During World War II, many people remained neutral or indifferent to the atrocities that were happening around them. However, the words of Elie Wiesel serve as a powerful reminder of the importance of taking action in the face of injustice. In his quote, Wiesel swears never to be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation, emphasizing the importance of taking sides and never remaining neutral. As an American citizen, I reflect on what I would have done during the war and what different life choices I would make in the future. It's easy to say that I would have resisted the Nazi regime, but it would have taken immense bravery to do so. However, now that I am aware of the consequences of neutrality and silence, I firmly believe that I would have tried to be a person of integrity and stand up for what is right. By remaining silent, I would be complicit in the suffering and humiliation of my fellow human beings. Looking back, I realize I Musti realize I must never be silent in the face of suffering and humiliation. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Wiesel's words remind us that sometimes we must interfere. As a …show more content…
I would strive to be a person of integrity, like Raoul Wallenberg or Albert Schweitzer, who can make a difference between life and death. I would also educate myself on the experiences of those who have suffered from injustice and use my privilege to amplify their voices. It's easy to feel overwhelmed by the enormity of the issues facing our world today. However, as Elie Wiesel reminds us, "There is much to be done, there is much that can be done." We must always take sides, and we must never be silent in the face of suffering and humiliation. One person truly can make a difference, and it's up to each of us to decide what side of history we want to be
In Elie Wiesel’s memoir, Night, Elie had to make several decisions which had a severe impact on his life.. If he failed to make the correct decision it could have resulted in a darker outcome. Elie's decision to lie about his age,not fast during Yom Kippur,and him not fight for food and instead he decides to eat the scraps that were left in any. Those decisions had a significant impact on his life and his identity. As Mr.Wisel once said “Action is the only remedy to indifference:the most insidious danger of all”.
Wiesel pinpoints the indifference of humans as the real enemy, causing further suffering and lost to those already in peril. Wiesel commenced the speech with an interesting attention getter: a story about a young Jewish from a small town that was at the end of war liberated from Nazi rule by American soldiers. This young boy was in fact himself. The first-hand experience of cruelty gave him credibility in discussing the dangers of indifference; he was a victim himself.
In the memoir Night, there are many aspects of the Holocaust that Elie Wiesel explains. He reflects on what the Holocaust was like while it was happening and the events that occurred while he was at the death camp, Auschwitz. While giving his Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance speech, Elie Wiesel states “You should never be silent whenever and wherever human beings endure suffering and humiliation.” This quote starts the idea that being silent when things are happening can cause the event to advance, you should always speak up against the wrong in the beginning to prevent an event like the Holocaust from happening again.
The Holocaust was the mass murder of millions of Jews and other people which took place in Europe between 1933 and 1945. The book Night by Elie Wiesel, the movie “The boy in the striped pajamas” and the article “A Secret Life” are based on things that happened and how it affected the characters in all the three works. Silence encourages the tormenter because it empowers the tormenter to continue with justice activities yet also endanger innocent human’s life. In the book Night by Eliezer Wiesel, the silence of the people in the town, prisoners and god influenced the Nazi soldiers to be more powerful which lead to injustice and violence activities.
In the article “Meet Elie Wiesel” includes his quote, “look, it’s important to bear witness. Important to tell your story... you cannot imagine what it meant spending a night of death among death”. The quote shows Wiesel’s acknowledgement of others around the world not experiencing what he has and making sure to speak out for one’s self. In addition in Wiesel’s Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, he states, “When human lives are endangered , when human dignity is in jeopardy national borders, and sensitivities become irrelevant”(118).The speech makes the point of citizens throughout the world caring for everyone else even if it does not directly impact tem or their daily life. Wiesel continues to advocate for people around the world due to his
Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” - Elie
The most important lesson that I have learned about the book, Night by Elie Wiesel is everyone has the ability to be cruel and selfish. Anyone has the ability to be both cruel and selfish because when someone exhibits selfishness you are being cruel to the people around you. Everyone has the ability to be cruel because when we face difficulties and hardship we think about ourselves first, we believe what we want to see or hear, whether it's true or not and everyone has the ability to be or feel threatened by anyone. In times of need and hurt any human tends to put their own needs and safety before anyone else's.
