Book Report Of Night By Elie Wiesel

Book Report of Night by Elie Wiesel

Tania Ardiani and Ayu Ida Savitri, S.S, M.Hum.

English Department, Faculty of Humanity, Diponegoro University, Semarang 50275

Abstrak

Penulisan tugas akhir “Bedah Buku Night karya Elie Wiesel” bertujuan

untuk mengungkap simbol yang banyak digunakan oleh pengarang yang

bertujuan untuk mewakili perasaan yang ingin disampaikan oleh pengarang

yang tidak dijabarkan. Selain itu, tugas akhir ini juga menilai kelebihan dan

kekurangan dari novel Night. Penulis memutuskan untuk membedah novel

Night karena sebagai karya sastra novel ini merupakan sebuah karya sastra

yang mengandung unsur sejarah sehingga bisa berperan ganda sebagai

penyegar kalbu dan sumber wawasan. Penulis menggunakan metode

membaca cermat untuk menemukan simbol, kelebihan dan kekurangan dari

novel ini. Setelah dianalisis ditemukan bahwa ada beberapa simbol, yang

sebagian merupakan simbol di agama Yahudi, yang digunakan untuk lebih

menekankan penderitaan dari para korban Holocaust yang segala hak

mereka telah dirampas oleh Nazi. Novel ini mempunyai kelebihan dalam

temanya yaitu mempunyai tema tentang kejadian yang besar dan terkenal

sehingga bisa dijadikan sebagai salah satu referensi kesejarahan yang

didukung dengan penggunaan bahasa denotatif yang tidak ambigu.

Kedekatan batin antara Eliezer dan ayahnya yang berkembang di kamp

konsentrasi juga merupakan nilai lebih dari novel ini. Namun, hal yang

menyulitkan dalam mendalami novel ini adalah beberapa istilah agama

Yahudi dan bahasa Jerman sehingga diperlukan referensi lain untuk

memahaminya. Dari segi penokohan, penulis menganggap bahwa tokoh

Eliezer mempunyai karakter yang jauh lebih dewasa dan tidak sesuai

dengan umurnya yang sebenarnya yaitu 15 tahun.

Kata kunci: Holocaust, Kamp Konsentrasi, Nazi, Yahudi

1. Introduction

War is one effective way to

“reduce” the population of people in

the world. The number of people

decreases because of the suffering

caused by war itself. War takes not

only the soldiers’ souls but also the

souls of innocence or civilian.

World War II that happened in

1939-1945 was also caused a lot of

people lost their soul and life. The most

popular event was Holocaust or the

genocide of European Jews by Nazi

German, led by Adolf Hitler. The

victims were Jews and non Jews. Nazi

grouped them as German and non-

German, in Eastern and Center Europe.

The chosen people were sent to the

concentration camps to be killed

directly or they had to be slaves until

dying before they really died.

One of the survived victims in

this catastrophe that succeeded to live

until the war ended is Elie Wiesel. He

cures his trauma and endurs his fear to

tell what happened when he was

imprisoned in concentration camps,

Auschwitz and Birkenau, and wrote it

in a memorial novel Night.

Night is a story of a virtuous

Jews teenager that has a problem with

his relation with God because of the

torture after he is sent to concentration

camps for being a Jew. This book

shows to the world that Holocaust

seizes everything; family, friends,

right, live, and faith. Beside all

controversy of Holocaust that lasted

until this era, this book also reveals the

evidence that the story of “sacred”

Holocaust is not only a myth. The story

from the point of view of a fifteen year

old teenager is told honestly and

unexaggeratedly. The writing

technique used makes a balanced feel

to the readers. It can grab readers’

sympathy but does not make them too

pitied of it. The writer reviews this

book to improve the skill in literature

project. The writer hopes that this

review can help the reader to get more

understanding about the messages of

this book.

2. Objective

In composing this project, the

writer determines to discuss two

problems related to the topic and to be

revealed in later discussion, among

them are:

2.1 To reveal the symbols

and allusions used in Night, in order to

ease the reader to grab deeper

understanding of the messages that are

conveyed by the author.

2.2 To give the review of

Night, those are the strength, weakness,

and personal opinion of the writer.

3. Biography of The

Author

Elie Wiesel was born in the town

of Sighet in Transylvania. He was still a

teenager when he was taken from his

home to the Auschwitz concentration

camp and take to Buchenwald. His

memoirs of that experience the

unforgettably recorded in Night, which

became a worldwide bestseller.

After the war, Wiesel learned

that his mother and younger sister had

died in the gas chambers, but that his

two older sisters had survived. Elie lived

in a French orphanage for a few years

and in 1948 began to study literature,

philosophy, and psychology at the

Sorbonne in Paris. He is the author of

twenty one books. Wiesel's other novels

include The Gates of the Forest, The

Oath, The Testament, and The Fifth Son.

