The main question of this essay is at what point or points in this speech does Wiesel
risk offending parts of his audience to the extent where it might hurt his ethos -- and
how does he manage to overcome it and rehabilitate that ethos?
Elie Wiesel provides an introduction about indifference. Indifference might be seen as
even worse than hatred because with indifference there is no action and God seems to have
forgotten. It is when Wiesel mentions that leaders of the free world, in particular, the US
most likely would have done something about the transportation of Jews if they only knew
(YouTube, 2014). He emphasizes this point with his voice and it is accusative. Wiesel adds
that this information was known to the Pentagon and State Department and they actually
knew. President Roosevelt was in power at the time. He acknowledges President Roosevelt
was an illustrious leader but yet he did not take action. Wiesel looks at President Clinton and
the audience to overcome and rehabilitate, almost as if to acknowledge their presence and he
is not just saying this to turn them off but to engage them in his speech (YouTube, 2014).
At another point Wiesel talks about the image of President Roosevelt in Jewish history
which is a flawed one due to his action to send back a ship with Jewish refugees that was on
American shore. Wiesel asks why this ship was sent back, after the Kristallnacht, it is as if he
is pointing a finger at the audience present (YouTube, 2014). Wiesel does not understand this
indifference on the highest level and sighs, which is another way to rehabilitate. He also
acknowledges by claiming that there were human beings sensitive to the tragedy of the Jews
and therefore assuages that nothing had been done. He sighs also at the point where he asks
himself and his audience why so many great companies kept doing business with Germany
(YouTube, 2014), literally fuelling the war.
References
William J. Clinton Presidential Library. “White House Millennium Lecture Series - #7. Elie
Wiesel – “The Perils of Indifference: Lessons from a Violent Century.””. YouTube. YouTube,
LLC. 1 July 2012. Web. 15 Feb. 2014
