In Elie Wiesel’s, The Perils of Indifference he tells us what he recalls and what he seen as a Jewish boy growing up. He expresses how he was thankful for American soldiers’ rage and care that helped in his freedom, and how he’s so thankful to the President
Elie Wiesel’s somber speech, “The Perils of Indifference”, demonstrated the harsh reality of the numerous evils harvesting in the world. The main evil though was simply indifference, or a lack of concern. As a young Jewish boy, he faced the wickedness of the Holocaust, imprisoned at Buchenwald and Auschwitz and also losing both his parents and younger sister. The speaker saw atrocious horrors and suffered for a prolonged amount of time. Why was this permitted?
In the speech, titled “The Perils of Indifference,” Elie Wiesel showed gratitude to the American people, President Clinton, and Mrs. Hillary Clinton for the help they brought and apprised the audience about the violent consequences and human suffering due to indifference against humanity (Wiesel). This speech was persuasive. It was also effective because it conveyed to the audience the understanding of
Elie loses his family, suffered through considerable hardship, and lived through the worst time in humanity. Through Elie’s time in the concentration camps, he is exposed to the loss of his family and suffering that lead to the destruction of his religion, his identity, and his faith in humanity. Eventually, Elie would turn his suffering into motivation to
We see generosity with the sharing of rations, but also lies for the purpose of boosting morale and instilling hope, and the gradual numbness, violence and savagery when fighting for survival. c. What are some symbols in Night? How do they relate to the plot and characters? The symbol of night itself is seen frequently in the novel. Night symbolizes all things dark, the suffering endured, and death.
Wiesel writes with a power aimed at never letting people forget all that had happened in the Holocaust. Wiesel, with a strong background in Jewish studies, is seen
On April 12th, 1999, a Holocaust survivor by the name of Elie Wiesel spoke at the White House in Washington, D.C., showing gratitude to the Clintons for taking action against tragedies which plagued the world at that time (American Rhetoric). Without detailing his own gruesome experience within concentration camps, Wiesel uses his familiarity with suffering to relate to lesser-known injustice within the world. Additionally, he thanks Hillary Clinton for her actions of making the issues of smaller countries visible (Wiesel) and contrasts her against President Roosevelt, who turned a blind eye to the ethnic cleansing of Jews in Germany during World War II. Because Roosevelt was a well-liked president, his controversial activity further exemplifies Mrs. Clinton’s actions of speaking on behalf of “the victims of injustice” (Wiesel). Wiesel’s speech is named for his analyzation of administrations’ indifference to suffering of
This is shown in the quote, “I was thinking of my father. He must have suffered more than I did.” (Wiesel 56). Death was an everyday thing in concentration camps. It was inevitable for some, and people barely grieved anymore. Wiesel knew that if he dwelled on death too much, he would never get out alive, so he was basically numb the entire time.
“Every encounter filled us with joy—yes, joy…” (Wiesel, 35) Eliezer had already adapted to his situation, using the word joy to describe the meeting. “In the afternoon, we cheerfully went to clear the ruins.” (Wiesel, 61) The above quote is a perfect example of how Eliezer continually adjusts his meaning of ‘happiness’ and takes nothing for granted. “But we no longer feared death, in any event not this particular death. Every bomb that hit filled us with joy, gave us renewed confidence.” (Wiesel, 60) In reality, freedom is still far away. Eliezer and the other inmates believe freedom is close; a loss of innocence would have meant a loss of hope.
Throughout life, one learns through experiences to cherish even the simplest of comforts. Through pain and unimaginable suffering, it is impossible for one to not lose faith or hope in life. Throughout the book Night, Elie Wiesel’s experiences from before he even enters the camps, to the end where he is free. Explains the mind of one who has endured great suffering and lost, causing them to finally break after continuous torture. Leading to loss of faith in religion, life, and even humanity.