The Silence Of The Holocaust

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

He was finally free, no joy filled his heart but abandonment was drowning it. How dangerous is indifference to humankind as it pertains to suffering and the need for conscience understanding when people are faced with unjust behaviors? Elie Wiesel is an award winning author and novelist who has endured and survived hardships. One of the darkest times in history, a massacre of over six million Jews, the Holocaust and Hitler himself. After the Holocaust he went on and wrote the internationally acclaimed memoir “Night,” in which he spoke out against persecution and injustice across the world. In the compassionate yet pleading speech, ¨Perils of Indifference,¨ Elie Wiesel analyzes the injustices that himself and others endured during the twentieth century, as well as the hellish acts of the Holocaust through effective rhetorical choices.

Holocaust Survivor, Elie Wiesel, in his speech, “The Perils of Indifference” (1999), advises that having an apathetic attitude to a situation is dangerous a society in need of help. He supports his claim by gaining credibility from his audience and uses imagery to help, then addresses briefly about his past life and an example of when indifference occurred, and finally, throws everything that transpired in the past and hints what we can do differently in the future. Wiesel’s purpose is to urge the audience to not be indifferent to what is happening around the world, but to see how society could all help. Throughout the speech, there are a few different tones such as gratuitous, passive, and grateful for his audience to make a change.

Elie Wiesel’s speech 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 show 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,

Author and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel in his emphatic speech, “The Perils of Indifference,” asserts the dangers that indifference brings to the world. He develops his message by explaining how being indifferent affects a person's emotions through imagery. For instance, in Wiesel’s speech, it states, “During the darkest of times… we felt abandoned, forgotten. All of us did.” Furthermore, the use of repetition of the word “indifference” helps demonstrate the author’s personal view towards it and the importance of how it can negatively impact society. Ultimately, the use of rhetorical questions inspired vast amounts of thought about his message of speech to the audience. Wiesel’s purpose is to warn others to not be indifferent to victims of injustice and cruelty in order to bring a change to the world and accomplish compassion in the twenty-first century. He establishes a serious tone for the readers by using stylistic and rhetorical devices such as imagery, repetition, and rhetorical questions in order to develop his message that the inhumanity of indifference and the importance of resistance is still relevant today.

Elie Wiesel questions and asks that even though people see photos, are aware and feel empathy for what is what is occurring around the world, why don’t they just do something? “Does it mean that we have learned from the past? Does it mean that society has changed? Has the human being become less indifferent and more human? Have we really learned from our experiences” (Perils of Indifference)? Though that the holocaust has supposedly taught the world the responsibility of prevent, have we all really learned that? He also wanted to convey that indifference is worse than any other feeling such as hate. “Yet, for the person who is indifferent, his or her neighbor are of no consequence. And, therefore, their lives are meaningless. Their hidden or even visible anguish is of no interest. Indifference reduces the other to an abstraction” (Perils of Indifference). Indifference is when solicitude is missing which indicates that there is a lack of awareness. Elie believes indifference is worse than hate because it implies that someone’s suffering isn’t worth rumination and consideration. The inhumanity that was put upon the Jews could have been stopped if people cared enough to take action against the Germans. Both messages are relevant and matter because they

Holocaust survivor and writer, Elie Wiesel in his influential speech “The Perils of Indifference,” claims that indifference is the root of all evil and inhumanity---all pain and all tragedy has resulted because of indifference. He supports his claim by highlighting the reason for “World Wars,” “Civil Wars,” “Assassinations,” “Bloodbaths,” and “Tragedy---” indifference (Wiesel par. 5) . Specifically, Wiesel uses imagery to paint an image of what the innocent victims of indifference experience. The poor “children [that] perish” because of the indifference in a man’s soul; until they see the children’s “pain” and “agony” and “hear their pleas,” until “one of them dies” because of the “violence,” “disease” and “famine,” then one will notice the dangers of indifference (Wiesel par. 23) . Further, the author flashbacks to past events that have left humans without a soul. He mentions how one day he “woke up in a place of eternal infamy, Buchenwald.” Remembering the day he is captured and the day he is “free[ed]” (Wiesel par. 1) . The problem now is that “there [i]s no joy in his heart;” he becomes a victim of indifference---the metal torture (Wiesel par. 1) . Wiesel’s purpose is to inform humanity of the dangers indifference holds in order to encourage humans to continue to hope for a world without indifference---no pain, no horror. He establishes a critical tone for readers by using stylistic devices such as imagery, flashbacks and rhetorical questions in order to achieve his purpose that indifference is monstrous and dangerous. Wiesel’s message about the inhumanity of indifference and the importance of resistance is still relevant today.

