World War II (WWII) is a very common topic discussed in high school english classes mainly due to the facts that WWII is a perfect example of good vs. evil in the real world and there is an endless amount of books written about this tragic era in history. Two examples of these type of books are Laura Hillenbrand’s Unbroken and Elie Wiesel’s Night; and like all of the other WWII books, these two address themes about the hardships of war and how hope is always present. One specific theme that these books support is that in war, there will always be peace; this is shown through elements of faith, happiness, and trauma. To begin, the two main characters of the books Unbroken and Night face a struggle with their individual faiths, but in very different ways. Louis (Louie) Zamperini initially was not the most religious man but when faced with the most dire of situations he turned to God repeatedly for help and counsel. On page 159, Louie makes his first wish to God which stated, “If God would quench their thirst, he vowed, he’d dedicate his life to him.” From this instance, …show more content…
Once the war ended and all the prisoners were free; many brought the darkness they were exposed with them. While soldiers, like Louie, suffered from severe Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) many of the Jews and other prisoners became shells of who they once were, broken spirits with no faith and, most of the time, no family to guide them. This idea is explored on page 115 of Night, “a corpse was contemplating me.” This shows how far Elie has fallen from that enlightened boy to now a broken man; and the same for Louie. He was once a miscreant who enjoyed life then the war came and ended and he became riddled with deadly flashbacks and alcoholism. All in all, both of these men fell to the darker side once the war concluded which in turn created balance as the rest of the world rejoiced and spread peace and