Dehumanization In Elie Wiesel's Night

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Firstly, Night’s main theme is dehumanization. There are many occurences where this happens. Even in the beginning they were considered not worthy or different. They were forced to do edicts and if they didn’t follow it, they would be killed as a punishment. They were forced to be on a train cart for days with little food and only 1 jug of water. “They were forced to dig huge trenches. Without passion or haste, they shot their prisoners, who were forced to approach the trench one by one and offer their necks. Infants were tossed into the air and used as targets for the machine guns.”(pg 6). Before then even got onto the train to their doom, they already started to die by the hands of Hitler. In that moment, those people weren’t just making graves for themselves, but for those after them, the millions that lost their lives to the …show more content…
The men on this train were basically just skin and bones. Many of them no longer had the energy nor the will to survive anymore. During this trip many died as a result of little to no food. All they had to do was sleep and sometimes when they slept, they wouldn’t wake up from their deep slumber. “The train stopped in an empty field. ‘Throw out all the dead! Outside, all the corpses!’”(pg 99). These poor people didn’t even get a proper burial. They were just thrown out like they were next week's garbage. Finally, towards the end they made them run. If you slowed down even a little you were shot without any second thoughts. They had to run a long distance. They were numb from the waist down just trying to keep moving; ignoring the pain that radiated throughout them. “‘Don’t think, don’t stop, run!’ Near me, men were collapsing into the dirty snow. Gunshots.”(pg 86). Elie saw his fellow jews fall left to right. Not strong enough to continue. The bullets ripping through them, but he kept on running, hoping to