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Human Spirit In Night By Elie Wiesel

855 Words4 Pages

Since 1945, many victims of the Holocaust have documented their horrific experiences. Some recorded their experiences solely to stay sane, but most survivors feared that the world would forget the atrocities of the Second World War. Since the late 1940s, thousands of different Holocaust memoirs have been published. Undoubtedly, what binds most of these authors is the fact that they have all faced severe loss, questioned the existence of God, and felt the desperate need for hope. Their awareness, understanding and judgement were also severely put to the test. According to Canadian philosopher Bernard Lonergan, these three mental abilities define the human spirit. Thus, the Nazis brutally challenged the very humanity of the Holocaust writers. …show more content…

Even under inhumane physical and mental torture from the ruthless Nazis, many Jews mentioned in the memoir were still able to keep their humanity. For example, the Jewish French girl, posing as an Aryan, feels sympathy when Elie is beaten by the Kapo in Buna: “I felt a cool hand wiping the blood from my forehead…[The French girl] was smiling her mournful smile as she slipped me a crust of bread.” (Wiesel 53) Even though the French girl was risking her life by speaking to Elie in German, she overcame that fear because her human instinct was to help him. Another example of an indestructible human spirit is that of Akiba Drumer, who never lost faith in God – not even after seeing babies thrown into a furnace: “God is testing us. He wants to see whether we are capable of overcoming our base instincts...We have no right to despair. And if He punishes us mercilessly, it is a sign that He loves us that much more…” (Wiesel 45) Akiba Drumer’s unshakable faith in God undoubtedly shows the toughness of the human spirit. Lastly, Elie Wiesel himself shows an incredibly strong human spirit. Elie never stopped fighting for his life, he never abandoned his father – no matter what the burden – and he never gave up. After the war, Elie was still able to feel joy, he was still able to love, he was still able to emerge with his faith intact, and he was still able to continue living: “We have transcended everything – death, fatigue, our natural needs. We were stronger than cold and hunger, stronger than the guns and the desire to die…we were the only men on earth.” (Wiesel 87) Finally, Elie was able to face his memories again by writing the memoir. Like Anne Frank, he demonstrates his mental and psychological strength by doing so. In short, numerous individuals from Elie Wiesel’s memoir Night prove that Holocaust literature is evidence of the resilience of the human

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” During his experience in the concentration camp Elie Wiesel loses faith in his fellow man and in God. He shows this through his thoughts and his actions. Elie Wiesel loses faith in man through the actions of the Nazis and when he first arrived at Auschwitz. Elie and his father both were told

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Elie Wiesel lived through a rough concentration camp that involved different parts where innocent human beings died. His reference to “...they listen, they cry, they warn” explains how those who died are still around with them through the Holocaust and help them be warned about the events that happened. Elie shares that the Jews suffered in inexplicable ways by how they were told that they were taking a shower but instead were taken into a chamber where Zyklon B was exposed, disease exposure in locks, and they even had to create certain things for the Nazis’. Jewish families were separated into different camps but few had survived in the Auschwitz camp, where Elie went to. Although these horrors were hard, Wiesel learned to stay calm and heard

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One way authors show their understanding of the impact bearing witness has on others is by preserving history. By doing this, Alexander Kimel, Primo Levi, and Elie Wiesel raise awareness about events from the Holocaust that could go ignored and ultimately forgotten. The first way an author shows this is in The Action in the Ghetto of Rohatyn, March 1942. In this poem, The author struggles to understand and remember what happened while he was placed in the Ghetto of Rohatyn. He soon realizes the responsibility of bearing witness, and that even if it is difficult, he is obligated to remember, so that he can preserve history, “And a long tortuous journey into an unnamed place / Converting living souls, into ashes and gas.

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The Holocaust was one of the most tragic events in history. It just so happened to be the cause of six million deaths. While there are countless beings who experienced such trauma, it is impossible to hear everyone's side of the story. However, one man, in particular, allowed himself to speak of the tragedies. Elie Wiesel addressed the transformation he underwent during the Holocaust in his memoir, Night.

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Over the ages, philosophers have debated the meaning of humanity in pursuit of a way to differentiate between humans and animals, but each time the question arises a conclusion is never fully realized. Different religious beliefs have contrasting views on the meaning humanity. Likewise, scientists also have a plethora of ideas about what defines a human being. In Night, Elie Wiesel explores the idea of humanity and what it means to be human. Over the course of the anecdote, Wiesel compares and contrasts the actions of humans and animals, showing the similarities and differences between people and the other creatures on Earth with the goal of identifying elements that define what it means to be human, namely the recognition mortality and the

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A Lucky Man Who Survived The Reign Terrible, chaotic, sad, and devastating are only a few vague words to describe the Holocaust. During Adolf Hitler’s reign millions of Jews were victims, including Elie Wiesel. Even from his early years of life, Elie lived as a Jew at the time when only those of the Aryan race were accepted, however, these prejudices never defeated his spirit. When he lived at Auschwitz at the young age of fifteen, he was suicidal. His survival was nothing short of a miracle and his suffering eventually compelled him to try and change the world.

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In which millions of Jews were innocently killed and persecuted because of their religion. As a student who is familiar with the years of the holocaust that will forever live in infamy, Wiesel’s memoir has undoubtedly changed my perspective. Throughout the text, I have been emotionally touched by the topics of dehumanization, the young life of Elie Wiesel, and gained a better understanding of the Holocaust. With how dehumanization was portrayed through words, pondering my mind the most.

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