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Elie Wiesel

" But I had no more tears. And, in the depths of my being, in the recesses of my weakened conscience, could I have searched it, I might perhaps have found something like-free at last !“ -- Elie Wiesel, Night. Elie Wiesel. Born in Sighet , Transylvania (modern day Romania)

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Elie Wiesel

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  1. "But I had no more tears. And, in the depths of my being, in the recesses of my weakened conscience, could I have searched it, I might perhaps have found something like-free at last!“ --Elie Wiesel, Night Elie Wiesel

  2. Born in Sighet, Transylvania (modern day Romania) His mother, Sarah Feig, was the daughter of DodyeFeig, an active member of the church and farmer from a nearby village His father was named Chlomo Childhood

  3. Chlomoinstilled a strong sense of humanism in his son, encouraging him to learn Hebrew and to read literature His mother encouraged him to study the Torah To Wiesel: his father represented reason and his mother Sarah promoted faith Faith

  4. Wiesel had three sisters – older sisters Hilda and Beatrice, and younger sister Tzipora Beatrice and Hilda survived the war and were reunited with Wiesel at a French orphanage Tzipora, Chlomo and Sarah did not survive the Holocaust Family

  5. In 1940, Romania lost the town of Sighet Wiesel, his family and the rest of the town were placed in one of the two ghettos in Sighet Wiesel and his family lived in the larger of the two, on Serpent Street Capture of Sighet

  6. On May 16, 1944, the Hungarian authorities allowed the German army to deport the Jewish community in Sighet to Auschwitz-Birkenau Wiesel was separated from his mother and sisters Hilda, Beatrice, and Tzipora Wiesel's mother and sister Tzipora were presumably killed in the gas chambers upon arrival To auschwitz

  7. Elie’sinmate number, "A-7713," was tattooed onto his left arm Wiesel and his father were sent to the attached work camp, Buna He managed to remain with his father for over eight months They were forced to work under appalling conditions and shuffled between three concentration camps Life in Auschwitz

  8. On January 29, 1945, just a few weeks after the two were marched to Buchenwald, Wiesel's father was beaten by a Nazi He was suffering from dysentery, starvation, and exhaustion He was also beaten by other inmates for his food He died and was sent to the crematorium months before the camp was liberated by the U. S. Army on April 11, 1945 Chlomo’s fate

  9. After World War II, Wiesel taught Hebrew and worked as a choirmaster before becoming a professional journalist He learned French, which became the language he used most frequently in writing For ten years after the war, Wiesel refused to write about or discuss his experiences during the Holocaust After the war

  10. In 1955, Wiesel moved to New York City He became a US citizen: due to injuries suffered in a traffic accident, he was forced to stay in New York past his visa's expiration and was offered citizenship to resolve his status Wiesel wrote over 40 books, both fiction and non-fiction, and won many literary prizes Life in the united states

  11. Wiesel's writing is considered among the most important in Holocaust literature Historians credit Wiesel with giving the term 'Holocaust' its present meaning He does not feel that the word adequately describes the event and wishes it were used less frequently to describe significant occurrences as everyday tragedies “Holocaust”

  12. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1986 for speaking out against violence, repression, and racism He has received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1985 Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1996

  13. Like many survivors, Wiesel could not find the words to describe his experiences François Mauriac, the 1952 Nobel Laureate in Literatureand Wiesel's close friend, persuaded him to write about his experiences Wiesel first wrote a 900-page memoir Un divelt hot geshvign (And the World Remained Silent) in Yiddish Retelling the experience

  14. Wiesel rewrote a shortened version of the manuscript in French, and it was published as the 127-page La Nuit, and later translated into English as Night Wiesel had trouble finding a publisher for his book, and initially it sold few copies In 1960, Arthur Wang of Hill & Wang agreed to pay a $100 advance, and published it in the US in September that year as Night Night comes to life

  15. The book sold just 1,046 copies over the next 18 months It attracted interest from reviewers, leading to television interviews with Wiesel "The English translation came out in 1960, and the first printing was 3,000 copies," Wiesel said in an interview. "And it took three years to sell them. Now, I get 100 letters a month from children about the book. And there are many, many million copies in print." The Selling of Night

  16. Night has been translated into 30 languages By 1997, the book was selling 300,000 copies annually in the United States alone By March 2006, about six million copies were sold in the United States On January 16, 2006, Oprah Winfrey chose the work for her book club. One million extra paperback and 150,000 hardcover copies were printed carrying the "Oprah's Book Club" logo On February 13, 2006, Night was No. 1 on The New York Times bestseller list for paperback non-fiction Best seller

  17. Wiesel and his wife, Marion, started the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity He served as chairman for the Presidential Commission on the Holocaust (later renamed US Holocaust Memorial Council) from 1978 to 1986 Helped spearhead the building of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Founding the Holocaust Museum

  18. Recent Life • In early 2006, Wiesel traveled to Auschwitz with Oprah Winfrey, a visit which was broadcast as part of The Oprah Winfrey Show on May 24, 2006 Wiesel said that this would most likely be his last trip there. • In September 2006, he appeared before the UN Security Council with actor George Clooney to call attention to the humanitarian crisis in Darfur. • On November 30, 2006 Wiesel received an honorary knighthood in London in recognition of his work toward raising Holocaust education in the United Kingdom.

  19. On June 5, 2009, Wiesel accompanied US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel as they toured Buchenwald Merkel and Wiesel each spoke about Buchenwald in personal terms Merkel considered the responsibility of Germans vis-à-vis Nazi history Wiesel reflected on the suffering and death of his father in the camp Visiting Buchenwald

  20. On February 1, 2007, Wiesel was attacked in a San Francisco hotel by a 22-year-old Holocaust denier Eric Hunt tried to drag Wiesel into a hotel room. Wiesel was not injured and Hunt fled the scene Hunt bragged about the incident on a Holocaust denial website. Approximately one month later, he was arrested and charged with multiple offenses Hunt was convicted on July 21, 2008 and was sentenced to two years; was given credit for time served and good behavior He was released on probation and ordered to undergo psychological treatment At his sentencing hearing, Hunt apologized and insisted that he no longer denies the Holocaust Hunt continued for some time afterwards to maintain and update a (now defunct) blog that denied the Holocaust and was critical of prominent Jewish people He has since started a new website that actively denies the Holocaust Wiesel is attacked

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