Mr. Soeth
English 3 AP
2/2/11
A. Elie Wiesel gave the speech “Perils of Indifference” in the White House on April 12, 1999.
B. Elie Wiesel gave this speech as a result of the holocaust and how various people looked at the situation, and did nothing to prevent it. The people in the concentration camps thought that the concentration camps were kept secret from the public but in reality most people wanted to avert the truth. “The political prisoner in his cell, the hungry children, the homeless refugees -- not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering them a spark of hope is to exile them from human memory. And in denying their humanity, we betray our own.”
C. Elie Wiesel aim is to argue that it’s so much easier to just turn your head the other way, then to face the tragedies that lie within our countries. He does a very remarkable job of opening people’s eyes to the truth. Wiesel says “It is so much easier to look away from victims. It is so much easier to avoid such rude interruptions to our work, our dreams, our hopes. It is, after all, awkward, troublesome, to be involved in another person's pain and despair.” However he also makes a good point when he points out that as time goes by people are starting to change and are starting to learn from their own experiences. Stating that people have made countless mistakes in the past but have also learned from them.
D. One of the multiple rhetorical devices the Wiesel uses is definition, “What is indifference? Etymologically, the word means "no difference." A strange and unnatural state in which the lines blur between light and darkness, dusk and dawn, crime and punishment, cruelty and compassion, good and evil.” This definition, gives clarification to the rest of the speech. It’s important because the speech is mostly about indifference and to really understand and be aware of the point that Wiesel is trying to make, it is essential that you grasp the meaning of indifference. Another rhetorical device that Wiesel states is a metaphor describing that indifference can be tempting and seductive, building up indifference as a human. “Of course, indifference can be tempting -- more than that, seductive.” This states that countless people desire to be indifferent because a considerable amount of people don’t like to face the truth and find it easier to go about their jobs, hopes, and dreams.
"Great Speeches Collection: Elie Wiesel Speech The Perils of Indifference." The History Place. Web. 03 Feb. 2011..
B. Elie Wiesel gave this speech as a result of the holocaust and how various people looked at the situation, and did nothing to prevent it. The people in the concentration camps thought that the concentration camps were kept secret from the public but in reality most people wanted to avert the truth. “The political prisoner in his cell, the hungry children, the homeless refugees -- not to respond to their plight, not to relieve their solitude by offering them a spark of hope is to exile them from human memory. And in denying their humanity, we betray our own.”
C. Elie Wiesel aim is to argue that it’s so much easier to just turn your head the other way, then to face the tragedies that lie within our countries. He does a very remarkable job of opening people’s eyes to the truth. Wiesel says “It is so much easier to look away from victims. It is so much easier to avoid such rude interruptions to our work, our dreams, our hopes. It is, after all, awkward, troublesome, to be involved in another person's pain and despair.” However he also makes a good point when he points out that as time goes by people are starting to change and are starting to learn from their own experiences. Stating that people have made countless mistakes in the past but have also learned from them.
D. One of the multiple rhetorical devices the Wiesel uses is definition, “What is indifference? Etymologically, the word means "no difference." A strange and unnatural state in which the lines blur between light and darkness, dusk and dawn, crime and punishment, cruelty and compassion, good and evil.” This definition, gives clarification to the rest of the speech. It’s important because the speech is mostly about indifference and to really understand and be aware of the point that Wiesel is trying to make, it is essential that you grasp the meaning of indifference. Another rhetorical device that Wiesel states is a metaphor describing that indifference can be tempting and seductive, building up indifference as a human. “Of course, indifference can be tempting -- more than that, seductive.” This states that countless people desire to be indifferent because a considerable amount of people don’t like to face the truth and find it easier to go about their jobs, hopes, and dreams.
"Great Speeches Collection: Elie Wiesel Speech The Perils of Indifference." The History Place. Web. 03 Feb. 2011.
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