Books do more than just tell stories; they have the power to inspire, educate, and transform lives. For fifty-six years, Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning To Kill a Mockingbird has been an influential social commentary on prejudice in the deep south. Controversial at its inception for its progressive attitude towards civil rights, the novel has since become a staple in classrooms around the world for its message of equality and compassion. Elie Wiesel’s Night is a powerful narrative of his own experiences as a teenaged Jew during the second world war. The slim volume shocks readers with an unflinching representation of the horrors of the Holocaust and the resilience of the human spirit. To Kill a Mockingbird and Night both showcase a loss
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When they arrived at the camp, Elie and his father were separated from the rest of their family. As Elie lost his faith in God, his father became the only source of hope and encouragement in his life. When they stopped in the abandoned village during their march to Gleiwitz, both Elie and his father would have succumbed to the cold and the temptation of sleep had they not been together. “I 'll watch over you and you 'll watch over me. We won 't let each other fall asleep. We 'll look after each other" (Wiesel 89). They retained this sense of loyalty when they arrived in Gleiwitz, where Elie sacrificed his food and tried to protect his father even when Shlomo was too sick to recover. In To Kill a Mockingbird, as the single parent of his children, Atticus takes great responsibility in raising Jem and Scout to be moral, open-minded, and compassionate. Despite the fact that Maycomb is rampant with prejudice, Atticus chooses to defend Tom Robinson because he feels that it is his duty, both as a lawyer and as a good role model to his children. He answers their questions and explains the case in a way that is both truthful and simple enough for a young child such as Scout to understand. Above all, he endeavors to instill a sense of respect and equality in Scout, especially when people do things that she …show more content…
These societies were similarly conditioned to hate a group of people thought to be inferior, and this prejudice was visible not only on a personal level, but in the laws of their governments and actions of their societies. For the Jewish people in Germany, they first lost their rights to citizenship and were the victims of cruel propaganda before they were sent to concentration camps as part of Hitler’s “Final Solution”. In the concentration camps, they were subject to various atrocities including starvation, brutal beatings, and death by gas chamber at the hands of Nazi officials. "Comrades, you are now in the concentration camp Auschwitz. Ahead of you lies a long road paved with suffering” (Wiesel 41). In Night, this announcement was given to Elie as a warning of the depravities to come simply because he was a Jew. African Americans have had a long and troubled history in America, having suffered for almost three hundred years by the 1930’s. Even though they had been freed from slavery, they had few opportunities and remained highly segregated from the white community. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Tom Robinson is accused by a white man and found guilty of a crime he did not commit, despite a strong defense from Atticus Finch. Although Tom Robinson had the legal right to a fair trial, the all-white jury came to the conclusion that he was guilty long
When they arrived at the camp, Elie and his father were separated from the rest of their family. As Elie lost his faith in God, his father became the only source of hope and encouragement in his life. When they stopped in the abandoned village during their march to Gleiwitz, both Elie and his father would have succumbed to the cold and the temptation of sleep had they not been together. “I 'll watch over you and you 'll watch over me. We won 't let each other fall asleep. We 'll look after each other" (Wiesel 89). They retained this sense of loyalty when they arrived in Gleiwitz, where Elie sacrificed his food and tried to protect his father even when Shlomo was too sick to recover. In To Kill a Mockingbird, as the single parent of his children, Atticus takes great responsibility in raising Jem and Scout to be moral, open-minded, and compassionate. Despite the fact that Maycomb is rampant with prejudice, Atticus chooses to defend Tom Robinson because he feels that it is his duty, both as a lawyer and as a good role model to his children. He answers their questions and explains the case in a way that is both truthful and simple enough for a young child such as Scout to understand. Above all, he endeavors to instill a sense of respect and equality in Scout, especially when people do things that she …show more content…
These societies were similarly conditioned to hate a group of people thought to be inferior, and this prejudice was visible not only on a personal level, but in the laws of their governments and actions of their societies. For the Jewish people in Germany, they first lost their rights to citizenship and were the victims of cruel propaganda before they were sent to concentration camps as part of Hitler’s “Final Solution”. In the concentration camps, they were subject to various atrocities including starvation, brutal beatings, and death by gas chamber at the hands of Nazi officials. "Comrades, you are now in the concentration camp Auschwitz. Ahead of you lies a long road paved with suffering” (Wiesel 41). In Night, this announcement was given to Elie as a warning of the depravities to come simply because he was a Jew. African Americans have had a long and troubled history in America, having suffered for almost three hundred years by the 1930’s. Even though they had been freed from slavery, they had few opportunities and remained highly segregated from the white community. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Tom Robinson is accused by a white man and found guilty of a crime he did not commit, despite a strong defense from Atticus Finch. Although Tom Robinson had the legal right to a fair trial, the all-white jury came to the conclusion that he was guilty long