a. Dehumanization: To take away all the positive qualities of a human being.
b. As the process of captivity progresses, you can see the ways of the Jewish people being affected. Those that were strong willed in their faith were now going through things that broke them as people and as participants of their faith. For example, Eliezer's father is said to have lost the certain life he once had in his eyes and as time passed, his actions of faith (praying, worship, etc..) came to a halt as well. Not all were hopeless, however. Other prisoners believed there was soon to be deliverance, and continuously practiced their religious customs (prayers, days of significance, etc..).
c. Throughout this whole ordeal, a lot of confusion and doubt troubled Eliezer's mind. Not only did he notice the difference in the people's stances in faith, but he also observed the sad, reoccurring relationship between the fathers and sons that were in the camp together. He saw several instances in which sons would put themselves above their fathers, taking their food and leaving them for dead. He was appalled by what he saw, though all he could do was ignore it and act differently towards his own father. He also was very doubtful in the justice of his God. The experiences he had gone through had been enough to have him believe there was no reason to praise the God that allowed all this misery.
Dialectical Journal Entry:
a. ".. he dealt my father such a clout that he fell to the ground, crawling back to his place in all fours. I did not move. What had happened to me? My fatherhad just been, before my very eyes, and I had not flickered an eyelid... Had I changed so much, then?... Now remorse began to gnaw at me."
b. "Not far away, I noticed an old man dragging himself along on all fours... A shadow had just loomed up near him. The shadow threw itself upon him. Felled to the ground, stunned with blows, the old man cried: 'Meir. meir, my boy! Don't you recognize me? I'm your father... you're hurting me... you're killing your father! I've got some bread... for you too... for you too...' The old man again whispered something, let out a rattle, and died amid the general indifference. his son searched him, took the bread, and began to devour it."
c. "Some talked of God, of his mysterious way, of the sins of the Jewish people, and of their future deliverance. But I ceased to pray. How I sympathized with Job! I did not deny God's existence, but I doubted his absolute justice. "
c. Throughout this whole ordeal, a lot of confusion and doubt troubled Eliezer's mind. Not only did he notice the difference in the people's stances in faith, but he also observed the sad, reoccurring relationship between the fathers and sons that were in the camp together. He saw several instances in which sons would put themselves above their fathers, taking their food and leaving them for dead. He was appalled by what he saw, though all he could do was ignore it and act differently towards his own father. He also was very doubtful in the justice of his God. The experiences he had gone through had been enough to have him believe there was no reason to praise the God that allowed all this misery.
Dialectical Journal Entry:
a. ".. he dealt my father such a clout that he fell to the ground, crawling back to his place in all fours. I did not move. What had happened to me? My fatherhad just been, before my very eyes, and I had not flickered an eyelid... Had I changed so much, then?... Now remorse began to gnaw at me."
b. "Not far away, I noticed an old man dragging himself along on all fours... A shadow had just loomed up near him. The shadow threw itself upon him. Felled to the ground, stunned with blows, the old man cried: 'Meir. meir, my boy! Don't you recognize me? I'm your father... you're hurting me... you're killing your father! I've got some bread... for you too... for you too...' The old man again whispered something, let out a rattle, and died amid the general indifference. his son searched him, took the bread, and began to devour it."
c. "Some talked of God, of his mysterious way, of the sins of the Jewish people, and of their future deliverance. But I ceased to pray. How I sympathized with Job! I did not deny God's existence, but I doubted his absolute justice. "
No comments:
Post a Comment