War is an event that can have various different outcomes. It impacts everyone in a different way, but these effects can be characterized as positive, negative, and neutral. In the memoir Night by Elie Wiesel, the reader witnesses the events that took place during the holocaust through the eyes of the author. Wiesel explains all of his experiences in great detail, painting a very vivid picture of the occurrences around him. Through reading this novel and reading the Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech at the end, a main point becomes apparent. This idea can also be seen in the memoir In My Hands by Irene Gut Opdyke and Jennifer Armstrong, in the Universal Declaration of Human Right, and in Operation Pied Piper. The theme that is common in all …show more content…
In the memoir Night by Elie Wiesel, during his Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, the author says “We must take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented”(Wiesel 119). Going through the holocaust as a during World War 2 has taught Wiesel the real cost of staying silent. After witnessing all of the horrors during his childhood, he now realizes that those events could have been avoided if the Jews took action and tried to defend themselves. Wiesel understands that stepping in and helping people only leads to a better outcome than remaining impartial. He emphasizes this message to his audience by saying “Whenever men and women are persecuted because of their race, religion, or political views, that place must-at that moment-become the center of the universe”(Wiesel 119). Wiesel is not the only person who believes that people should stand up for each other. Countless acts of selflessness can be seen during war. An example of individuals taking action at the time of war is Operation Pied Piper. During this event, 3.5 million people (most of whom were children) were evacuated from British cities threatened by German bombs. By examining the images taken during the incident, numerous children can be seen wearing tags and walking towards a train with a wistful expression on their face. Even though the kids seemed melancholy at the time, this event helped save the lives of millions of little children. By looking at Operation Pied Piper and the memoir Night, it is evident that war has a positive impact on humanity. In the recollection by Wiesel, the author demonstrates to his readers that even though a situation might not concern you, it is still virtuous to interfere in order to help the victims, and Operation Pied Piper proved to everyone that staying still and worrying is more