“To die and part is a less evil; but to part and live, there, there is the torment.” -George Lansdowne In Night, by Elie Wiesel, many prisoners were afflicted with both bodily and mental sufferings. Their souls had already parted, but they were still alive, which is an incredibly evil pain. They no longer felt anything and when bitter times were upon them, all they could think about was soup and bread. They felt no need to continue, but their bodies disagreed and went on. They were dead souls in living bodies. Throughout the novel, emotional death is portrayed through various people, including Moishe the Beadle, Wiesel himself, and many of the Jewish prisoners. In Night, Moishe the Beadle suffers from emotional death. The people that he shared his horrific stories with said that he “had gone mad,” (7). They believed that he was being delusional and making everything up just for pity and money. However, he truly was emotionally dead, and spoke of the cruel, inhumane things he experienced that caused him to be that way. …show more content…
He, along with many others, found themselves not really caring anymore, and lost all emotion. At one point, someone close to him, Akiba Drumer, passed away and all he asked was that they say Kaddish for him three days after his passing. Wiesel explains that after three days they “forgot to say Kaddish,” (77). They forgot most everything, even the small favor asked of them from a dying friend. Their priorities changed and survival became the only important thing. Even though in their souls they were emotionally dead, their hearts still had hope to live. One thing that helped keep them going was the thought of the small portion of bread and soup they received each day. Among all the deaths, that was the one thing they thought about. He once said that the soup one night, “tasted better than ever,” (63). Wiesel’s only thoughts were about this. Even during hanging ceremonies, his mind