Wiesel's purpose is to give witness to the atrocities of the Holocaust, to speak for the millions who died in the camps. By documenting his experiences, Wiesel hopes to warn future readers about how far hatred and prejudice can go in inflicting death and violence.
Wiesel often said that to remain silent was one of the worst things he could have done after all he lost and all he saw other Jews lose. During his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Wiesel said, "I have tried to keep memory alive. . . . I have tried to fight those who would forget. Because if we forget, we are guilty; we are accomplices."
That is the main purpose of Night: to make sure that in the future, as living witnesses of the Holocaust die out and the event fades from living memory, that future generations will not forget what happened and that people will endeavor to make sure such atrocities never happen again.
Eli Wiesel tells us in an interview that he wrote Night partly to speak for the dead, and for the survivors who could not speak of the atrocities. He told the story of his survival experience with a sharp honesty that would help those of the future also have an accurate representation.
He witnessed and experienced some of the harshest experiences possible for a child of his age, and although the writing is from the memories of an adult author, the voice is still strikingly innocent. In this way, Wiesel communicates the memories of those who shared his experience.
His observations, descriptions of the struggles of those around him, and description of the actions of Nazi soldiers and guards all work together to document historic events, preserve the memories of himself and those around him, and serve as a warning to future generations about the harsh reality of genocide.
He did not seek to be seen as a hero, or martyr of any sort. Rather, he wrote to preserve the truth, speak for a generation, and give the future something to consider.
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