Abbott K: First Response

        The novel, Night, by Elie Wiesel is able to allow the reader to experience a firsthand account of the Holocaust which is not a version that many can view often since few have survived  the Holocaust.  By the end of chapter two, Elie has already shown his life prior to the Holocaust, and his first week in the concentration camps.  He is like any ordinary boy growing up during the time period of the 1940's.  Elie may be a follower of Judaism, but despite that, how is he different from any other boy?  He has dreams of accomplishments he wants to achieve when he gets older, and his parents are like every other hard working citizen.  Why did Adolf Hitler have a problem with followers of Judaism?  While reading the text, the novel made me think of the Ku Klux Klan and how they were very racist to any group of human beings that they disliked.  Hitler and his followers are just like the Ku Klux Klan.  They singled out those who didn't meet their idea of being perfect and eliminated them.  Elie states, "It is obvious that the war which Hitler and his accomplices waged was a war not only against Jewish men, women, and children, but also against Jewish religion, Jewish culture, Jewish tradition, therefore Jewish memory." (Preface)  It is a very horrible choice that Hitler made.  It goes against world peace and not being prejudice or racist.  The characters in the novel didn't do anything wrong.  All they did was minding their own business and continue to live through their daily lives.  Elie and his family didn't try to hurt anyone, so why did others view them as dangerous threats?  I believe that any form of racism is horrible for a person to have.  I wonder why Hitler had such a problem with the followers of Judaism.  

         The one literary element that I like about the literature is that the author's point of view is his own. It shows how he would think, not how some imaginary character would think.  Knowing it is the author's own thoughts makes the story more believable than any fiction novel.  The Holocaust is truly one of the worst disasters in history.  The mass murder of the Jewish religion is very repulsive.  Why did the author have to give every last detail to the reader though? Some of the text seems almost impossible to read because the reader is filled with so much disgust that they can't even imagine what might happen next since he or she is trying to hold down their last meal.  Elie says, "A truck drew close and unloaded its hold: small children.  Babies!  Yes, I did see this, with my own eyes...children thrown into the flames." (32)  I can only imagine the shock that must have been coursing through Elie.  To see such a sight must have been extremely horrific.  It is very unfortunate that any person had to experience such a tragedy right before their eyes.  The novel is excellent up to the point that I have read to.  It may be depressing, but that doesn't make a difference to any novel that is well written.