Author and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel, in his powerful speech, “The Perils of Indifference,” suggests that choosing to be indifferent to the suffering of others only make matters worst. He develops his message through the use of pathos which grasps readers with emotions and personal descriptions of the torment he and other prisoners went through during the Holocaust. “Abandoned” and “Forgotten” were how the author and the other prisoners felt (Wiesel). Further, Wiesel uses repetition to emphasize the meaning of “indifference.” Wiesel delivers the meaning of indifference in many ways to help the audience understand the true meaning.
Author and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel in his speech, “The Perils of Indifference,” claims that indifference is “dangerous.” He supports his claim by first defining indifference and how it has impacted everything around us, then he illustrates his personal experiences. Finally, Wiesel gives us examples on how it has divided us. Wiesel’s purpose is to inform and create awareness in order to prevent the horrific experiences from repeating.
In the book “Night”, silence is used many times. It’s important in the because it represents how the world stood back and did nothing while millions of Jews were being burned, beat, and tortured. It’s portrayed through acts of inhumanity and violence. To Elie, silence is evil because it allowed the Nazi’s to continue their torture towards the Jews. This quote on page 81 says, “They’re going to do another selection today… a decisive selection.
Elie Wiesel voiced his emotions and thoughts of the horrors done to Jewish people during World War II whilst developing his claim. Wiesel “remember[s] his bewilderment,” “his astonishment,” and “his anguish” when he saw they were dropped into the ghetto to become slaves and to be slaughtered. He repeats the words “I remember” because he and the world, especially those who suffered in the ghettos and camps, would never be able to forget how innocent suffered. Consequently, he emphasized that “no one” has the right to advocate for the dead. Like many other people in the world, he lost his family during the war.
Famous author and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel claims in his speech, “The Perils of Indifference,” that indifference is dangerous. He supports his claim by first defining indifference as “a blurred line between light and dark,” then by illustrating how indifference can benefit the aggressor and be a friend to the enemy. Finally, Wiesel’s imagery and diction helps support his claim. For example, by listing all of humanity’s failures he helps us imagine how dangerous indifference can really be. Wiesel’s purpose is to illustrate all of the dangers of indifference by using personal and historical experiences in order to prevent the same failures from happening again.
In his 1986 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Elie Wiesel strives to inform his audience of the unbelievable atrocities of the Holocaust in order to prevent them from ever again responding to inhumanity and injustice with silence and neutrality. The structure or organization of Wiesel’s speech, his skillful use of the rhetorical appeals of pathos and ethos, combined with powerful rhetorical devices leads his audience to understand that they must never choose silence when they witness injustice. To do so supports the oppressors. Wiesel’s speech is tightly organized and moves the ideas forward effectively. Wiesel begins with humility, stating that he does not have the right to speak for the dead, introducing the framework of his words.
The human condition is a very malleable idea that is constantly changing due to the current state of mankind. In the memoir Night by Elie Wiesel, the concept of the human condition is displayed in the worst sense of the concept, during the Holocaust of WWII. During this time, multiple groups of people, most notably European Jews, were persecuted against and sent to horrible hard labor and killing centers such as Auschwitz. In this memoir, Wiesel uses complex figurative language such as similes and metaphors to display the theme that a person’s state as a human, both at a physical and emotional level, can be altered to extreme lengths, and even taken away from them, under the most extreme conditions.
And that is why I swore never to be silent when ever and where ever human beings endure suffering and humiliation.” The Allied Forces knew what was going on in all the camps, and they didn’t do anything to try to help. If they would have stood up and said something then maybe millions of people wouldn’t have died. He don’t want anyone to ever suffer the way he did and the way people did around him. Standing up for something could change many lives and help others.