Night By Elie Wiesel Research Paper

It’s hard to believe what atrocities have been committed throughout the course of history; however, it’s important to learn about them. World War II was an especially dark time in history when many types of people were killed by Nazi Germany. “Night” by Elie Wiesel is an autobiography in which Elie recounts his terrible experiences in the Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. Elie tells what horrors he had to endure as a Jew and how the Nazis made him lose his sense of being, as well as making him almost lose his faith. Prisoners in the camp were constantly being killed and burned in the crematorium and everyone who was not able to work either died by themselves or died at the hands of the SS guards. Three significant events in which

When the Germans arrived in Sighet where Elie lived they acted kind and unthreatening, though it didn’t last long. During the time when the Jewish people were celebrating Passover, the Germans announced the “First Edict: Jews were prohibited from leaving their residences for three days, under penalty of death.” (Wiesel 10.) During this time, the Germans and the Hungarian police announced that the Jews were prohibited to own jewelry or things that had value. To distinguish Jews from other people they were forced to wear the yellow Star of David to clearly state that they were Jewish; furthermore, they were also banned from going to synagogue. These few rules set to dehumanize Jews were what completely changed the course of Elie’s life. Jewish people no longer had the right to carry on with their lives like everyone else. Elie’s outlook on this occurrence was not clearly stated in the book but one can assume how he felt. Faith played a major role in Elie’s early life and was a major part of his identity. Not being able to practice it must have hurt him

These executions happened to those who broke the rules or made the SS guards angry. While these constant hangings diminished the morale of the prisoners, one execution, in particular, made Elie and the other prisoners even more sick to their stomachs. One young boy that “was beloved by all. His face was the face of an angel in distress.” (Wiesel 63.) Since the boy being hanged was so young, the prisoners were in a state of grief and shock when it was time for his execution. Elie claimed during the execution that the “SS seemed more preoccupied, more worried, than usual. To hang a child in front of thousands of onlookers was not a small matter.” (Wiesel 64.) This proved that the people running the camp were also disturbed about hanging a child. After he was finally hanged, Elie and the other prisoners were certainly aware that justice in Auschwitz did not exist. Not long after, Elie started to question his faith and his identity. He wondered why God would let such unjust and cruel things happen to his followers. These murders were so dehumanizing that Elie started to question everything he believed. Surviving was the one and only goal that he could hope to achieve. Elie realized that humanity did not exist in the walls of