Silence In Elie Wiesel's Night

There were many victims of the Holocaust but very few survived to write about what went on. Elie Wiesel, the author of the novel Night, was a survivor of the Holocaust who lived to write about what he and many others had experienced. It was not until ten years later when he published his first book Night, which would be the first of a trilogy. In Night, Wiesel writes about his life before, after, and during the Holocaust. Throughout Night multiple themes are evident, such as Silence. This theme is produced through the setting, mood, and tone of the novel. Silence, a theme in Night, is developed through the tone presented by Wiesel. The people of Sighet do not associate themselves with Moishe and ignore him. They refuse to listen to him and silence his cries. The author writes," Moishe was not the same. The joy in his eyes was gone. He no longer sang. He no longer mentioned either God or Kabbalah. He spoke only of what he had seen. But people not only refused to believe his tales, they refused to listen." (p.7) The author uses tone to show the reader that even though Moishe tried to tell the people of Sighet what was

The people in the train car being deported to Birkenau are all going mad. Mrs. Schachter tried to warn them about the flames and the bodies burning but they silenced her. The narrator says," Our nerves had reached a breaking point. Our very skin was aching. It was as though the madness had infected all of us. We gave up. A few young men forced her to sit down, then bound and gagged her." (p. 26) The people in the train car were all worried, scared, and unsure of their fate. They silenced Mrs. Schachter in an attempt to silence the fear inside themselves. The mood of all the people in the train car, including Mrs. Schachter, shows how much the people wanted to not believe what was going on and instead choose to silence the