By Elie Wiesel

“Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night, seven times cursed and seven times sealed…Never shall I forget those moments which murdered my God and my soul and turned my dreams to dust. Never shall I forget these things, even if I am condemned to live as long as God Himself. Never” (Night, Ch. 3, Pg. 32)

Night is a powerful account of the holocaust through the eyes of Eliezer Weisel, also known as Elie. The reader engages in the compelling spiritual, mental and physical transformations of a Jewish teenage boy in the midst of the holocaust. Elie’s concepts of hope, survival and evil become the pivotal characteristics in which he uses for understanding and enduring his traumatic experiences.

Faith is one of the underlying themes throughout the book. In the beginning Elie is incredibly enthusiastic about the Jewish religion. He thrives to study the Talmud and Cabala and is especially focused on Jewish mysticism, which teaches that God is within everyone and everything. During his initial imprisonment in the camps, his faith is what helps him survive. He prays regul

Elie believes that the worst evil that plagues human beings is that of indifference; it is better for someone to have hatred towards you than to feel absolutely nothing. Hitler’s Nazi regime dehumanized the Jews. They were lowered to animalistic characteristics to survive and stripped of what made them human. In fact, they were even branded, similarly to the way cows are, with numbers; they no longer had names. They were loaded in cattle trucks and trains, 100 to a cart where the German people treated them as a spectator sport. German’s loved to watch how the Jews pounced on each other when one crumb of bread was thrown into the train. However, the most incomprehensible act of indifference was done by the Nazi’s themselves. It is almost impossible to understand how these human beings could so callously slaughter millions of innocent victims.

Ironically, it is Elie’s faith and love for his father that helps him survive this terrible camp. Throughout the story, he relies on his father for support and love. During his long 42 mile run to Gleiwitz he says, “My father’s presence was the only thing that stopped me [from letting myself die]...I had no right to let myself die. What would he do without me? I was his only support” (Ch. 6, pg. 82). Furthermore, they kept each other going out of love and concern for one another, never letting their selfish instincts fully take hold, hoping that one day, there will be an end to these horrific death camps.

Some topics in this essay:
Rabbi Eliahou’s, Elie Weisel, Hashanah Elie, Hitler’s Nazi, Ironically Elie’s, Weisel Elie, Elie Wiesel, Akiba Drumer, Talmud Cabala, Night Ch, indifference memory, ch 5 pg, helps survive, elie weisel, camps elie, throughout book, nazi regime, ch 5, believes worst, seven times, 5 pg,