Nazi Dehumanization in Night Memoir

Analytical Essay: Night

“Never shall I forget that nocturnal silence which deprived me for all eternity, of the desire to live.” (Wiesel 32) During the Holocaust, concentration camps not only worked prisoners to the bone, it deprived people of their humanity. The Nazis did this by destroying people emotionally, and physically and taking them away from their beliefs, religious or otherwise. In the novella Night by Elie Wiesel the Nazis dehumanized many prisoners in concentration camps, weather they were jews or not.

Hope is a dangerous thing when you’re in a situation to die everyday. Prisoners were often given false home in concentration camps, from other prisoners, or SS officers. When someone’s hope is built up, and then knocked down it takes a toll on them emotionally.

After so many times it can really affect the way people think and feel. In chapter 5 there was a rumor going through the camp that the Russian front was getting closer. That would mean that they could potentially be freed by Russian soldiers.

Some people has thought it a lie because they had been given false hope like this before. This kind of hope, false or not could destroy people emotionally. It can make people not trust any sort of information they receive and could be the reason that they don’t make it through one day. Emotional abuse was just a terrorising as physical abuse. Elie had seen and felt awful abuse from many unnecessary reasons. People were brutally beaten for many reasons.

Get quality help now

Marrie pro writer

Verified

Proficient in: Nazi Concentration Camps

5 (204)

“ She followed all my directions. It was really easy to contact her and respond very fast as well. ”

+84 relevant experts are online

Hire writer

Small or big. Prisoners were treated like animals.

They were given tasks and expected to do it without question. These acts of abuse were always unnecessary and horrifying. “Twenty- four. .. twenty- five.’ It was over. But I did not realize it, for I had fainted” (55) Elis was Whipped 25 times being in the wrong place at wrong time. One of the prisoners that had power had Pulled 100 people into work on a day that they were not required to work or that he could have sex with a prisoner. When Elie walked in he was yelled at then whipped 25 times. This was just cruel and horrifying for a young boy to endure. This is another way that the pulled people from their humanity.

The we believe that are what make us human, It gives us our individuality and identity. Whether these beliefs are religious or ethical, they are apart of what make us who we are as people. Taking something like that away from someone could be as treturous as turning off one’s emotions. “And at the same time I was afraid of having to wish him a happy new year when i no longer believed in it.” (65) From the very beginning of the novella, it was obvious that Elie was very certain about his faith. He wanted to learn more about it. His faith was part of what made him who he was. With in just the first few months of being in those god awful camps, it was taking him away from himself. To take something that, is that important to someone is taking away a part of their identity. Without morals some people are heartless, or they lose the desire to stay alive.

Elie had seen, felt and endure so much physical and emotional pain. He was pulled from his religion, something that was extremely important to him. The Nazis and prisoners with power brutally beat and abused for small reasons on a daily basis. During the holocaust people were treated like they were less than a person and dehumanized.this happened with physical and emotional abuse, and taking people away from their faith and morals. Night gave many examples of how these things happened, and what it was like to be in these camps.

Work Cited

1. Wiesel, Elie Night. 1960. New York: Bantam Books, 1982. Print.