Night Symbolism

Night

In the book Night Elie Wiesel uses both imagery and extensive symbolism in order to foreshadow future events and to develop a dark depressing atmosphere that can be carried throughout the whole novel. Elie often refers to darkness to show just how nightmarish the holocaust really was. The holocaust was such a dark time in human history so when Elie recollects his experience of the time he depicts the loss of faith and inhumanities that took place thus the symbolic title of the story Night it itself being symbolism fits well.

German soldiers with their steel helmets and their death’s-head emblem. Still our first impressions of the Germans being reassuring.” Here Elie vividly describes the emblem the soldiers wear in order to symbolize death. This is practically a subtle hint Elie uses in order to let the reader know that something bad is about to occur and the culprit is already among them. This quote also helps show Elie’s feeling towards the Germans at first he did not feel threatened or even frightened in fact he was so in denial or he was so delusional or perhaps even so optimistic that even though death was virtually present he regarded it as a sense of protection.

“The baton was moving constantly sometimes to the right, sometimes to the left.” When arriving at Auschwitz Elie’s focus shifted over to Dr. Mengele’s because it symbolized both his and father’s fate whether to live or die. This also allows Elie to express the fear, uncertainty, and suspension he had to undergo when his life was basically put in the hands of someone else. This also helps show Elie’s concern for not only his own well being but for well being of his father, it expresses the fear Elie experiences when the possibility of separation between he and his dad presents itself.