“Never shall I forget the small faces of the children whose bodies I saw transformed into smoke under a silent sky. Never shall I forget those flames that consumed my faith forever.” (Wiesel 34). Elie Wiesel wrote this in his memoir, Night. Wiesel talks about his terrible experiences in the concentration camps during the Holocaust, and how much it has affected him. He was treated terribly by the Nazis in many ways, including being deprived of proper meals, enduring savage beatings, and getting stripped of all his personal belongings. All of this caused him to change immensely. Due to his horrible experiences in the camps, Wiesel changed from an innocent and religious boy to a faithless and traumatized man. Before enduring the cruelty of the camps, Wiesel was an innocent and religious boy. …show more content…
And so we, the Jews of Sighet, waited for better days that were surely to come. I continued to devote myself to my studies, Talmud during the day and Kabbalah at night.” (Wiesel 7-8). This demonstrates Elie’s sense of naivety and optimism, as he clings to hope despite the obvious evidence of the persecution the Jews are facing. His innocence causes him to believe in the goodness of humanity and remain steadfast in his faith. Additionally, Wiesel states, “And Moishe the Beadle, the poorest of the poor of Sighet, spoke to me for hours on end about the Kabbalah’s revelations and its mysteries. Thus began my initiation of the sacrament. Together we will read, over and over again, the same page of the Zohar. Not to learn it by heart, but to discover within the very essence of divinity.” (Wiesel 5). This illustrates Wiesel’s profound religiousness, as he dedicates himself to learning Kabbalah and strives to grow in his faith. He even searched for a master to guide him in his studies, and would pray