Symbolism In Eli Wiesel's Eight Simple, Short Words

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The Holocaust was a huge historical event that changed many people’s lives. Eli Wiesel, a survivor of the holocaust, opens up about his horrifying experience. The story tells his journey of his time at the Aushwitz concentration camp, then Buchenwald. He discusses losing his family, faith, and sense of self. In “Eight Simple, Short Words”, Eli Wiesel successfully utilizes symbolism, imagery, and tone. Fire is used to symbolizes horror and death. One example takes place when they are on the train going to the concentration camp. A lady named Madame Schachter was separated from her family and was losing her mind. The fear and dehydration caused her to become delirious and hallucinate a fire. She screamed many time, this is shown when Wiesel states, “She continued to scream and sob fitfully. Jews, listen to me…I see a fire! I see flames, huge flames” (302). These screams were also foreshadowing the crematoria and the flames that were burning human bodies. …show more content…

When Elie arrived at the camp, everyone was split up into groups and led to what could be there death. The other inmates told them they were headed to the crematorium, they believed them because they could see it. He describes the horrible scene, “Not far from us flames, huge flames were rising from a ditch. Something was being burned there. 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.” (306). This quote paints a vividly describes the crematorium and the flames used at the

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