“Night” is a novella published in 1960 by Elie Wiesel. Originally, he wrote a memoir entitled “Un di Velt Hot Geshvign” in 1956 after a vow of silence for ten years. This staggering, eight-hundred page memoir was then condensed and translated from Yiddish to French into “La Nuit”; eventually translated in English and published as “Night”. This revolutionary novella reflected the cruelty and inhumanity millions suffered in the hands of the Holocaust as reflected by its main character, Eliezer (eNotes Editors). Despite all horrors suffered, justice is still arguably found in the story in the form of Eliezer’s faith.
Wiesel was born in 1928 in the small town of Sighet, Transylvania. As a boy, he showed a proclivity for reading Jewish texts: the Torah, the Talmud and the Cabbala which is mirrored into the novella. By 1944, the Holocaust has spread until Hungary—including Sighet. By May of the same year, Wiesel and his family were transferred to Auschwitz; one of the largest and deadliest concentration camps in Poland. His entire family died and Wiesel barely managed to escape and emigrate to France. The horrors he and his family experienced there was the fuel of Wiesel’s writing. (SparkNotes Editors)
“Night” as mentioned before, is told through the eyes of the fifteen year-old Eliezer. Much similarity can be seen between the author and the main character, although not entirely. Eliezer is also of Sighet and learns the Jewish texts from his teacher, Moshe the Beadle. However, Moshe had to be deported. In a few months, Moshe returns and narrates the horrors they encountered. The passengers of the train were captured by the Gestapo along the Polish border and were forced to dig up their own graves. They were murdered soon after. Unfortunately, Moshe is taken as a lunatic and no one believes him.
Throughout the book, unspeakable acts of inhumanity are seen all throughout. The treatment of the Jews as vermin to be exterminated using any means necessary is the frightening gist of the Holocaust. Such horrors were more than enough for Eliezer and countless others to doubt the existence of God. How can one see the beauty and kindness of God in unthinkable places such as concentration camps? Upon seeing infants being burned or young boys hanged without further ado, how can one believe that God exists? Amidst such cruelty and brutality, Eliezer’s faith, along with countless others, wavered and at times, died. No God would ever let his children suffer like this.
It is not only in God did Eliezer lose his faith but also in humanity. When the humans are stripped of basic resources, dignity and respect, out comes a being who knows nothing more than survival. Sons turn on fathers as the thirst for survival calls out louder than filial love. During escapes, weakened fathers are left behind. On the train to Buchenwald, bread is thrown by the locals as the people fought to the death. A boy is willing to murder his own father for one loaf of bread. Eliezer is not immune to these evils. He himself felt shame when he realized what he truly felt for his father. This was seen clearly upon his father’s slow death. As his father died slowly of dysentery, he felt an internal struggle. It would’ve been more practical if he kept the food to himself since there was little chance of his father’s survival anyway. Yet even if he thought this way, he still gave his father food. No matter the cruelties shown to his father by others, he still took care of his father. Unfortunately, upon his father’s death, he shed no tears. But a wave of relief engulfed him, followed by shame.
In the midst of all these horrors, it is arguable to claim that there is justice. The Holocaust is one of the darkest taints in human history; a testament to how truly beastly the human race can go. Millions have died in the most gruesome fashion. One tragedy became one statistic. Justice is not likely to be found in such a devastating memory of the human race. And yet it is there in the form of Eliezer. Despite the cruelty he endured, he emerged with his faith; beaten and battered but still intact. This faith of his that has wavered and died at times is what serves as justice. In the story, those who have given up on their faith and hope are those who willingly succumb to death. They have lost the will to live when they lost their faith. This is what the Nazis had wanted: for the Jews to be wiped out. The easiest way to kill a man is to kill his spirit. Physical death will follow shortly. With the horrors of the Holocaust, losing faith is the easiest recluse. There is no longer any point in continuing life if Hell itself is already on Earth. And yet through it all, Eliezer lived. This resounding strength of will is what serves justice in the story. Countless may have given up their lives and their faith, but a few still stand amidst the horrors humanity has to offer. As long as there are still those who live with hope and faith, a shred of goodness still found in the hearts of the people, no amount of terror can completely wipe out the soul of humanity.
Works Cited
eNotes Editors. “Night by Elie Wiesel.” www.enotes.com. eNotes Inc. 2011. Web. 4 April 2012.
“Memories of the Night: A Study of the Holocaust.” holocaust-trc.org. Holocaust Teacher Resource Center. 2001. Web. 4 April 2012.
SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on Night.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2002. Web. 4 Apr. 2012.
Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York: Bantam Books. 1986. Print.
