What Is The Purpose Of The Book Night By Elie Wiesel

World War II and, more specifically, the Holocaust, were two devastating events in human history which changed the world forever. Those who were directly persecuted and placed in camps faced many horrific things, but the effects those events had on their psyche were perhaps more traumatizing than the events themselves. Elie Wiesel is a real Holocaust survivor and the author of the memoir Night, which details his experiences throughout various concentration camps as a Jewish individual. There are many events throughout the memoir that demonstrate the determination of people to stay alive by any means necessary, even if it means abandoning all morals and humane actions. In this essay, it will be shown that in dire circumstances, the innate human

When the prisoners are on the train to Buchenwald, many people die of different causes, but each car is still extremely crowded and cold. The train occasionally stopped along the route and guards would request for the dead to be thrown out, and the “living were glad. They would have more room. Volunteers began the task …. ‘Here’s one …!’ The volunteers undressed him and eagerly shared his garments,” (page 99). The conditions in which the prisoners had been placed changed them in such a way that they would happily volunteer to get rid of the dead, who had been through the same things as them. They also became selfish to ensure survival, shown in the eagerness to take the dead’s clothes. Before now, the prisoners had respected each other and the dead, but as the memoir approached a close, that compassion and decency dwindled so each person could stay

The effects of a threat to Elie’s own safety caused him to resent his father, and similarly with Franek (a polish friend of Elie’s) who had beat Elie’s father when denied something he thought could help keep him alive. The prisoners on the train to Buchenwald became selfish to survive, stealing the clothes of the dead and happily volunteering to throw out their dead comrades. Near the end of their train route, battles over bread ensued and the important value of family had been violated by a son killing his father for a mere crust. To conclude, Night has presented that humans will give up all values and moral standing for a chance to live when faced with grave conditions and