Characterization is important for learning about characters because it gives the reader more knowledge about the character. In the autobiographical novel Night, by Eliezer Wiesel, he uses characterization to describe himself throughout the story. The story was taken place around 1943 when all Jews were sent to a concentration camp where they were treated very badly. They were separated from their families; SS men hit them really hard, they were also killed, and were burned in these huge chimneys. Elie and his family were sent to this camp. Though in his autobiography, Eli can be seen as selfish and unselfish, he is most often viewed as kind because of his actions. .
Least often Elie is selfish because he is starving. For example, when his father was dying and he thinks to himself "You could have two rations of bread, two rations of soup " (Wiesel 111). Hunger has caused Elie to think selfishly with his stomach. Immediately, Elie feels guilt over thinking of taking his father's rations. That is why he is not always selfish. He is obviously being tortured but he still loves his father. "You cannot help him anymore. And you are hurting yourself. In fact you should be getting his rations I listened to him without interrupting. He was right. Too late to save your old father " (Wiesel 111). The blockalteste was telling Elie that he should just give up on his father. Elie wanted to just forget about his father since there are more important things going on. Even though he wanted to give up on his dad he didn't, because he knew that his father was still important to him or he still meant something to him. That's why he's not always selfish. "That's all we thought about. No thought of revenge, or of parents. Only bread (Wiesel 115). After Elie's father died due to dysentery, he forgot that he even had a family. All he wanted was to eat a little more. He's not always selfish because there was nothing he could really do about it at the moment.