Final Essay Night

7/21/2019 Final Essay Night

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Eliora 1

Final Essay Night

English 10

Ms. French

17 December 2015

To Remember

In this day and age the !orld has been sc"l#ted into one o$ indi%id"alism and

#ersonal regard. Tho"gh ha%ing a sense o$ sel$&#reser%ation is essential to s"r%i%al it sho"ld

not be m"ddled !ith sel$&im#ortance. 's #art o$ h"manity it is o"r obligation to li%e not $or

o"rsel%es b"t $or the !orld so that the !orld may li%e thro"gh "s. The no%el Night is a

#ersonally #enned memoir by Elie (iesel !ho !rote o$ his e)#eriences as *e! d"ring the

+oloca"st beca"se he belie%es that he m"st testi$y so that the yo"th o$ tomorro! do not

re#eat the same mista,e - xv. (ith his memoir he recei%ed a Nobel /iece /rie !here in his

acce#tance s#eech he states I ha%e tried to $ight those !ho !o"ld $orget. eca"se i$ !e

$orget !e are g"ilty !e are accom#lices.3 (hen $aced !ith e)#erience it is one4s d"ty to

remember beca"se i$ !e $orget o"r silence becomes indi$$erence a "sti$ication o$ cr"elty

and n"mbness to inh"manity.

Elie stated in one o$ his s#eeches that the o##osite o$ lo%e is not hate b"t indi$$erence.

Indi$$erence has its conse6"ences and !hen !e react !ith indi$$erence !e are allo!ing the

!orld to roam !ith e%il. In the beginning o$ the boo, Elie4s indi$$erence to!ards Moishe the

eadle4s !arnings has se%ere conse6"ences. Moishe the eadle !ho $irst ret"rned to !arn

the #eo#le o$ the cr"elties he !itnessed had $allen silent3 - beca"se the #eo#le !ere

indi$$erent to!ards his !arnings thin,ing they !ere abs"rd and chose to regard him as a

madman. (hen time $inally came $or their de#ortation Moishe ret"rned to them. 8I !arned

yo"4 he sho"ted. 'nd le$t !itho"t !aiting $or a res#onse3 -10. 9ater in the no%el Elie as,s

ho! the !orld co"ld allo! s"ch cr"elties to be s"bected onto the *e!s !itho"t realiing that



Eliora 2

the !orld !as silent beca"se they did not belie%e s"ch an e)treme o$ cr"elty !as #ossible

similar to ho! he did not belie%e Moishe the eadle4s !ords and allo!ed his de#ortation. In

this irony !e see that indi$$erence is deadly. (hen #eo#le $orget they t"rn ignorant and

indi$$erent to!ards the ha##enings o$ the !orld. +"manity then becomes #oisono"s to itsel$

beca"se i$ the #o#"lation o$ the earth !ere indi$$erent it !o"ld be one that bred and li%ed

thro"gh sel$ishness caring only abo"t one4s #ersonal matters. Remembering e%ents becomes

essential so that h"manity knows that in the !orld no $eat o$ cr"elty is im#ossible and begin

to sel$lessly dedicate their li%es not $or the betterment o$ their o!n !orld b"t the shared

!orld. Indi$$erence allo!s e%il to ha##en: it allo!ed the +oloca"st and !ill allo! many

+oloca"sts to come i$ it is not changed.

/eo#le are sel$&#reser%ing creat"res !ho by instinct do not want to be e%il. (hen

things ha##en occ"r and they choose not to meddle it is "nrealied by them that their silence

is an allo!ance o$ the action. /eo#le m"st remember so that they learn that silence is not an

ade6"ate res#onse. Elie mentions Ne%er shall I $orget the $lames that cons"med my $aith

