Night By Elie Wiesel Night Summary

Elie Wiesel’s, Night, unravels the journey of a young Jewish boy struggling to resolve his muddled religious beliefs during the Holocaust. The story begins in the small Hungarian town of Sighet when a young boy whose name is Elie sets out on a journey of religious discovery. The boy dedicates every free moment of his life to his study of Kabbalah. Until one day German soldiers enter Sighet and begin to load citizens into cattle cars. The cattle cars, full of bewildered citizens, later travel to a location unknown by the passengers. In a twisted turn of events, Elie lands in the middle of a world full of death and devastation. He spends the next several months in German concentration camps witnessing death, as well as, suffering from physical

Elie’s father has a strong opinion that Elie is too young to study the Kabbalah. Disregarding his father’s wishes, Elie sets out to find himself a master to teach him Kabbalah and fulfill his passion for his religion. After his father denies Elie's pleas, Elie determines, “He wanted to drive the idea of studying Kabbalah from my mind. In vain. I succeeded on my own in finding a master for myself in the person of Moishe the Beadle” (4). Elie gains inspiration from his religious readings and religion becomes his sole focus. For this reason, Moishe the Beadle and Elie spent night after night studying the Kabbalah and reading its stories. His studies captivate him and Elie begins to spend whenever possible with

Hence, Elie is in disbelief that God would ever allow the true cruelty, that he has witnessed in the concentration camps. At the moment, in which he fears for his life, Elie thinks God will save him if God is real. As his father prayed, Elie wondered, “‘[...] May His name be celebrated and sanctified…” whispered my father. For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose to be silent. What was there to thank Him for? (33). For the first time, Elie didn't believe in the actions of God. It is important to remember, he witnesses German soldiers using babies as shooting targets, men who are burning alive, and loved ones who must separate, and Elie could not believe God would allow any of it. Berenbaum reveals, “[...] the transition from a God-filled world to a Godless world is not easy for Wiesel. He continually emphasizes not only the initial suffering that brought him his view of a Godless world but also the internal pain” (Berenbaum 17-18). When Elie arrives at the camps, he has no idea the emotional destruction he is about to endure. No matter how mentally draining the torture imposed by German soldiers is, the most difficult struggle Elie faces has been his ever-changing feelings toward God.
All of a sudden, Elie loses all trust in God as anger