Throughout the extensive reign of Hitler, there were many types of people, almost separated as books are separated in genres. Some included of the vocally defiant Germans, the captive Jews, the individuals and families in hiding, and the silent ones who did not speak out for what they believed in, whether it was for or against the actions of the Nazis. These passive individuals were not immediately affected by the policies set in place for the Jews and such groups. This is shown in the poem “First They Came,” in the stanza “When they came for the Jews, I remained silent; I wasn't a Jew” (Holocaust Encyclopedia). This shows that certain people really perceived the instances that were transpiring as not affecting themselves or their family directly, yet it exemplifies the cowardice that some had experienced themselves

Romanian-born American Jewish writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor, Elie Wiesel in his critical speech, ”Perils of Indifference,” maintains the idea that indifference is inhumane. He supports his claim by using his personal experience in the Holocaust. Additionally, it states in paragraph 9 that “They were dead and did not know it.” emphasizes how indifference has made the “Muselmann” completely unaware of their fate. Further, it states in paragraph 8 that “Indifference can be tempting… troublesome… and can make our lives meaningless.” Wiesel’s purpose is to warn the people that change is needed in order to encourage the people to make a change in the world for the better so something as tragic and devastating like the Holocaust never happens again. He establishes a critical tone for readers by using stylistic devices and rhetorical devices such as imagery, contemplative questions,and word choice in order to achieve his message that indifference is inhumane. Wiesel’s message about the inhumanity of indifference and the importance of resistance is still relevant today.

To fully understand the importance of the Jewish Refugee question, it is important to understand the context of what was happening in Nazi controlled Germany at the time. The Nazi regime did not start with killing all Jews, though that was how it ended. It started with a concentrated effort to exclude Jewish persons from every level of society, from

Although the world continues to face tragedy, little compares to that of the horrors millions of innocent Jews like Elie Wiesel faced, as they were deported from their homes, separated from their families and pushed around into different concentration camps where they were brutally tortured, killed, and discarded of by Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany Army beginning in 1941. It wasn’t until April of 1945 that Elie along with the limited number of other survivors were finally liberated. This mid 20th century atrocity has come to be known as the Holocaust, a tragic part of history that will never be forgotten. It was because of that experience, that Elie Wiesel extensively depicted the events he faced through written and verbal accounts including the speech he gave entitled “The Perils of Indifference” on April 12, 1999. The speech was given at the 7th Millennium Evening at the White House, with an intent to create a kairotic moment with the public including the audiences it was broadcasted to, as an opportunity to explain a darker side of history, while also hopefully enlightening them for the future.

The U.S policy towards Jewish refugees was brutal as the German military swept through Europe. It became more difficult for refugees to flee, and fewer passenger liners crossed the Atlantic Ocean. Also, immigration officials tightened policies for immigrants and nonimmigrants. (“The United States Policy Towards Jewish Refugees,” United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) During this period of time this policy made it extremely hard for Jewish refugees to escape Nazi persecution especially since most countries had immigration policies. Refugees trying to flee weren't allowed to enter these countries because they feared that the refugees could be Nazi spies. After 1941 it was nearly impossible for Jewish refugees to escape, not only because Jews were prohibited, but they were also afraid because attempting this put their lives on the line. Jews in Germany could legally leave

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.

In the world during the time of the Holocaust, there was indifference towards the suffering of millions of Jews. When individuals reflect about the Holocaust, the majority of the time the responsibility of the terrible events is placed upon the perpetrators. However, bystanders and witnesses indirectly affected the victims of the Holocaust as well. The silence of these people played one of the largest roles in the Holocaust, they influenced it by avoiding any type of involvement and by becoming blinded towards the suffering of others. In his Academy Award acceptance speech, Elie Wiesel says, “the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference”. This exert from his speech reveals the importance

During Hitler’s reign over Germany many Jews choose to flee the country in hopes of finding a safer place to live.