Identifying Perils Of Indifference 'And The Children's Era'

Writer, Elie Wiesel in his metaphorical speech “The perils of Indifference” argues that the future will never know the agony of the Holocaust and they will never understand the tragedy of the horrific terror in Germany. Wiesel wants people to not let this happen but at the time many modern genocides that are occurring and people shouldn’t be focused on just the Holocaust, they should focus on making this world a better place; moreover, Wiesel expresses his thoughts about all the genocides that has happen throughout the years. He develops his message through in an horrifying event that took place 54 years ago the day “ The perils of Indifference” was published. Wiesel illustrates the indifferences of good vs evil. He develops this message

The Perils of Indifference speech by Elie Wiesel is one that is well crafted and that sends a strong message to the audience. Wiesel, a survivor of the Holocaust, addresses the issues of the 20th century in his speech while at the same time explaining the dangers of indifference. Wiesel’s appeals to his audience, as well as his strong message and arguments are what make this speech so effective.

Elie Wiesel’s speech falls into the deliberative genre category, and was designed to influence his listeners into action by warning them about the dangers indifference can have on society as it pertains to human atrocities and suffering. The speech helped the audience understand the need for every individual to exercise their moral conscience in the face of injustice. Wiesel attempts to convince his audience to support his views by using his childhood experience and relating them to the harsh realities while living in Nazi Death Camps as a boy during the Holocaust. He warns, “To be indifferent to suffering is to lose one’s humanity” (Wiesel, 1999). Wiesel persuades the audience to embrace a higher level of level moral awareness against indifference by stating, “the hungry children, the homeless refugees-not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering them a spark of hope, is to exile them from human memory”. Wiesel’s uses historical narrative, woven with portions of an autobiography to move his persuasive speech from a strictly deliberative genre to a hybrid deliberative genre.

Elie Wiesel has given the listener a wonderful opportunity to feel the intense movement of his speech, “The Perils of Indifference”. His speech is centered around the need for vigilance in the face of evil. Throughout this speech, with which he moved so many, he shared his experience with being sent to Buchenwald, a concentration camp, the treacherous conditions in which they were living, and the way that indifference has separated human beings. He explained, that through anger and hatred a great poem or symphony can be written, because “One does something special for the sake of humanity because one is angry at the injustice that one witnesses.” (Wiesel, 1999/16, p. 78). The three strategies that will be explored throughout this analysis are ethos, logos, and pathos.

“The Perils of Indifference” by Elie Wiesel, explains the true and utter horror of indifference. There is a clear emphasis on the morality exhibited in the act as well as the disappointment in the US government’s ability to respond to such a horrible act. It is obvious that Wiesel establishes tones of morality, condescendingness, and caution through diction, imagery, as well as syntax used in the speech. Although Wiesel describes how indifference has a massive effect on the victims even though by the very nature, bystanders do nothing. Indifference itself shows lack of regard for those in need and that can be perceived as morally lacking, which Wiesel condemns in the highest degree.

Elie Wiesel’s repetition of “indifference” sets his point on how dangerous indifference is. Some examples of his repetition include, “In a way, to be indifferent to that suffering is what makes the human being inhuman. Indifference after all, is more dangerous than anger or hatred” (paragraph 11, line 1-2), “Why the indifference, on the highest level, to the suffering of the victims” (paragraph 19, line 4-5), and, “Has the human being become less indifferent and more human?”(paragraph 24, line 3). There were many more examples of his use of indifference throughout his essay. His repetition of indifference is so effective because it sets into the reader that his point is truly about the perils of indifference. Not only that but, its repetition allows indifference to be seen in differing lights. Wiesel uses repetition to explain how indifference infects our history like the plague and it shows how easy it is to feel indifferent. It shows that indifference has a commonplace in our world and that its normality in society is truly dangerous.

On April 12th 1999, in Washington D.C., Elie Wiesel gave a speech during the Millennium Lecture Series that took place in the East Room of the White House. The speech was given in front of Mr. Bill and Mrs. Hillary Clinton, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, and other officials. Elie Wiesel is an author most noted for his novel Night, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, and political activist. In the speech he spoke on his view of indifference and explained how it was negatively affecting humanity and the nation as a whole. The Perils of Indifference was a speech that successfully used ethos, pathos, and logos to inform, persuade and inspire its audience on its views.

Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel, in the speech “Perils of Indifference”, calls out the American government for being indifferent in an important time in world history. He claims that indifference is a very horrible thing and bad things have come from. He supports his claim by first explaining his childhood, then he goes on to talk about what it means to him, next explains the power it can have and finally explains the consequences that can come from it. His purpose is to educate his audience about indifference in hope of preventing indifference to continue in the future generations in order to accomplish his purpose for the speech. He establishes a calm tone for his audience.

