Night (p.85-120)

Throught the entire story, Elie and his fellow inmates were treated as though they were animals. They were refered to as "flea-ridden dogs" and herded around as if they were cattle. This inhumane treatment began in the very beginning of the story when the inmates were forced to take off their clothes, be completely shaved, and branded with a number that soon became their identity. As the story progressed, they were treated more and more like animals and their sense of humanity began to diminish. An underlying theme of this memoir is faith. Elie talks a lot about his faith, as well as his fellow Jews' faith. Although Elie was always in a constant struggle to keep his faith, deep down he still believed, which helped him to survive his terrible circumstances. Ironically, many of Sighet's religious leaders' faith crumbled under the horrendous circumstances they went through. I don't know how Elie was able to keep his faith after going through everything he did and watching so many religious figures fall to the power of the Nazis. The mood of the story was dark and terrifying. A symbolic setting of the story was night. Night seemed to prevail in the story because of its darkness and depressing vibe. Elie does a great job at incorporating similes and metaphors into his story. Toward the end of the story, it is winter and the snow is falling heavily. Barely dressed and fed, the inmates were forced to march on for days and days. On page 89, Elie describes with the use of a metaphor and simile, "These human waves were rolling forward and would have crushed me like an ant." Many of the inmates gave up any desire to live and simply layed down in the snow to sleep, and most likely never wake up. Death seems to be surrounding Elie, especially during the final days leading up to their liberation. It's amaing that Elie was able to overcome his circumstances and make it out alive.
Although this memoir was tough to read at times, it was a great experience for me to read it. It's so hard to imagine the pain that the concentration camp inmates endured and that some still endure today. After reading this book, I really want to meet Elie Wiesel and find out what he is like now as an elderly man. I'm sure his experience in the Holocaust has had an impact on him throughout his entire life. It's interesting how Elie wrote about giving his father a few drinks of water while he was infected with dysentery. "With these few mouthfuls of hot water, I had probably given him more satisfaction than during my entire childhood..." Because of the extreme circumstances they were in, Elie's father was given such satisfaction at this small gesture of love. To most people, giving someone a glass of water would seem so insignificant, but not to Elie' father. Elie and his father's love and need for each other were obvious. Elie stated many times that his father was the main reason he fought to stay alive. I wonder if Elie still feels guilty about almost feeling relieved at his father's death because this increased his chances of survival. He might also realize that the reason for such an extreme feeling was brought about because of his horrifying circumstance and it really wasn't his fault. That is what the concentration camps had done to him; he no longer had a regard for humanity by the end of the story. The motto "Every man for himself" was obvious especially in the end of the story. This story was extremely touching and has already had an impact on my life. By reading this, I see how unfair it is for the world to remain silent as others endure so much pain and hardship. As Elie said in his acceptance speech, "Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim." Hopefully now if I see a person being treated unfairly because of their race, religion, or sex, I will have the courage to step in and stop it from continuing.