waking up, but he is saved by Meir Katz, who soon realizes that “he could not go on” and remains on the train with the dead (103).
6. Chapter Six
Wiesel and his father evacuate with the remaining inmates, marching while the SS directed insults towards them, even going to call them “flea-ridden dogs” (85). As they continue, Wiesel realizes that they were practically running “like machines,” no one lagging behind out of fear of being shot by the SS (85). After witnessing the death of a young boy who fell behind, he contemplates doing the same and declares that “the idea of dying… fascinated [him]” (86). The pain that he was in was so great, that he wished to die in order to end it all. However, the thought of his father held him back from giving up. He was “his sole support” and aware that his father wouldn’t last long without him. This is a reversal of the typical father and son relationship, in their circumstance, Wiesel’s father had no choice but to depend on his still teenage son. The group finally came to a halt at an abandoned village, stuck in the freezing cold, where the harsh winter appeared to be claiming lives. Not long after they arrive, a rabbi immerges from a shed and begins to ask for his son. Wiesel tells him that he hasn’t seen him, but later realizes that Rabbi Eliahu’s son was the young boy who had died earlier. He then begins to wonder if the son had died in order to escape his father, believing that “this separation would free him” (91). Wiesel’s situation is somewhat similar to Rabbi Eliahu’s, and he desperately hopes that he will never see his father as a burden. The group is soon ordered to begin marching again, and in the process, Wiesel gets crushed underneath corpses. As he tries to escape, he recognizes Juliek, one of the violin players from the Buna orchestra. Despite …show more content…
As the day went on, Wiesel began to question his God. He didn't seem to understand why they should have faith in Him, when his people are being “tortured day and night… [watching their] brothers end up in furnaces,” because of that very faith (67). When the New Year came, the inmates were met with the dreaded selection. Those who had been around when the camp “was a veritable hell,” told current inmates of the terrors of the constant selections that had come before them (70). Wiesel was more scared for his father, who was weak and frail, unlike himself. The inmates were told to “run as if [they] had the devil at [their] heels” during the selection, and warned not to be afraid. It was hard for them to follow this piece of advice in their current situation. Despite his self-doubt, Wiesel passes the test with incredible speed, being told that he “couldn’t have [been failed]... [He] was running too fast,” by a fellow inmate (72). Unfortunately, his father learns that his name was written down, and he is to retake the selection. Panic sets in, and Wiesel’s father believes that “time [is] running out,” prompting him to give Wiesel his belongings and speak as if death was awaiting him. He passes, luckily, and winter then approaches the camp. In January, Wiesel suffers from a foot injury and remains in the
6. Chapter Six
Wiesel and his father evacuate with the remaining inmates, marching while the SS directed insults towards them, even going to call them “flea-ridden dogs” (85). As they continue, Wiesel realizes that they were practically running “like machines,” no one lagging behind out of fear of being shot by the SS (85). After witnessing the death of a young boy who fell behind, he contemplates doing the same and declares that “the idea of dying… fascinated [him]” (86). The pain that he was in was so great, that he wished to die in order to end it all. However, the thought of his father held him back from giving up. He was “his sole support” and aware that his father wouldn’t last long without him. This is a reversal of the typical father and son relationship, in their circumstance, Wiesel’s father had no choice but to depend on his still teenage son. The group finally came to a halt at an abandoned village, stuck in the freezing cold, where the harsh winter appeared to be claiming lives. Not long after they arrive, a rabbi immerges from a shed and begins to ask for his son. Wiesel tells him that he hasn’t seen him, but later realizes that Rabbi Eliahu’s son was the young boy who had died earlier. He then begins to wonder if the son had died in order to escape his father, believing that “this separation would free him” (91). Wiesel’s situation is somewhat similar to Rabbi Eliahu’s, and he desperately hopes that he will never see his father as a burden. The group is soon ordered to begin marching again, and in the process, Wiesel gets crushed underneath corpses. As he tries to escape, he recognizes Juliek, one of the violin players from the Buna orchestra. Despite …show more content…
As the day went on, Wiesel began to question his God. He didn't seem to understand why they should have faith in Him, when his people are being “tortured day and night… [watching their] brothers end up in furnaces,” because of that very faith (67). When the New Year came, the inmates were met with the dreaded selection. Those who had been around when the camp “was a veritable hell,” told current inmates of the terrors of the constant selections that had come before them (70). Wiesel was more scared for his father, who was weak and frail, unlike himself. The inmates were told to “run as if [they] had the devil at [their] heels” during the selection, and warned not to be afraid. It was hard for them to follow this piece of advice in their current situation. Despite his self-doubt, Wiesel passes the test with incredible speed, being told that he “couldn’t have [been failed]... [He] was running too fast,” by a fellow inmate (72). Unfortunately, his father learns that his name was written down, and he is to retake the selection. Panic sets in, and Wiesel’s father believes that “time [is] running out,” prompting him to give Wiesel his belongings and speak as if death was awaiting him. He passes, luckily, and winter then approaches the camp. In January, Wiesel suffers from a foot injury and remains in the