Night Elie Wiesel Character Analysis

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People may seem normal to some, but to others extremely weird. All of this all depends on the person’s perspective. In the novel Night, by Wiesel, Elie has a different perspective and sees Moishe the Beadle in a different way from that of everyone else in the city of Sighet. Most people in the city of Sighet thought as Moishe as a man who was just a vagrant. An example of this is when Elie say mentions that he lived in “utter penury”(Wiesel, 3). Likewise it is mentioned that his “presence bothered no one”(Wiesel, 3). From these two quotes, it is fair to infer that to many, Moishe was just a beggar who just took up space. No one really noticed him, or disliked him, and especially no one spent the time to listen to him. Moishe also “rendered himself insignificant”(Wiesel, 3). His shyness contributes to his meek and quiet personality, and these qualities are mentioned …show more content…

A prime example of this is when Elie noticed his “dreamy eyes, gazing off into the distance”(Wiesel, 3). Elie focuses on the positive characteristics of Moishe rather than the negative qualities. To others, Moishe was just someone that just took up space, but to Elie, he was a mentor as well as someone who she could learn from. All the qualities mentioned in this passage such as shyness, being a jack-of-all trades, and his knowledge about the Kabbalah are all mentioned to emphasize his intelligence as well was his kindness. Because of Elie’s young age, Moishe is exactly the type of individual he needs in his life. He is unable to find a master who would “guide him in the studies of Kabbalah”(Wiesel, 4) because of his young age. Moishe, however, with his kindness and knowledge of the Kabbalah is willing to teach Elie and influences him in a positive way. Furthermore, Elie needed someone who would be willing to explain things to him, and Moishe, being so lonely, was happy to help Elie in his journey to find explanations for some of life’s biggest