Thursday, November 28, 2013

What are some examples of denial in Night by Elie Wiesel?

Two examples of denial in Night take place early in the narrative with Moshe the Beadle and Madame Schachter.


The townspeople of Sighet show denial to Moshe the Beadle.  When Moshe the Beadle was expelled from Sighet with other foreigners, he experienced Nazi cruelty.  He saw infants thrown in the air for target practice, and saw what the Nazis were doing with his own eyes.  He returned to Sighet to warn the townspeople of what was going to happen to them if they did not leave.  He was dismayed to see their reaction:



He spoke only of what he had seen. But people not only refused to believe his tales, they refused to listen. Some even insinuated that he only wanted their pity, that he was imagining things. Others flatly said that he had gone mad.



The townspeople of Sighet showed denial in rejecting Moshe the Beadle's warnings about the Nazis.


Another instance of denial can be seen on the train to Auschwitz.  An old woman, Madame Schachter, started to yell that she saw flames and fire. Rather than respect her warnings or even leave her alone, the people on the train began to beat her up, silencing her voice.  They "bound and gagged her" and then began to rain blows upon her that "could have been lethal."  No one came to her defense, not even her son.  The reaction to Madame Schachter represents one of the most painful instances of denial because she foreshadowed the crematorium of Auschwitz.

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