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Josie Bunnell

Ms. Crowell

English 11: 3

4 April 2019

Wiesel’s Loss of Faith in ​Night

Elie Wiesel’s memoir ​Night​ documents the author’s experiences in concentration camps

during the Holocaust. Before the Holocaust, Judaism makes up Elie’s entire life. At the young

age of 13, he is completely devoted to his faith and would do anything for God. However, the

Holocaust causes him to question his faith. This confusion leads him to experience feelings of

frustration and anger in himself and God. Although his anger does not weaken him, it gives him

a sense of strength and determination to keep going. During Elie’s time in the concentration

camps, his faith slowly diminishes and turns into anger; this anger ultimately fuels him to survive

in the face of extreme physical and mental suffering.

At the beginning of the memoir, religion is a foundational aspect of Elie’s existence.

Unlike other kids his age, he places God before anything else in his life. Elie writes, “I was

almost thirteen and deeply observant. By day I studied Talmud and by night I would run to the

synagogue to weep over the destruction of the temple.” (Wiesel, 3) At the meer beginning of his

teenage years, he is fully dedicated to worshipping God throughout every day. He also says,

“Why did I pray? Strange question. Why do I live? Why did I live? Why did I breathe?” (Wiesel,

4) Elie shows his true devotion to his faith by equating the acts of praying to breathing, showing

that prayer is a necessity for him. However, the concentration camps completely change his point

of view. After Elie spends a few months suffering in the camps, he begins to question his faith in
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God. He constantly asks himself why God would let such tragedies happen while staying

completely silent. Elie is lost in a state of confusion and since he is losing something that he

previously made up his entire life, he is incredibly lost.

As his faith shifts, he becomes more bewildered about his relationship with God. Elie

questions, “How could I say to him: Blessed be Thou, Almighty, Master of the Universe, who

chose us among all nations to be tortured day and night, to watch as our fathers, our mothers, our

brothers end up in the furnaces?” (Wiesel, 67) He cannot comprehend how he can bless God if

He lets these tragedies happen. Out of all the nations, he does not understand why God chose his

community to be tortured. Elie also states, “For the first time, I felt anger rising within me. Why

should I sanctify His name? The Almighty, the eternal and terrible Master of the Universe, chose

to be silent. What was there to thank Him for?” (Wiesel, 33) Elie is confused why he should pray

to God if He chooses to be silent throughout all of these tragedies. During his time at the

concentration camps, his confusion of his faith turns into frustration and anger.

Although he is overcome with anger, he uses this emotion to give him strength in the

concentration camps. They keep him from thinking about his raw mental and physical pain that

he endures. Elie states, “And then, there was no longer any reason for me to fast. I no longer

accepted God's silence. As I swallowed my ration of soup, I turned that act into a symbol of

rebellion, of protest against Him.” (Wiesel, 69) Rather than thinking that his ration is not enough

to nourish him, he is able to turn it into an act of rebellion which keeps him eager to survive. He

also uses this symbol of protest to distract him from the pain and suffering that surrounds him.

Elie also says, “[...] I felt very strong. I was the accuser, God was the accused.” (Wiesel, 68) The

act of accusing God brings him the feeling of superiority which ultimately gives him courage to
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move forward. Without these acts of rebellion and accusation, Elie would not have acquired the

determination to persevere through the physical and mental pain.

Before the concentration camps, Elie is incredibly religious, but his mortifying

experiences at the camps causes him to question his faith. The time he spends suffering gives

him a new impression of God, resulting in Elie’s loss of faith. Throughout the confusion of

losing something that once made up his entire life, he became angry with God. Elie uses this

aggravation to give him more strength which overpowers his physical and mental weakness.

Additionally, he uses his anger as a distraction from the pain he endures. Although Elie suffers

within the camps, he becomes mentally strong which gives him the will to stay alive. Without his

loss of faith, it is unclear if Elie could have persevered through the pain and survive until

liberation.
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Works Cited

Wiesel, Elie. ​Night​. Translated by Marion Wiesel, New York City, Hill and Wang, 2006.