Francisco Cid Ms. Steinmeier ENG 1214.5 March 4, 2014 No Longer Human Elie Wiesel was only a teenager when he was taken from his home in 1944 to eventually end up at Auschwitz concentration camp. Night is the terrifying story of the memories of the death of his family, his innocence, his faith, and even hope. Ultimately, the Nazis were able to take away his very humanity. Faith is a major theme in the novel. From the ghetto to liberation Wiesel has a constant inner struggle over his faith. In the beginning, young Elizer shows constant devotion to an almighty benevolent God. When asked why he prays his responds is "Why did I pray... Why did I live? Why did I breathe?" His life revolved around his faith and in God's power lied his understanding of the world. But after all the hardships he faced, like the murder of his family or his own starvation, his faith is irreparably shaken. He can't comprehend how an omnipotent God could allow such cruelty and injustice. During …show more content…
In the end, Wiesel describes how the Nazis succeeded in turning the civilized people he once knew into vicious beings. Taking away their loved ones, their belongings, and even their names were all actions that ripped away from their person, from who these people were. His last days in Buchenwald Wiesel describes his life as no longer mattering. Everything was taken away from him and his father's death was one final blow. "Nothing mattered to me anymore... I spent my days in total idleness. With only one desire: to eat. I no longer thought of my father... I would dream, but only about soup, one more ration of soup." The human inside Elizer, his soul, his spirit, his humanity, whatever you want to call it, died at Buchenwald. Remembering his first night at Auschwitz he said " I will never forget the nocturnal silence that deprived me for all eternity of the desire to