Describe at least one important technique used in the text. Explain how the technique created an emotional response in you.
In the holocaust memoir 'Night' by Elie Wiesel, three events that impacted me emotionally were Elie being split by his family ,his first night in camp and his fathers death. The writer uses a range of language features including metaphors, repetition and hyperbole
Another incident was when Elie watched his family split up and knew he would never see them again.
"this was the moment in time that I knew I would never see my mother and Tzipora again" using the language feature first person narration.
This sentence made me think about just how many people lost their families and friends knowing that they were walking to their death and that they couldn't do anything about it. It made me appreciate the family I do have. The feeling of losing one family member let alone numerous family members would be a hurt to great to deal with. I believe this proved a great deal of bravery that Elie shows throughout the months he endured the torture and malnourishment.
One incident that really affected me emotionally was when Elie Wiesel wrote the prose poem with the repeated line
' Never shall I forget' about his first night in the concentration camp Auschwitz. As well as the repetition he used listing of all the things he wouldn't forget such as
'Never shall I forget that smoke.
Never shall I forget the small faces of the children whose bodies I saw transformed into smoke under a silent sky' These lines in particular was the first time in the book made me feel like I knew what he was going through. It made me realise just how cruel he and others were treated. The repetition of the poem embedded the deep affect the Nazis had on the the Jews.
Another emotionally difficult read was when Elie mentioned the death of his father.
"I did not weep and it pained me that I could not weep. But I was out of tears. And deep inside me if I could have searched the recesses of my feeble conscience I might have found something like free at last" the writer uses a very short sentence which make a big impact because if someone was to lose a father they would be expected to cry but in this situation he was so desensitised by the hundreds of deaths he witnessed.
While reading this sentence I felt the pain Elie had while experiencing this, losing your father is an Intolerable level of hardship let alone unwillingly feeling free from his death. although Elie deeply loved his father he had to let him die so he could tell his story... And so he did.
before reading 'Night' I was not aware of the hardship and inhumane punishment the Jews endured. This book made me realise just how appalling and hateful the Nazis were towards the Jewish religion. I gained some insight as to the fear and pain he and many others went through. Using the technique first person narration, prose poem repetition and short sentences Elie Wiesel uses these language features in a way that entirely describes the time he spent in Auschwitz camp
