Suleman 1

Shehryar Suleman

Mrs. Zoern

ENG2D-03

11 May 2017

Preferring Death

The holocaust was a state-sponsored, systematic persecution and annihilation of Jews by

the Nazi Germany during the world war II. Thousands of Jews and people from other minorities

became a victim of this genocide. Elie Wiesel, a young survivor of the holocaust, speaks about

his experiences during this horrific genocide in his memoir, Night, where he writes about how he

survived in German concentration camps with his father. He went through severe trauma and

suffering while living in the concentration camps. Wiesel narrowly escaped death while many

others died including his father. A statement from Luba Frederick, another survivor of holocaust,

that to die was easy during this genocide is true because of the problems faced at Auschwitz by

Wiesel, starvation experienced at Buna, and the journey towards Buchenwald and Gliewitz.

Experiences at Auschwitz of Wiesel and his father shows that to die was easy during

the holocaust. When Wiesel and his family first arrived in Auschwitz, Wiesel is separated from

his mother and his sister, and he is left alone with his father. The first thing they saw at

Auschwitz is a prison and a crematorium where huge flames were rising from it. This is where

the author saw the most tragic scene in his life that changed him forever. Wiesel saw small

children being burned in the flames. He said in his memoir, A truck drew close and unloaded its

hold: small children. Babies! Yes, I did see this, with my own eyeschildren thrown into

flames. (Wiesel 32). This changed Wiesels life forever as he now realized that it is very easy
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for him to die in these concentration camps. Seeing small children burn in front of his eyes

showed Wiesel that the Germans will show no mercy on them and can kill them anytime. After

Wiesels first night at Auschwitz, he said, Never shall I forget that night, the first night at camp,

that turned my life into one long night seven times sealedNever shall I forget the faces of the

children whose bodies I saw transformed into smoke under a silent sky (34). This quote proves

that after seeing the dead bodies of small children, his life changed and his faith in God

weakened because he could not understand how God could allow this from happening. Once the

faith in God and the will to survive weakens, death is an easier option as there is nothing to live

for. Living in Auschwitz was a very difficult task as the prisoners were also forced to take off

their clothes and live naked in the cold weather. All inmates were also beaten almost everyday

by the Kapos, who were the in charge of the prison. Wiesel once saw his father getting beaten up

by the Kapo for just asking where the washroom is. Wiesel said, As if walking from a deep

sleep, he [kapo] slapped my father with such force that he fell down and then crawled back to his

place on all fours (39). This shows the brutality of the Germans as they were beating Wiesels

father without any reason. This also shows that the Kapos and the SS officers can do whatever

they want and even if they kill a prisoner, no one would be there to give justice to the prisoners.

From these experiences of Wiesel in Auschwitz, it was easy to die during the holocaust.

Starvation experienced at Buna also shows that to die was easy. Prisoners were given

very less food and whatever that was given was very unhygienic and foul-smelling. For one

whole day, they were just given one piece of bread, and a bowl of soup. Wiesel says in his

memoir, The bread, the soup those were my entire life. I was nothing but a bodyThe

stomach alone was a measuring time (52). The stomach was a measuring time proves that the

food given to them was not enough to survive and one day they can die because of their
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starvation. Food became everything for them and fights started to occur because of it. They were

forced to work all day but were not given enough food which made them weak and unhealthy.

One day, two cauldrons of soup were left untended by the Germans and all the prisoners had

their eyes on it but no one dared to get the soup because they knew that if they did, they would

get shot by the Germans. Only one man had the courage to go get the soup but as soon as he

touched the soup he was shot by the SS officer. Wiesel describes it by saying, Falling to the

ground, his face stained by the soup, the man writhed a few seconds at the base of the cauldron,

and then he was still [and dead] (60). This proves that how simple it was to die. The man was

killed just because he wanted food. The prisoners were starving and if they tried to somehow get

food, they were being killed. Either way, the prisoners were dying, whether by starvation or

torture. From these experiences of starvation at Buna, it became easier for the prisoners to die.

The journey towards Gleiwitz and Buchenwald also shows that it was easier to die during

the holocaust. When Wiesel and his father were on their way to Gliewitz, they were treated very

badly by the German SS officers. They were forced to run continuously in the cold snowy

weather. Zalman, a friend of Wiesel, also died on the way to Gliewitz. After the death of Zalman,

Wiesel also wanted to die and his hope of survival decreased:

Near me, men were collapsing into the dirty snow. Gunshots.

I soon forgot him [Zalman]. I began to think of myself againJust a few meters away

and it will be overDeath enveloped me, it suffocated meThe idea of dying, of

ceasing to be, began to fascinate me. To no longer exist [and feel the excruciating pain]

(86).
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Wiesel saying that the idea of dying began to fascinate him proves that he no longer had the

desire to live. His body is in so much pain that he prefers death as an escape of the harsh

treatment from the Germans. Wiesel forgetting the death of Zalman shows that death doesnt

seem to affect Wiesel anymore; he is so used to of people dying in front of him that now death

seems to be a better option for him to choose. Wiesel also says that death enveloped him which

means that death was very close to him. It was so easy for him to die at this stage; if he stopped,

he would have been either shot or trampled over by the other prisoners. On the way to

Buchenwald which is another German concentration camp, the prisoners were crammed into a

small train car. Prisoners were continuously dying and their bodies were thrown out of the train.

There was almost no food for the prisoners to survive and the German workers were entertaining

themselves by throwing small pieces of bread on the train and then seeing the prisoners fight and

die for food. Wiesel says, A worker took a piece of bread and threw it into a wagon. There was

stampede. Dozens of starving men fought desperately over a few crumbs. The worker watched

the spectacle with great interest (100). This quote proves how merciless the Germans were to

the Jews. Their intention was not to give food to the prisoners, it was just to watch them fight

over a piece of bread. After arriving at Buchenwald, Wiesel says, The last day had been the

most lethal. We had been a hundred or so in the wagon. Twelve of us left it. Among them, my

father and myself (103). This shows how easy it was to die for the prisoners. Once they lost

hope, the only option left for them was death. Around 88 prisoners died in the train because of

the starvation and cruelty of German soldiers. From these experiences of Wiesel in Gliewitz and

Buchenwald, it was easier for the prisoners to die.

In conclusion, Luba Fredericks statement that to die was easy during the holocaust is

true because of the experiences of Wiesel in Auschwitz, Buna, and on the way to Gliewitz and
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Buchenwald. At Auschwitz, Wiesel saw small children die in front of his eyes and he saw

prisoners getting beaten up by the Germans which weakened Wiesels hope of survival. At Buna,

prisoners were not getting enough food to survive which made death an easier option for many

prisoners. On the way to Gliewitz and Buchenwald, many prisoners died because of the brutality

of German soldiers which is why death appeared to be the only option left. By sharing his own

personal experience in his memoir, Night, Wiesel gives a perfect example of how people suffer

during a genocide. He also conveys a strong message to the world that to prevent these genocides

from happening again in the future, human beings need to solve their differences with each other.
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Works Cited

Wiesel, Elie. Night. New York: Hill and Wang, 2006. Print.