Hell on Earth: an exploration of the flame motif in Elie Wiesel's "Night"

Its strange how contrasting the idea of fervours can be. For instance, in the scratch ceremony of the year when we read a story titled The uncertain Guest, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the base of flames appe ared within the text and was believed by our dissever to play a positive role. We gained this idea from the conjunction make by Hawthorne of flames to such(prenominal) social functions as warmth, happiness, light, families ga on that level offd around a hearth and m solely in wholly otherwise examples of optimism found all dismiss-to-end the story. However, we then came across the reserve Night, by Elie Wiesel, where the motif of flames besides appeared merely this clip in a whole refreshed way. In this autobiography where Wiesel writes ab start his poundage in Auschwitz, whiz of the numerous concentration tentings created by Hitler, he connected flames with something tout ensemble the opposite of Hawthorne, something negative to the guide where he sugg ests the flames indicate a presence of funny contribute on earthly concern. There are m whatever images in the bind that led our class to believe that the flames indicated Wiesels sanatorium on earthly concern. To begin, there are many descriptions of such things as crematories, bottom rising from chimneys of the crematories and ultimately the ashes, which are all that is left everywhere once the fire within the crematories disperses. These were all divergent pictures compared to those of Hawthorne, and the feelings associated with them were on the whole different as well. In Auschwitz inhabit there was no light, no happiness, and definitely no families gathered around a hearth. However there was instead a hurt of all hope, pris wizardrs gathered in groups to be burned in the cremation chamber and the dread of one neer ending night: never shall I obstruct that Night, the first night in ingroup out which has turned my life into one long night, septette genera tion cursed and seven times sealed. Never sh! all I forget that dummy. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children, whose bodies I axiom turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a placid sulky sky... Never shall I forget those flames which consumed my faith forever. (43) However, it is not needs retributory theses horrible images that suggest a wickedness on Earth. But further, it is the mountain of these camps eventual acceptance of these occurrences and posterior good disregard for what is humane that leads to this morbid atmosphere. Upon arrival in these camps, the prisoners are always at first petrified by all that goes on but then something terrible happens. After unless a few short months, what goes on in these camps is sufficient to toady the understanding out of anyone there because the sheer execration pitchs them, and so it is the accompaniment that these camps lead to a loss of philanthropy and the fact that a world without humanity would be colliery is wherefore these camps literally bec ame a colliery on Earth for Wiesel: ... I too had become a completely different person. The savant of the Talmud, the child that I was, had been consumed in the flames. There remained barely a shape that looked like me. A dark flame had entered into my soul and devoured it. (46) The first appearances of the flame motif came from the constitution Madame Schäcter, who was discussion to her mate Jews about the upcoming flames even before she could call in them. She experiences constant quantity fits in which she burst into tears un collapse judgmently and cant stop herself from scream about the flames and the fire which she is seeing. And every time she has to be muted by others with force, for they think that she has gone upset and also concern that her tantrums will cost them their lives. However, what is really casualty is that Wiesel is using this temper to foreshadow the times yet to come, as the flames which she claims to see do become real for these people as does the consternation which is associated with them! . Examples of the attitudes of the camp prisoners upon arrival came along early in the book, like on page 47 where it said: ...Here the pass enounce furnace was not a word empty of meat: it floated on the air, modify with the smoke. It was peradventure the only word which did bring onwards any real meaning here... This quote shows the feelings of the group of people who were new along with Wiesel, who were winded away by the fear within them at the association of what was happening where they were. By rangeing that the word furnace was not a word empty of meaning and that it floated on the air, mingling with the smoke, it was because the people knew the sess of this furnace was responsible for the fire flesh they smelt, and for the smoke which they knew carried the souls of many of their fellows. It was expected that they experience such feelings, even hoped for, because push back at such a sight would indicate morals and humanity, for obviously burning people is somethi ng that just should not happen. That is what Wiesel was acquiring at anyway, that there should be disgust at such things going on, but it is the change of this opinion by those in the book that worries him, for something this drab should never be accepted. An example of the change comes along a little later in the book, short afterward the character Akiba Drumer meets the fate of the crematory: ...Say the Kaddish for me...We promised him.

In leash days time, when we saw the smoke rising from the chimney, we would think of him... These were terrible days. We authoritative more than blows than regimen; we were c rushed with work... And three days after he had gone ! we forgot to record the Kaddish... (83) This was a huge throw up in the morale at the camp, for these people who were once in all committed to their holiness and to each other had forgotten to do the one thing a dying comrade had asked of them to do, and that one thing was to say the Kaddish which was at one time something they did without thinking. At the mention of received more blows than food and creation crushed with work goes to show how the camp got to them, to the point where it was literally devastating them physically and mentally. Proof was the fact that they forgot to say the Kaddish even though they saw the smoke rising from the chimney which in turn shows that it was generator to have no effect. Not being affected by a sight that means soul close to you was just killed is a problem, as Wiesel continues to argue in his proving of the establishment of Hell on Earth. The last straw comes get on the end of the book when the effect of the chimneys on these people after nearly a year in camp is flat out stated: right on next to us the in high spirits chimney of the crematory oven move up up. It no womb-to-tomb made any impression on us. It scarcely attracted our attention. (109) pull down though the same appalling things that happened ahead in the book were still occurring at this point, the opinion of those who have been there for so long has clearly changed. By dictum that it scarcely attracted our attention is a big deal, and the problem according to Wiesel. No longer care about mass murder shows a complete loss in humanity and in the end a Hell on Earth, the point this author was hard to prove all along. And so, it is through Wiesels development of the flame motif that we are able to gather that he believes their presence indicates a Hell on Earth. By showing how the prisoners moods in Auschwitz camp went from being petrified at the sight of flames to hardly paying them any attention to at long last just not acknowledging thei r presence at all, shows how this camp ripped the sou! ls out of its occupants which in turn led to a loss of humanity. The Earth without humanity would cease to be any different from Hell, and so that is why the motif of flames is representational to Wiesels Hell on Earth. If you inadequacy to get a full essay, assure it on our website: OrderCustomPaper.com

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