Bearing In Elie Wiesel's Night

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There is a set time frame between life and death. Once the line is crossed, there is no return. This is why Elie Wiesel feels it is so important to bear witness. Bearing witness is to be a constant observer, to consider all possibilities, and to act when it is time. Elie Wiesel wrote his memoir Night so people could learn to act when it is necessary. These mistakes would eventually cost the many Jewish people their lives. They could have changed all of this by making connections between what people are telling them and possible outcomes. People do not make the choice to bear witness to something until it becomes personal, and by that time it is too late. The people in the memoir Night did not act until it was too late. Throughout time people …show more content…

The decision not to act can have terrible consequences, and the jewish people experienced this first hand. This is why Elie Wiesel feels it is so important for people to bear witness to their surroundings. Once an event such as The Holocaust happened, nothing could change it. This shows the Moment Elie realized that “‘Bite your lips, little brother… Don't cry. Keep your anger, your hate, for another day, for later. The day will come but not now… Wait. Clench your teeth and wait…’” (Wiesel, 53). At this moment Elie Wiesel knew he had to save his words for a different time, and the time was now. 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. Elie Wiesel and his family made the decision to not bear witness for many reasons, but in the end they came to regret it. His way of making sure that others do not make the same mistake was through his memoir Night. The only thing thing that came from The Holocaust are the lessons we learn from it. This is why it is essential for people to bear witness at all times. History tries to repeat itself. The best way to stop events like The Holocaust is to bear witness to all of one's