Why Did Elie Wiesel Survive The Book Night

Ryder Hanks
Mrs. Starkey
Language Arts I
6 January 2023
Surviving the Holocaust Night is defined as "the period of darkness in each twenty-four hours; the time from sunset to sunrise." For Elie, his Night was more unalike than even imaginable. The Book Night written by Elie Wiesel, a Holocaust survivor himself, educates readers on just some of the many struggles and difficulties the Jews went through, through the eyes of the main character. The author likes to describe many of the sights that Elie saw giving us some emotion and empathy by telling us his experiences he creates some sort of empathy for him. Elie Wiesel survived because he possessed the traits of bravery, integrity, and perseverance. When separated from the rest of society

Elie was exhausted along with the other prisoners after the officers made them do a death march because they needed to be transferred to a new camp once again like other times. When they reached their stopping destination they came to the choice of either staying awake and living or sleeping and dying. It was now up to Elie to choose. They would sleep and die in the snow due to three things. Starvation, dehydration, and or hypothermia, but if they stayed awake they had a better chance of surviving. “But deep inside, I knew that to sleep meant to die. And something in me rebelled against that death”(89). This can also show some of the integrity Elie possessed by showing how even after marching tens of miles with no water and an empty stomach and freezing temperatures, he survived. He saw all the other prisoners who made the wrong choice to sleep and die and he would not be a follower, he would choose to be a leader and stay awake and watch over his father and be the reason they both would survive that night. Another instance is when Elie displays his integrity again in Gleiwitz. Elie, his father, and hundreds of other prisoners of Buna were forced on a 42-mile death march when they were transferred to Gleiwitz, a concentration camp in central Germany. Elie, dressed in only layers of pajamas and a torn sheet that was protecting his right foot that was operated on two days prior, ran

The prisoners of the camp were sent on a “Death march” where they marched their way to their next destination. Elie and his father lasted the whole journey, the Officers gave them a break when they hit their point and many of the prisoners wanted to use their break to take a nap but little did they know, they would not wake back up from their long-awaited sleep. They would settle down in the snow and die from many different causes like hypothermia or dehydration and or starvation. Elie and his father wanted to nap so they laid down until they noticed all the dead bodies next to them in the snow. They were smart enough to use their strength to go to a nearby shed. “I had neither the desire to nor the resolve to get up. Yet I obeyed”(88). This can show some of Elie's endurance and integrity. Despite not even having the drive or motivation to stand he did it because he knew it was better than death and laying down in the snow. One more time Elie sought out advice and presented his perseverance. Prisoners of the concentration camps were transferred from Birkenau to a new camp, Auschwitz. When the prisoners arrived at the new camp they were surprised with the pleasure of nice greetings and signals which flooded them with confusion. Their new young pole guard stumbled upon them and the prisoners expected furious yelling but in fact, it was the opposite.“Hell does