Dawn by Elie Wiesel: Critical Analysis
Dawn by Elie Wiesel: Critical Analysis
An execution is tragic for the victim and his family, but did you ever think how hard it is for the executioner? Dawn tells the story of the night that two men wait for the moment that will change their life. An English officer, John Dawson, will be killed as the sun rises over the horizon. The Israeli freedom fight named Elisha waits in horror for the split second action, which will mark him a killer for the rest of his life. These two men are very similar, but also very different at the same time.
The events that are to occur affect these two men’s actions and thoughts in very different ways. John Dawson sits in his cell and seems to be very calm and does not show any hatred for Elisha. It would be natural for John to be hostile toward him knowing that Elisha is the one who will execute him. John does not show any anger toward Elisha and even seems to be attempting to become friends with him. On the other hand, Elisha should not be feeling any remorse for executing this man because it is his enemy. He obviously is hesitant about killing this man, because he thinks about if God was there to see how much Dawson inspires him. Both of these men seem to be doing and thinking the opposite of what a person would believe they would in this situation.
Dawson and Elisha are also similar in some ways. They both have no control over the future from a certain point onward. Dawson was captured by the Israeli freedom fighters as a hostage. He has no control over if he is killed or released. Elisha has orders to execute Dawson, because David ben Moshe is to be executed. Elisha has to follow his orders or else both Dawson and he will share the same fate. The two are clue-less about the real reason as to why Dawson must be murdered. Dawson had asked Elisha why he was being executed and Elisha tried to figure it out in his head, but all he could come up with for killing Dawson was that he hated Englishmen. Elisha comes to the conclusion that one reason he hates Dawson is...