Elie Wiesel Essay -- essays research papers fc

Elie Wiesel The book Night opens in the town of Signet where Elie Wiesel, the author , was born . He lived his child hood in the Signet, Transylvania . He had three sisters Hilda, Bea, and Tzipora. His father was an honored member of the Jewish community. He was a cultured man concerned about his community yet, he was not an emotional man. His parents were owners of a shop and his two oldest sisters worked for his parents. Elie was a school boy and interested in studying the Zohar â€Å"the cabbalistic books, the secrets of Jewish mysticism†(Wiesel 3). His teacher was a foreigner, Moshe the Beadle, a â€Å"poor barefoot of Signet†(Wiesel 3). He was Elie's teacher until he was forced to leave Signet by the Hungarians because he was a foreign Jew. After several months Elie saw Moshe the Beadle once again. Moshe the Beadle told his story about his journey that the Jews were forced to get out and dig grave which would become final resting places for prisoners who were killed. Luckily, Moshe the Beadle was able to escape. He pretended that he was dead in order to escape being killed. Not only did Moshe tell his story to Elie, he wanted to warn the Jews of Signet of what could happen to them. However, they only thought it was a vivid imagination speaking from his lips. No one wanted to believe his story and people lived life as usual. It was not until German troops would enter Hungarian territory that life would change for the Jews of Signet. At first the German soldiers did not seem like a threat. During the week of Passover things seemed to be going well. People were celebrating yet, it was not a complete celebration. On the seventh day of the Passover Jewish leaders of the community were arrested. After that rules were set by the Germans. Jews were confined to their homes for three days and they could no longer keep valuables such as gold, jewelry and other objects. The Germans took it all. Elie's father managed to bury the family's savings in the cellar. After the three days Jews had to wear a yellow star. After this more rules were set. Jews could not go to restaurants, travel on railways, go to synagogues, or go out after six o'clock. As if the rules and restrictions were not enough. Soon Jews would be placed in Ghettos. There were two gettos set up in Signet. These ghettos were fenced in with barbed wire and the windows of the houses facing the street were boarded... ...last moments of his life. On January 28, 1945 Elie went to sleep and his father was still alive. When he woke up the next day his father was gone(Wiesel 106). On April 11,1945 Elie was free. The Americans moved in on Buchenwald and took over the camp. The first thing the free men wanted was food. They could not think of revenge or their families â€Å"Nothing but bread†(Wiesel 109). Elie was sick from food poisoning after the liberation, he almost died. However, when he was finally able to get up and look in the mirror after so many years he did not even recognize himself. All he could see was a â€Å"corpse† staring back at him. Elie Wiesel now lives in the United Stated under the name of Andrew Mellon. He is the Professor of Humanities at Boston University. He is also Chairman of the Holocaust Memorial Council. This organization is a nonpolitical organization that was formed to educate people of the crimes put forth on the Jewish people during the Holocaust (Chaimberlin 14). Works Cited Chamberlin, Brewster, and Marcia Feldman eds. The Liberation of the Nazi Concentration Camps 1945. Government Printing Office: Washington, D.C, 1987. Wiesel, Elie. Night . Bantam Books: New York, 1989 .