Summary:
Elie Wiesel's powerful story Night tells of pain and suffering experienced by a young Jewish boy during the Holocaust. The story befits John Donne's famous quote, "No man is an island . . . Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never seek to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee," in that the sharing of a common culture and the subsequent feeling of belonging helped the prisoners to survive the horror of the concentration camps.
Night by Elie Wiesel is an autobiographical novel about a young boy's experience during
the Holocaust. The following quote: "No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of
the continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well
as if a promontory were... Any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and
therefore never seek to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee." by John Donne applies to
the book. This sense that everyone is a part of the whole is reflected in Night, in the following
ways: the sense of belonging together, their common religious beliefs, and unity among the Jewish
people. All of these show how no man is in fact an island, and that each person, no matter who
he/she is, is important.
Clearly the notion that "no man is an island," is supported by the fact that Elie and the
other characters in the novel, such as Mr. Wiesel and Stein of Antwerp, survive by having a sense
of belonging. That sense of being Jewish with others who share a common culture is a strong
binding feeling. It was this feeling of strength and belonging that helped Elie and the other
prisoners survive the terrifying horror of the camps; as Elie says, "Our fear and anguish were at an
end. We were living among Jews, among brothers..."(Wiesel 9). No man is an island was evident
even to the point of risking ones life for another. This is shown when the French girl goes out of
her way to give Elie some bread after being beaten; "Saying those few words to you was risky,
but I knew you wouldn't give me away..."(Wiesel 51). This shows the sense of belonging,
because she had forged papers that proved that she was Aryan, though she was really Jewish, and
if the authorities were to find out that she was really Jewish, she would have been killed. This is
an example of the belonging between people during the Holocaust, because there was trust
between them even though they didn't know each other.
Without a doubt, their religious beliefs also played an important part in every man being a
piece of the whole..".every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main...." This quote is
shown throughout the book when the prisoners come together to pray, "The service ended with
the Kaddish. Everyone recited the Kaddish over his parents, over his children, over his brothers,
and over himself."(Wiesel 65). The previous passage also reflects "Any man's death diminishes
me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never seek to know for whom the bell tolls;
it tolls for thee." This is when they pray for all the losses of lives and themselves. Even though
they don't know all the people who died, the fact that people of their own faith were killed,
diminishes them. There are times throughout the book when the elders tell the prisoners to never
lose faith, thus giving them hope to survive. This shows how the very religious beliefs of the
Holocaust victims in Night applies to the quote by John Donne.
Certainly, the sense of being unified gave them strength, for there is more strength in
numbers. This feeling of unity even though the atrocities were so hard, was a strengthening feeling
that helped them survive the camps. An example of this unity is when the prisoners were running
through the snow during a forced march. They had already covered forty two miles, the officer
finally gave the order to rest. After having run as one body, Elie stated "We sank down as one
man in the snow" (Wiesel 82), although literally they were thousands of people, Elie says that
they sat down as one man. This re-states the idea that."..every man is a piece of the continent...."
Finally showing that unity contributes to the idea that no man is an island to oneself, but a part of
something bigger than themselves
In conclusion, the book Night is a powerful story that tells of pain and suffering, and in
the midst of all this, the prisoners find each other as support through this atrocity. People are
connected to something bigger than themselves as John Donne states: "every man is a piece of the
continent, a part of the main..." and this becomes clear throughout the novel in the sense of
belonging, religious beliefs and the sense of being unified. Elie's hope in writing this book was to
enlighten and unite mankind in a hope that this would never happen again.
This is the complete article, containing 776 words
(approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page).
