29 November 2012
The Masquerade Throughout the memoir, Night, Eliezer Wiesel goes through an embarkation that changes him from being a very religious to questioning everything he really ever believed. Despite Wiesel being raised in the Jewish faith, during his time in the concentration camps his faith shifts from believing in God, to himself, and then to Hitler, the man in charge of the Holocaust; he continues to have faith throughout the memoir, though in different things. In the beginning of the memoir, Elie is a deeply religious teenager, wanting to really learn more about being a Jew. As the memoir continues Elie’s faith is found within himself. Towards the end of the memoir, Elie feels the Hitler is the only person to trust, only person keeping their word. Initially, the memoir started with Elie as a religious Jew. He was a dedicated man to both his studies and religious faith. As a young man, Elie is in search of someone to give him the “real answers” (Wiesel 5). He meets Moishe the Beadle, who helps him understand more about the Jewish religion. Elie also starts to ask questions such as “Why should I pray? Strange question. Why did I live? Why did I breathe?” (Wiesel 4). Elie views religion as a part of his being, if he can’t pray it’s almost like not breathing. When Elie answered Moishe about why he prays he stated “I pray to God within me for the strength to ask him the real questions.” (Wiesel 5). Elis feels that only God can ever truly answer him. With the Germans invading Transylvania, Elie’s faith that God will save him continues to grow. But as the Holocaust progresses, and Elie is in the early stages of entering the death camps, he becomes confused with himself. He starts to question his faith, with all the harsh treatment he is witnessing. During the middle of the memoir, Elie’s faith starts to displace from God to himself at a state of confusion. Regardless of what is