton, members of Congress, Ambassador …show more content…

Wiesel starts out with an emotional message that also asserts his credibility on the subject of the speech. A stirring opening statement creates imagery that the audience cannot help but picture. By using the phrase “a young Jewish boy” to describe himself and describing his feelings towards liberation as having “no joy in [his] heart”, Wiesel appeals to the audience’s emotions and sensitivities towards the tragedy of the Holocaust. (Wiesel 1) This allows the audience to visualize a young Wiesel being part of the dark story with suffering, pain, brutal punishment and starvation. Wiesel also shows that he has authority to speak on injustice in the world, as he experienced one of the worst injustices to date. His authority to speak makes his message even more powerful. Having personal experience with the Holocaust, Wiesel is able to effectively and efficiently describe the horrors and injustice that many people …show more content…

After stating his personal story with the Holocaust, Wiesel goes on to list many tragedies of the twentieth century like “the two World Wars, chains of assassinations, and bloodbaths in Cambodia and Nigeria, India and Pakistan”. Relates violent acts to indifference – indifference is a violent act in and of itself.
A subtler rhetorical tool is the dichotomous binaries that the author creates throughout the speech. Within the first few paragraphs, the author states that he is filled with “profound and abiding gratitude to the American people”. (Wiesel 1) He goes on to address Hillary Clinton directly, stating that he is grateful for all that she has done for “the victims of injustice, the victims of destiny and society”. (Wiesel

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