Prose And Mental Abuse In The Novel Night By Elie Wiesel

In the Novel “Night” by Elie Wiesel The Nazis and German officers used many strategies to dehumanize the Jews. They used 3 main strategies to do this. These strategies are verbal abuse, mental abuse, and physical abuse. The Nazis used these three main strategies to dehumanize the Jews and other victims of the Holocaust to make them feel less than everyone else. One of the Nazis main goals in the Holocaust are to make the Jews feel they are lower than everyone else. They use many forms of verbal abuse to accomplish this goal. When Elie was 15 he was put into a ghetto as a temporary stay until they could be moved to the next camp. When it is their day to leave, they have to walk in a march to the camp. The Nazis scream at them “ Faster! Faster! …show more content…
This was used to make them go crazy just to scare them into doing what they want and to again show that they are not needed and can be replaced.Elie and all the other prisoners were transported to the camp through a cattle car. One day they were in a ghetto and the next they had to walk to a station “where a convoy of cattle cars were lined up” they were sent to the camp 80 people a cattle car with a ration of bread and no bathrooms. The Nazis used this to show the Jews that they are seen as animals. They had to use the bathroom on the floor so the cattle car, they had minimal food and water supply and this food was thrown into the cattle cars, and they were sent to a camp in a place meant for animals. Once Elie and his father were put into the camp there was a “selection” All the Jews were separated and Elie and his father were sent to the left. At this time they were not aware that they were selected to work and not be killed so the Nazis decided to have some fun. There were pits full of burning bodies everywhere they looked. The Jews were directed to walk towards the fire.They thought they were going to die right then and right there but “Two steps from the pit we were ordered to turn left” They were so relieved that they weren't killed but they took it as a warning from the Nazis. The Nazis did this to show “don't mess with us or that will be you, we could have killed you right here and right now …show more content…
The Nazis used this as a game to show they were an object that could be thrown away. When Eli and his father came to the camp, they were going through a part of their selection. Eli’s dad started to have a colic attack and needed a bathroom. His father asked the Nazi if he could go to the bathroom, but the Nazi laughed at him and “He slapped my father with such force he fall down” This showed all of the prisoners that they don't care how you feel who you are or anything. You will be hit and beat. Your sick? To bad off to the crematoriums. During the Death March the prisoners ran in snow and below freezing temperatures. When you were told to run you ran, when you were told to keep going you kept going because “If one of us stopped for a second, a quick shot eliminated the filthy dog.” The Jews even consider themselves dogs now. They know to obey and that they have no rights over the Germans. They also know that they could never stop or they would be eliminated and no one would care. The Nazis were very physical and violent towards the Jews and did not car to hit, smack, hang, shoot or starve