John Dalberg-Acton, an English historian, politician, and writer, once stated, “In every age [liberty's] progress has been beset by its natural enemies: by ignorance and superstition, by lust of conquest and by love of ease, by the strong man's craving for power, and the poor man's craving for food.” The previously shared quote mentions many of the key aspects behind the start and duration of the holocaust. Prisoners in Hitler’s harsh death camps often found themselves forced to make one-sided choiceless choices. They were presented with false options as both paths lead to one final predetermined fate, death. However, despite the exorbitant odds, a few lucky prisoners have survived under such tyranny. Elie Wiesel was one of the fortunate individuals who had pushed through the forever-narrowing hope of survival. In Elie Wiesel’s Night, a memoir, Elie ultimately survived the holocaust through many choiceless choices. These choices ranged from willingly changing his age, choosing life or faith, and marching with little hope of another day. One of the first instances that required Elie to …show more content…
While the prisoners were stuck in the concentration camps, a major Jewish holiday was to be celebrated. The holiday of Yom Kipper is often celebrated with a fast. The already starved Jewish prisoners must decide if their faith or stomach is more important. For many prisoners fasting was not an option, as missing one ration meant death. Elie found himself choosing his stomach over faith, “And then, there was no longer any reason for me to fast. I no longer accepted God’s silence. As I swallowed my ration of soup, I turned that act into a symbol of rebellion, of protest against Him” (69). Elie shows the other option within this choiceless choice. If a prisoner fasts they risk physical death, but if a prisoner chooses their stomach they will spiritually