Elie Wiesel Character Analysis

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It is estimated that 6 million Jews died during the Holocaust. Elie Wiesel somehow managed to beat those odds. Sadly there was no one there to save Elie, the protagonist of Night, from the misery and distress that he would experience as he went through the Holocaust. He survived harsh beatings, sickness, hunger, thirst, dysentery, and all the other forms of death that plagued his environment. All this would not come without a toll on who Elie was as a character, causing him to undergo a dynamic change. Dynamic changes such as his view on family, religion, freedom, and his identity all make Elie Wiesel a dynamic character. The first major dynamic change is family. Elie grew up with his father, mother, and three sisters, which most people would consider a normal household. He valued his family. When the war landed in Sighet, Romania, they did not want to split up the family and moved away. The maid, Maria, begged the family to come live with her in her village. The father refused. …show more content…

Growing up Elie’s father was highly adamant about Elie studying the Talmud. The Talmud is the Jewish book of laws and scriptures. He grew up devoutly religious. Everything he did revolved around God. This however would slowly die down, before it completely dies out, as Elie experiences the deaths that plagued the camps. Progressively he slowly lost faith in God. “For the first time I felt anger rising within in me. Why should I sanctify His name” (Night 33)? He felt as though the “Almighty, the eternal, and terrible Master of the Universe” decided to not do anything to save them from their nearly certain deaths (Night 33). This attitude only continued to grow as things progressed in the camp. Considering these circumstances most people would lose their faith in God. Elie Wiesel is no exception. He was not free from the urge to question God and His choices. Elie felt himself now free from the pressure to believe in