The mistreatment that the captives go through dehumanizes their senses to not even have feelings of their own family members. Even though the degrade the victims are out through, family will always be family. Wiesel records that "yesterday I should have sunk my nails into the criminals flesh" proving that the violence takes the guiding principles away so rapidly. Wiesel also felt that "remorse began to gnaw at me" implying how guilty he felt after the incident. Earlier in the text, when Wiesel and his father were just separated from his mother and sister, Wiesel's "hand shifted on [his] father's arm" he "had one thought - not to lose him. Not to be left alone" (27). There is an attempt to maintain love as it is also shown through the following pages in the book. Even though it gets to a point where it is man for itself, Wiesel and his father will always have a special connection. With the repeated concept of the bond between Wiesel and his father parallels the amount of disgrace the victims suffer. .
A terrible thought loomed up in my mind: he had wanted to get rid of his father! He had felt that his father was growing weak, he believed that the end was near and had sought this separation in order to get rid of the burden, to free himself from an encumbrance which could lessen his chance of survival. I had done well to forget that. And I was glad that Rabbi Eliahou should continue to look for his beloved son. And, in spite of myself, a prayer rose in my heart, to that God in whom I no longer believed. My God, Lord of the Universe, give me strength never to do what Rabbi Eliahou's son has done (87). Along the death march, the suffering had stopped in a shed to get out of the bitter snow. Rabbi Eliahou enters into the shed looking for his son who abandoned him during the death march. No one had seemed to remember seeing him along the death march. Wiesel then remembered he was running by his son, and had witnessed his son creating a greater distance from his father, and that he wanted to get rid of his father.
