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Analysis Of Elie Wiesel's The Perils Of Indifference

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“The Perils of Indifference”, by Elie Wiesel, was a very interesting and thought inducing speech. He gave the speech in a well done manner, making gestures and telling it in a way that was very appropriate for the topic, making it more compelling. Mr. Wiesel delivered his speech on the 12th of April 1999 during the Seventh Millennium Evening at the White House, Washington, D.C. Mr. Wiesel was one of the many victims who were locked away in Hitler’s concentration camps. What’s more, he was a child when it happened. Therefore he presented the speech with much emotion and heart, having personal knowledge on the subject. A large amount of the speech was about how indifference affected the war in such a negative way. He states “Indifference is not a beginning; it is an end. And, therefore, indifference is always the friend of the enemy, for it benefits the aggressor -- never his victim…” (Wiesel, 1999). For example, because of indifference the imprisonment went on for far longer than it would have if officials had intervened to stop the happenings at concentration camps. One time he mentioned how nice it would have been if the Allies had bombed the railways leading to the camps. But it did not happen because the world leaders were indifferent. He illustrates his point by the statement “Indifference, after all, …show more content…

The word choice and the moderate/slow speed were very appropriate for the topic. He often used the words “indifference”, “hatred”, “humanity”, “learned”, and “victims”. The word “indifference” got emphasized quite a bit, more than other words. During the whole speech he was looking around at his audience, only checking his papers from time to time. While making an important statement he might sweep his arms in a downward motion, taking a pause after finishing. He would also increase in volume when making a strong point and decrease when reaching a sober topic. His soft and quiet tone showed how much these events had affected

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