Auschwitz In Night And Maus II And Elie Wiesel's Night

Many people believe that prisoners in Auschwitz do exactly what they are told, and nothing else. On the contrary, these prisoners took advantage of every opportunity and were selfish when it came down to a matter of life or death. They also had to rely on themselves, and not depend on others in order to survive. In the novels Night and Maus II by Elie Wiesel and Art Spiegelman, the main characters Elie and Vladek are prisoners at Auschwitz. Both Vladek and Elie take advantage of opportunities given. They are also selfish when it comes to survival, and only rely on themselves. This is crucial to their survival of the death camp. In Art Spiegelman’s Maus II and Elie Wiesel’s Night, Elie and Vladek have to take advantage of every opportunity, be selfish, and only depend on themselves in order for their survival of Auschwitz.
Vladek has to take advantage of an offer he received from a Kapo in Auschwitz, in order to make the best out of what is happening. Vladek is in Auschwitz, and his block supervisor yells at him and others asking if anyone knew English. Vladek says he does, and the Kapo takes him aside

In the death camp the characters are given opportunities to help better their situation. Both take full advantage of this, and become selfish with what comes of it. They also learn to rely on only themselves because you can trust no one to be there for you. They couldn’t think of anyone else’s problems but their own to survive. This still happens today, for example in the workforce. When an opportunity like a promotion is offered, most people will work harder and do whatever they can to take the promotion to better their lives. If Vladek and Elie hadn’t taken advantage of opportunities or hadn’t learned to rely on only themselves, would they have survived