Critical Book Essay

Night
by Elie Wiesel

When it came time to choose a book for this critical book essay, I had to admit I was completely at a loss for which book to read. After much endorsement from classmates, I decided that Night would be a good choice. I, along with most college students, have heard stories and read books on the Holocaust. I have even been to the Holocaust museum in DC and read short stories about people who lived during that horrible time. I was a little nervous about reading this book from the stand point of how deeply I hurt while reading about people’s sufferings. However, I would venture to say that I read this book faster than I have ever read a book in my life. Once I started I could not put it down. Many things about the author’s life made this autobiography not just another book that I was reading- I felt as though I was facing every challenge and triumph right next to him.

I had never heard of Elie Wiesel until now, but there were many things about his life in this book that made an impact on me. The first thing that stood out to me was his hunger for knowledge, mainly spiritual knowledge. At such a young age, an age where most boys would probably be fleeing knowledge and understanding, he was desperately searching for it to the point where he was being taught by a poor man in the synagogue. Not only did he have a desire to know the mysterious of their religion, Kabbalah, he wasn’t going to simply embrace it without an understanding. I liked when his “teacher”, Moishe the Beadle, asked him the thought provoking questions “Why do you cry when you pray?” and “Why do you pray?” because it prompted Wiesel to truly understand what he believed and why. So often people, especially children, simply embrace what they are told without a true understanding of what it is they are professing to believe. This self-examining character trait became even more impressive once Wiesel was put in the concentration camp. I truly admired his honesty about everything he encountered. He didn’t lie and say that he never lost hope and completely trusted God through it all. He was honest about his doubts, anger, and frustration with God through this immense trial. Even near the end when it came to thoughts about whether or not to leave his father, he was completely honest even if he was ashamed at the state of his heart. Ultimately, his love and care for his father was another characteristic that truly blew me away. Part of my feels as though in such a traumatic situation that clinging to my mom or dad would be a natural instinct because I would want as much assurance as possible; but another part of me feels as though it would be extremely hard to continue day by day to care for such on older person in addition to myself in such horrible conditions. To some degree, it almost seems easier to physically die for a loved one than continually die to your personal needs and desires daily so that a loved one can survive. His selflessness was heroic. He never gave up: he fought until the end for his dad and continued to encourage and care for him until the very end. Wiesel’s persistence was another trait that really stood out to me. He seemed to have numerous chances to simply give up but he never did. Even when he had lost all hope in the world and in God, he wouldn’t stop fighting. As with many stories, you can’t help but cheer for him throughout the entire book.

I feel as though there were two main ideologies emphasized in Wiesel’s story: discovering one’s personal beliefs in God and survival. Throughout the entire book, Wiesel battled his belief in the God that he had learned about his entire life. He seemed determined to come to his own conclusion about God and was as honest as he could be with himself. In the most perilous time of his life, he wrestled with his belief which is really powerful to me because it is easy to believe when things are going smoothly but it is in the pits of despair that we are confronted with what we truly believe. I agreed with Wiesel coming to his own conclusions about God and not simply conforming to his religious background, although it seemed that many denounced their stands the longer they remained in the concentration camps. The other main ideology was survival and the ability to dig down deeper than imaginable to overcome atrocious circumstances. Wiesel was a warrior: he believed in fighting until the end and never giving up. He realized that survival wasn’t only for himself; it was for others as he realized the toll that his death would potentially take on his father. It is impossible not to agree with his survivor ideology because as humans it is innate within us. I am a little astonished to say that I agreed with every ideology that I picked up from this book, which is something that rarely happens- if ever.

I think one of the most enjoyable things about this book in relation to leadership is that it isn’t your typical “over-coming the horrible to become a major leader of my people” story. Honestly, while I read the book I was a little amazed that this story was chosen as one for leadership. But as I think about who Wiesel was as a person, you can’t deny the leadership traits that he exhibited. Wiesel was relatable. You could identify with all his emotions while reading the book. Even during the times when he described not being able to stand up for his father out of utter fear that he would be beaten you understood completely his dilemma. Wiesel was honest. No matter what the feeling or thought he had, he was transparent enough to share it. He lived honestly and wasn’t swayed by norms of how he should think or act. Wiesel was a fighter. His entire autobiography tells about his survival attitude that kept him through all the battles he encountered no matter how severe or unthinkable. The things he endured- beatings, starvation, dehydration, bitter cold, emotional distress, physical issues- made him stronger than he could ever imagine. He is the living example of “what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger”! Wiesel was humble. It would probably seem obvious that in the situation he was in that he had no other choice but to be humble, but he never put himself above others. Of all the times in a person’s life where you would imagine that they are “justified” in putting themselves first, this is definitely near the top. Yet he had the ability to continuously put the needs of his dad before his own: servant leadership. It is undeniable that his experience during the Holocaust shaped Wiesel into the man that he became. Through his sufferings he gained a strong conviction for people. If he hadn’t experienced all those things in the concentration camps, his eyes would not have been opened to how inhumane people can be. He wouldn’t have had such a strong desire to make a difference in this world or the fight to see it through. Because of the silence around the Holocaust, Wiesel now uses his voice to speak out against the sufferings of humanity. His story reminds me of the bible verse “What Satan intended for evil, God turned for good.” It makes you realize the importance of every circumstance we face in life and how the choices we make are building character traits that will shape our future.