The Oath
Encyclopedia
The Oath is the English title of Le serment de Kolvillag, a novel by Elie Wiesel
. It tells the story of Azriel, the only surviving Jewish member of the small Hungarian town of Kolvillag after a pogrom
perpetrated by neighboring Christians. Azriel carries the secret of Kollvilag's destruction within him, forbidden to share his experiences. However, when Azriel meets a young man on the brink of suicide fifty years later, he realizes that he must pass on his secret to save the young man's life - yet he is bound by his promise to the dead.
Le serment de Kolvillag is a powerful work told in fragments - the point of view
changes from present-day Azriel, the Azriel of the past, the young man in the present, and the young man's past. It is unstructured to the point where it borders on Surrealism
. Some of the themes of Le serment de Kolvillag include pogroms, death, old age, secrecy, silence, and modernity.
Elie Wiesel
Sir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
. It tells the story of Azriel, the only surviving Jewish member of the small Hungarian town of Kolvillag after a pogrom
Pogrom
A pogrom is a form of violent riot, a mob attack directed against a minority group, and characterized by killings and destruction of their homes and properties, businesses, and religious centres...
perpetrated by neighboring Christians. Azriel carries the secret of Kollvilag's destruction within him, forbidden to share his experiences. However, when Azriel meets a young man on the brink of suicide fifty years later, he realizes that he must pass on his secret to save the young man's life - yet he is bound by his promise to the dead.
Le serment de Kolvillag is a powerful work told in fragments - the point of view
Point of view (literature)
The narrative mode is the set of methods the author of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical story uses to convey the plot to the audience. Narration, the process of presenting the narrative, occurs because of the narrative mode...
changes from present-day Azriel, the Azriel of the past, the young man in the present, and the young man's past. It is unstructured to the point where it borders on Surrealism
Surrealism
Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
. Some of the themes of Le serment de Kolvillag include pogroms, death, old age, secrecy, silence, and modernity.
See also
- Dawn
- NightNight (book)Night is a work by Elie Wiesel about his experience with his father, Shlomo, in the Nazi German concentration camps at Auschwitz and Buchenwald in 1944–1945, at the height of the Holocaust and toward the end of the Second World War...
- Twilight