Sunday, March 11, 2012
Alicia Albuquerque Response #3
After finishing Night, I can better understand the constant struggle to stay alive Wiesel and his father had to face. It was shocking to me how bad the conditions became and how terrible the Jews were being treated. They were shown no mercy, no matter how tired they were or how cold it was outside. I find the Germans extremely hypocritical. They push the Jews until their breaking point; until they physically and mentally cannot go on. The Germans force the Jew to run to their next camp, over twenty kilometers. The Germans run with the Jews to make sure they don't stop but when the Germans get tired, they switch out with another person. The Jews have to keep running the entire way and cannot take any breaks or they will risk being shot. The Germans do not feed the Jews for days at time and expect no one to complain while they are getting meals everyday. The Jews go through so much pain and suffering. Wiesel truly amazes me. He is incredibly strong to be able to survive the Holocaust and be able to tell about his struggles afterward. He never gave up no matter what, not even when his father died or when he thought he had no reason to live. Wiesel is an inspiration to the world. His story teaches us never to give up no matter what the conditions. Wiesel never gave up and he ended up surviving. Surviving the Holocaust is something to be extremely proud of. Wiesel deserves every award he has ever received and all the credit he can get.
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ReplyDeleteI can better understand the the story now that I have finished reading it as well. I agree that the Jews' ordeal was so terrible and it completely astonishes me. I didn't think on this too much, but you are absolutely right in mentioning the Germans' hypocrisy. It is ridiculous that they pushed the Jews so hard and shot them if they stopped, yet when they themselves became tired they stopped and were replaced by other officers while they rested. It is completely unfair, but, in these circumstances, was anything fair? Nobody deserves to go through something like the Holocaust, and you are right in saying that the survivors, like Wiesel, should be viewed as heroes. He survived against all odds, and he certainly deserves the recognition he has been given throughout his life. He has lived to tell a story; a horrifying and heartbreaking account of a terrible time in human history. This was a time where people were blinded by hate and prejudice, and they often did not make the right choices. Wiesel lives to speak out against oppression, and he is a role model for us all.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree about Wiesel being a role model for all of us. I would also like to say that Wiesel and other survivors, if one truly can "survive" the horror that was the Holocaust, are an amazing testament to the unforgettable being that is the human soul. Even long after the Holocaust, Wiesel was not allowing that same persecution to go unnoticed. I remember in the book where he sees the children fighting over the coins and tells the woman to stop. I am inspired by how well he held himself because surely her response made him sick. How could people still be doing this? Finding joy in the pain and suffering of those around them? Wiesel was given the opportunity to examine his life many times over and I think that the entire human race should stop for a minute and look at their neighbor. What is different? What is the same? What matters those most to any of us? I think we need to answer these questions before we can ever really learn how to be as strong as those like Wiesel.
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