$ore%er3 -;< and that he didn4t ,no! that in the history o$ the *e!ish #eo#le men ha%e

e%er be$ore recited =addish $or themsel%es3 -;;. Elie !ill not allo! himsel$ $orget that

night beca"se in it he disco%ered that there !ere #eo#le !ho co"ld #"sh others into edge o$

des#eration "ntil they !ere as ho#eless as to #ray a death #rayer $or themsel%es. Elie !ill not

allo! himsel$ $orget the night beca"se he ,no!s that i$ he does the !orld !ill not ,no! o$

the limitless cr"elty o$ the man,ind and !ill react in silence. (hen $aced !ith e)#erience it

is o"r essential d"ty to remember and testi$y against it so that the !orld does not react in

silence. Forgetting an e%ent beca"se it is #ain$"l is as #o!er$"l an e)#ression o$ allo!ance as

committing the sin itsel$ beca"se in $orgetting yo" are allowing it to occ"r again ho!e%er

m"ch one !ishes to con%inces themsel%es other!ise. (hen somebody remembers the

indi%id"al is indebted to letting the !orld ,no! so that the same mista,es are not re#eated.



Eliora ;

(hen somebody $orgets they are allo!ing the memory to mani$est !ithin themsel$ as

a blinding demon n"mbing their senses against inh"manity. Elie too is g"ilty o$ this. D"ring

his time in the +oloca"st he !as $orced to !itness the hanging o$ #risoners in the gallo!s.

>"rro"nded by so m"ch death he had become n"mb o$ it $orgetting the !orth o$ h"man li$e

beca"se he !itnessed it being so easily ta,en a!ay. (hen ad"lts !ere hanged it bothered

him b"t that !as the limit o$ his reaction. '$ter!ards he co"ld still com$ortably eat his so"#

than,$"l that he co"ld li%e another day -?;. +o!e%er !hen a child !as hanged he !as

reminded o$ the inh"manity o$ the !orld beca"se he co"ld see the child innocent hanging

$or a sin that !as not his o!n doing. The hanged pipel had the $ace o$ sad&eyed angel an

angel in distress and he !as reminded that d"ring !ars e%en angels e#itomes o$ #"rity

!ere %ictims. That night the so"# tasted o$ cor#ses3 -?5. The hanging !as an abr"#t

reminder to Elie o$ the !orth o$ li$e that he had $orgotten the realiation disg"sting himsel$

beyond !ords. E%er since he had regarded no death as meaningless beca"se he remembered

that each li$e had !orth. +is remembrance is a reminder to readers that in li$e $orgetting

allo!s the body to be conditioned to e%il n"mbed by it. (hen allo!ance o$ cr"elty mani$ests

in h"mans it b"ilds in them a tolerance $or e%il. Thro"gho"t all o$ history the e%ilest o$

#eo#le start $rom small acts o$ cr"elty and those acts gro! o"t o$ tolerance. 'll serial ,illers

ha%e a history o$ animal tort"re beca"se it conditions them to in$lict #ain. Forgetting the

!orth o$ h"man li$e is a #rod"ct o$ that gro!ing that n"mbing tolerance !ithin. (hen all

#eo#le gro! n"mb no so"l !ill be le$t to recognie e%il and sto# it. N"mbness is sel$&

destr"cting and m"st be sto##ed. /eo#le m"st remember the !roth o$ li$e the !orth o$

goodness so that h"manity !ill be intolerant to e%il. +"manity m"st remember to "nderstand

that e%il is intolerable so that #eo#le remo%e e%il $rom each other4s $"t"res.

(hen #eo#le remember they are standing "# $or !hat they belie%e in beca"se truly

remembering means "nderstanding and "nderstanding means change. Indi$$erence allo!s



Eliora <

e%il silence "sti$ies cr"elty and n"mbness is allo!ing a tolerance to!ards e%il. 'll those

acts rooted in $orgetting de%astate the !orld in$licting #ain "#on h"manity. In Night

$orgetting has al!ays led to "ndesired conse6"ences and that it tr"e to the !orld. (hen

h"manity $orgets h"manity allo!s and h"manity is g"ilty o$ re#eating the gra%est sins.

Remembering is not a s"ggestion b"t a moral obligation. The !orld sho"ld not cannot

allo! mista,es to be re#eated. In daily li$e too sin m"st be remembered not to condemn the

sinner b"t to a%oid the reocc"rrence o$ the sin. +"manity m"st remember beca"se the

,no!ledge o$ the #ast m"st be $ashioned to mold the $"t"re. 9i$e is brittle memories are

brittle and both m"st be maintained !ith good intentions.

Final Essay Night

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