He has written plays, including Zalmen,

or The Madness of God and The Trial of

God, and his essays and short stories are

collected in the volumes Legends of Our

Time, One Generation After, and A Jew

Today. In addition, he has written

collections of Hasidic tales and Biblical

stories, and the English translation of his

memoirs was published in 1995 as All

Rivers Run to the Sea. Wiesel continues

to write in French, but his wife Marion,

who he married in 1969 and who also

survived the concentration camps,

collaborates with him his books' English

translations. Wiesel's books on the

Holocaust have helped win him an

international reputation.

Wiesel has lectured at colleges

around the country and has been Andrew

Mellon Professor of Humanities at

Boston University since 1976. In 1978

he was appointed Chairman of the

United States Holocaust Memorial

Council by President Jimmy Carter, and

in 1985 he was awarded the

Congressional Gold Medal of

Achievement by President Ronald

Reagan. In 1986 Wiesel received the

Nobel Prize for Peace. Currently, Elie

Wiesel lives in New York City with his

wife and son Elisha.

4. Summary

Moshe the Beadle was an

orphan that was loved by the people

who worked in Hasidic synagogue in

Sighet, Transylvania (now becomes a

part of Romania) where Eliezer and his

family and other Jews lived. His father

was a man who did not have a close

relationship with his family but he was

very respected by the Jews in their

neighborhood. Eliezer had two older

sisters, Hilda and Bea, and a younger

sister, Tzipora.

One day, all Jews foreigners

were deported by cattle car by

Hungarian police, and Moshe was

included in that group. A few months

later, Moshe went back to town and

told the story about his suffer that

people had to dig their own graves and

sacrifice their own necks. He also

warned the people in Sighet to escape.

Yet they did not believe him and even

said that he was insane.

Along the year of 1943, the

situation was normal. In 1944 after

Fascist party won the election, the

commando of deportation was issued.

Jews had to wear the yellow star. Two

ghettos were started to set up in the

town. The people thought that ghettos

were the save place at least until the

war ended. When the day of the

deportation came, they marched to the

station and were brought with cattle

cars 80 people in each car.

In Eliezer’s train there was

Madam Schachter who always

screamed that she saw fire, a nerve-

racking waiting for departing to the

unknown destination. After a few days,

they arrived at Birkenau, the reception

center of Auschwitz, and they really

smelled burnt flesh from the furnace.

Right after they arrived in the

concentration camp, there was a

command from the Schutzstaffel (SS)

that man should go to the left and

women to the right. The notorious Dr.

Mangele examined the people. Those

that were considered weak would be

killed. At this time Elizer was still

together with his father. At the same

time he started to accuse God that he

was not with the people who believed

in His existence.

The barrack was like hell. It

was full of madness, scream and

brutishness. The officers made them

stripped. At this time self-defense

instinct and pride have lost from their

soul. The selected people were sent to

work in the furnace and the rest,

including Eliezer and his father, is

moved to the main camp Auschwitz.

The officers gave them clothes, black

coffee, tick soup, and bread to eat.

Afternoon roll call gave them a number

for each person, Elizer is A-7713. After

369

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FAQs of Book Report of Night by Elie Wiesel

What are the main themes explored in Night by Elie Wiesel?

Night delves into several profound themes, including the struggle for faith in God amidst suffering, the bond between father and son, and the loss of humanity during the Holocaust. Wiesel's experiences challenge the notion of divine justice, as he grapples with his belief in God while witnessing atrocities. The father-son relationship serves as a source of strength and motivation for survival, highlighting the importance of familial bonds in dire circumstances. Ultimately, the memoir serves as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of unimaginable horror.

How does Elie Wiesel use symbolism in Night?

Wiesel employs various symbols throughout Night to convey deeper meanings and emotions. The recurring motif of 'night' symbolizes darkness, despair, and the loss of faith, reflecting the bleak experiences of the Holocaust. Fire represents both destruction and the terrifying power of the Nazi regime, as seen through Madam Schachter's visions and the crematoria. Additionally, the transformation of Eliezer's identity into a prisoner number illustrates the dehumanization faced by Holocaust victims, stripping them of their individuality and rights. These symbols enhance the emotional impact of Wiesel's narrative.

What is the significance of the father-son relationship in Night?

The father-son relationship between Eliezer and his father is a central theme in Night, representing hope and resilience amidst despair. Their bond provides Eliezer with the strength to endure the brutal conditions of the concentration camps, as he feels a deep responsibility to protect his father. This relationship also highlights the moral dilemmas faced by individuals in extreme situations, as Eliezer grapples with his instincts for survival versus his love for his father. Ultimately, the deterioration of this bond underscores the tragic consequences of the Holocaust and the profound emotional toll it takes on survivors.

What historical events does Night recount?

Night recounts the historical events of the Holocaust, specifically the experiences of Jewish individuals during World War II. Wiesel details his deportation from Sighet, the establishment of ghettos, and the harrowing journey to Auschwitz and Buchenwald concentration camps. The memoir serves as a personal account of the genocide perpetrated by the Nazis, illustrating the systematic extermination of Jews and the loss of millions of lives. Wiesel's narrative not only documents these atrocities but also serves as a reminder of the importance of remembering history to prevent future atrocities.