rehugo analysis: history

Jana Kurita
Mr. Soeth
Ap English 3
February 2, 2011

REHUGO Analysis: History - Speech

A)The Perils of Indifference is a speech, spoken by Elie Wiesel. Elie Wiesel is speaking as a Holocaust survivor.

B) The purpose of the speech to was talk about how the Millenniums events will be remembered as “a dark shadow over humanity.” The speech addressed Wiesel’s recount of his time during the Holocaust and the part America played in World War Two, for Hilary Clinton’s Millennium Lectures. Wiesel classifies the millennium as one filled with indifference, and inhumanity; “ Two World Wars, countless civil wars, the senseless chain of assassinations, bloodbaths in Cambodia and Algeria, India and Pakistan, Ireland and Rwanda, Eritrea and Ethiopia…” At the end of the speech, Wiesel states the positive things of the millennium “the defeat of Nazism, the collapse of communism, the rebirth of Israel on its ancestral soil, the demise of the apartheid, Israel’s peace treaty with Egypt.” The difference between the beginning of the era and the end of the era was the shocking cruelty Hitler caused, forcing America to learn how to intervene. The speech was directored towards President Bill Clinton, First Lady Hilary Clinton, members of congress, and everybody else present at the Millennium Lectures.

C)The Speech is relevant today because it talks about indifference. Indifference is still happening in the Middle East, due to the terrorism citizens have to face caused by insurgents. Even to this day, America get’s involved because of what happened during the Holocaust. In World War Two, America did not intervene until after a generous amount of time passed. Elie Wiesel states, “A thousand people -- in America, a great country, the greatest democracy, the most generous of all new nations in modern history. What happened? I don't understand. Why the indifference, on the highest level, to the suffering of the victims?” Wiesel continues further on saying, after the war, America learned from their mistakes, “joint decision of the United States and NATO to intervene in Kosovo and save those victims, those refugees, those who were uprooted by a man whom I believe that because of his crimes, should be charged with crimes against humanity. But this time, the world was not silent. This time, we do respond. This time, we intervene.” Wiesel asks “Has the human being become less indifferent and more human? Have we learned from our experiences?” to make the audience concentrate and dwell over if America has truly learned from their mistakes in the past. The tone of the speech is disappointment and pain such as when the author says “Why, the indifference, on the highest level, to the suffering of the victims?”

D)Rhetorical Strategies:

a)Definition: Throughout the speech, Wiesel tosses out the word indifference to describe the world’s reaction towards the Holocaust. He defines indifference as “ “no difference”. A strange and unnatural state in which the lines blur between light and darkness, dusk and dawn, crime and punishment…..” Wiesel defining indifference changes the audience perception of their previous understanding of the word and changed it to Wiesel’s meaning of the word to understand the point he is trying to get across.

b)Rhetorical questions: From beginning to end, Wiesel asks numerous amounts of rhetorical questions. The reason he asks the questions, is to make the audience mull over the topic and to let the listener come to their own conclusion. An example of the most influential rhetorical question in the speech was when Wiesel talked about how society has stopped being indifferent and asks “Does it mean that we have learned from the past? Does it mean that society has changed? Has the human being become less indifferent and more human? Have we really learned from our experiences? Are we less insensitive to the plight of victims of ethnic cleansing and other forms of injustices in places near and far?” which allows the crowd to from their own opinion on if America has truly changed.

MLA citation:
Wiesel, Elie. "The Perils of Indifference." Millenium Lectures. East Room of the White House, Washington D.C. 22 Apr. 1999. Speech.