The Capabilities Of Man: Night Analysis

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Eli Wiesel’s memoir, Night, is a story of horror, suffering, and pain. Wiesel tells his horrific tale of being a survivor of the atrocity, known as the Holocaust. Dreamt up by Adolf Hitler in 1942, “The Final Solution” became one of the biggest genocidal acts in human history (insert citation). The plot to kill 11 million Jews quickly became Nazi Germany’s obsession. Which could be disputed, lead to their downfall. Through out Wiesel’s piece, Night; Wiesel explores human capabilities by exploring 3 main, central conflicts. The 3 conflicts Wiesel explores in his narrative are survival vs. sacrifice, light vs. darkness, and civility vs. savagery, by sharing certain events that occurred during his time at Auschwitz-Birkenau.
In Eli Wiesel’s narrative Night, Wiesel explores exactly what man is capable of doing. One of the ways he explores this idea is making sure that the readers understand the internal conflict survival vs. sacrifice and how it affected the young Wiesel. One of the biggest parts he shows the readers this internal clash is when Wiesel is talking about how he felt guilty for feeding his father the food he so desperately needed. “I gave him what was left of my soup. But my heart was heavy. I was aware that I was doing it grudgingly. Just like Rabbi Eliahu's son, I had not passed the test (Night 107).” The word “grudgingly” is a word that portrays young Eli’s feelings in this situation perfectly. This is father, he is talking about; most of us would help our father if he were in a dire situation like this. When Wiesel writes about this precise situation, he wants the readers to one, pity, but also apprehend that human survival instincts can make people turn into to vile creatures. Young Eli is going through this revel...

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...s humans are capable of dreaming and executing for the sake of their own survival. This is the reason a very grown up, Eli Wiesel shares his story. Something like this must never happen again, and the world must never be silent. What better way to end this essay than with a quote from none other than Eli Wiesel himself? Wiesel says this: “I swore never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation. We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” We will never be silent.

Works Cited

The "Final Solution" United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
United States Holocaust Memorial Council, n.d. Web 3 Mar. 2014.
Wiesel, Eli. "Elie Wiesel Quote." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 04 Mar. 2014.
Wiesel, Eli. Night. Logan, IA: Perfection Form, 1988. Print.

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