In Night by Eliezer Wiesel, how does his state of faith changes from the beginning, to the end?

Question

Please make sure to also use textual evidence to support the answer, thank you.

Answer 1

He was an ordinary boy, of faith and respect for his family. In the first chapter, he refers back to his earlier years, before the war, with Mosche the Beadle, and how he wanted to dedicate himself to faith and to follow in his dads footsteps. We get a sense of his innocence and naivety.

Then came the war and the extermination of his people. He looses his morals, his faith and most importantly his faith in humanity.

We are shown his loss of faith when he is watching a young boy getting hanged in front of the camp. Someone behind him whispers asking ‘where is god’ and Elie’s reply is that God is hanging on the gallows.

Secondly, the most drastic change and anger within himself we can see is at the end. When his father is dying underneath him, and he is pleading for Elie’s help, and all he wants as a dying man is to be next to his son, to have him next to him in his time of death…

Elies response?… anger.

He has changed so much that all it does is bother him. He is afraid that his father will get him beaten by the SS, so all he wants him to do is shut up.

He explains that. He admits his guilt, he has changed so much that he will never forgive the world for turning him against his own father.

He went from a child, to a victim, and lastly a survivor.