On April 12, 1999 Elie Wiesel delivered the speech “The Perils of Indifference” to honor those in Germany during Hitler’s reign and in remembrance of Franklin Roosevelt to the President of the United States and congress. In “The Perils of Indifference” Elie Wiesel uses several techniques to carry his point across. Three techniques used in the speech are Ethos, repetition, and Pathos. He uses a combination of all three elements throughout the paragraphs of his speech to attract the readers. The combination of these fundamentals helps draw the reader’s emotions and interest towards his subject. He focuses on word choice that would pertain to his audience’s level of vocabulary.

The author, Elie Wiesel in his powerful speech, The Perils of Indifference, claims that Indifference has so much violence and danger. He shows how there is so much Indifference in the world. Wiesel develops his message through the use of allusion on his speech. Specifically, In paragraph 9, he states, “the most tragic of all prisoners were the “Muselmann,” as they were called.. They no longer felt pain, hunger, thirst…” Wiesel is trying to describe the pain that he has been through and if people were aware of the Holocaust sooner, than not millions of people would have died from the tragic event which is the Holocaust. Additionally, the use of imagery in the speech helps audience imagine the tragic things that has happened to the world. In

Jewish writer and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel, in his significant speech, “The Perils of Indifference,” clearly states that indifference is very dangerous to humanity and shall be put to an end. He develops his message through emphasizing the cruel results of indifference. For example, Wiesel explains how a person’s life feels “meaningless” when their neighbor is indifferent. It is indifference that can “reduce the other to an abstraction” (par 8). The author describes what indifference means to him as well. In particular, indifference is “more dangerous than anger and hatred.” It is “not a beginning, it is an end.” It is “not only a sin, it is a punishment” (par 11-13). Lastly, indifference, is viewed as an adverse situation. By being indifferent, it makes it easier for people to “avoid” certain cases that affect their “work,” “dreams,” and “hopes” (par 8). Wiesel’s purpose is to inform, warn, and define indifference in order to bring awareness therefore something can be done to stop the madness. He establishes a formal and serious tone for readers by using stylistic devices such as repetition, imagery, and word choice in order to develop his message that indifference is what can lead to history repeating itself, and we should not risk it at all. Wiesel’s message about the inhumanity of indifference and the importance of resistance is still relevant today.

Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel, in his speech, "The Perils of Indifference," argues that indifference can destroy mankind as it can obliterate a person's humanity. He supports his claim by first expressing his gratitude for his audience for their fight against insouciance to gain their trust, then uses logical reasoning to convey that the United States has committed acts of indifference to showcase the severity of the situation, and evokes emotion by proclaiming how children endure indifference. Wiesel's purpose is to expose the harsh reality that apathy imposes on its victims to bring awareness of the issue in hope that the audience acts upon it. He adopts an empathetic tone for government officials and politicians who influence society.

Elie Wiesel’s speech “The Perils of Indifference” is a mind opening and emotional speech that prompts the audience to change the indifference that plagues America and many people in this time and age. He expresses to the audience that indifference is the reason appalling and horrifying events, such as the Holocaust, occur and why no one takes immediate actions to help the victims. To get his point across, Wiesel uses his own history and experiences so that the audience can visualize the Holocaust through the eyes of a survivor and to project the feelings of hopelessness and defeat that the victims felt when no one came to end the injustice. In this critique, Elie Wiesel’s rhetorical speech of indifference will show its effectiveness through testimony, emotion, and rhetorical questions; this speech accomplished its goal and without a doubt persuaded most of the audience to call out for change in indifference.

After hypothesizing how indifference could affect society, he questions the audience about the possibilities of America knowing about the Holocaust by adding his personal experience of how indifference split his community, “In the place that I come from, society was composed of three simple categories: the killers, the victims, and the bystanders.” This portrays the reaction indifference can cause in one community and how not only the Nazis but also the American government has displayed a sign of indifference. Wiesel hoped that if Americans intervened just once everything would have changed, “If they knew, we thought, surely those leaders would have moved heaven and earth to intervene…They would have bombed the railways leading to Birkenau,

Jewish writer and political activist, Eliezer Wiesel in his lugubrious and morose speech, “The perils of Indifference”, claims that we should avoid indifference and informs us of the dangers. He develops his claim by describing why indifference is not impactful to humanity and the inhumanity of it. In addition, Wiesel states “Indifference, then, not only a sin, it is a punishment.” which is significant to society because not being concerned about the problems in the world can lead to great consequences. Furthermore, the author uses negative connotation such as “rage,” “dark,” “sin,” and “hatred,” to describe the pains in society. Wiesel’s purpose is to inform readers that “indifference, after all, is more dangerous than anger and hatred” in