Night Elie Wiesel Research Paper

The Nazis killed more than six million Jews during the Holocaust. If not for Elie Wiesel’s determination and strength throughout his journey, he could have become a statistic. The Holocaust is known as the largest act of genocide in human history. Nazi Germany aimed to kill all of the “undesirables”. They were determined to rid the world of Jews, Gypsies, Poles, Homosexuals, and many other groups. Elie Wiesel was just a teenager when his town of Sighet was taken over by the Nazis. Elie, his sister, his mother, and his father were all taken to Auschwitz in 1944. Although the rest of his family did not live, Elie survived five different camps. Elie Wiesel uncovers and explores three distinct themes in his memoir Night: one’s spiritual journey,

At the beginning of the memoir, he never thought of questioning God. The young man focused most of his life on studying Judaism. When Elie met a religious mentor named Moishe the Beadle in 1941, “[He] was almost thirteen and deeply observant. . by night I would run to the synagogue to weep over the destruction of the Temple” (3). Elie is extremely pious and spends his days learning everything he can about his religion. His faith is firm and he wants to do everything he can to better understand God’s place in his life. During Elie’s time in Auschwitz, he becomes confused about his relationship with God. He wonders why he should worship and asks, “What was there to thank Him for?” (33). Elie lost most of his faith after entering the camp. He now has little hope for himself and his situation. Elie does not feel that he should be grateful to God due to the circumstances he has undergone. Later in his journey, Elie witnesses hangings in the camp. He feels complete devastation after seeing a child being hung. Elie hears someone ask where God is and a voice within Elie answers, “This is where - hanging here from these gallows...”(65). It seems like Elie has reached his lowest point in faith. He blames God for what is happening. Before the camp, he would have never viewed God in this

While on a cattle car to Auschwitz, Elie witnesses a woman named Mrs. Schachter who claims that she sees a fire in the distance. The rest of the prisoners think that she has gone mad and try to get her to stop talking. Mrs Schachter, “received several blows to the head, blows that could have been lethal” (26). Due to the tension in the cattle car, the other Jews become extremely annoyed with Mrs. Schachter. The prisoners decided to become cruel and harsh to the lady. They become aggressive and treat her as if she has no value. Once they enter the camp, the Nazis make sure that the prisoners lose all of their human qualities and traits. The veteran prisoners of the camp “tattooed numbers on [their] left arms” (42). In the camp, Elie does not have a name anymore, he is now known as A-7713. Without his name, the young man has lost almost all of his simple human characteristics. After receiving his tattoo, Elie arrives at a new camp called Buna. The Kapos at Buna, “pointed their fingers, the way one might choose cattle, or merchandise” (49). The prisoners are forced to see themselves as objects. They are again degraded by a Kapo who cares only about himself. The Kapos treat them as if they were not worthy of living. Throughout the memoir, Elie and his father, Shlomo, grow closer by relying on each other and struggling together. While working in his Kommando, Elie’s father gets in trouble for