Primo Levi was a Jewish author and survivor of the holocaust. The victor of the holocaust was raised in a Jewish family, ideologically known to be liberal. He specialized in Chemistry, at the University of Turin, where he graduated with honors in 1941. In 1943, the Italian government formed a truce with the Allies. At this time, Levi became involved in anti-fascist politics. Shortly after the truce, the German government took control of the Italian state and thereafter, forcibly reinstated Benito Mussolini as dictator; this resulted in an Italian resistance movement particularly at the German controlled region of Italy. Levi and his friends joined the resistance and took to the wilderness in search of supporters; all these events were witnessed during the Second World War. We realize while coming to the end, the group was captured and detained by the Fascist militia, and when they discovered his Jewish identity, he was sent to an internment camp that was located at Fossoli. In February 1944, Levi together with other captured Jews were transported to Auschwitz using cattle trucks (Cambridge, 67). Auschwitz concentration camp was one of the various concentration and extermination camps constructed and operated by the Third Reich, in Polish areas that were under German rule. Levi notes the life expectancy of the camp as being six months, for healthy individuals who were capable of working. He managed to survive due to his excellent German-Languages skills, friendship with significant people in the camp and his ability to enhance his skills quickly (Cambridge, 67).Also, during this time, the Nazi had shifted their focus from genocide to harsh convict labor. The book, Survival in Auschwitz, is a classical account of the time Primo Levi, who happens to be the author of the book, spent in Auschwitz concentration camp. He stayed in the concentration camp from 1944 till 1945. In 1945, the camp was evacuated. However, Levi remained behind because he had Scarlet fever. He survived for ten days in the abandoned camp; until the camp was later liberated by the Soviet army. After staying in the Soviet camp for several months, he eventually returned to his home in Turin, in 1945.

In the book, Primo gives an account of his experiences in the holocaust and during his stay in Italy. The issue of humanity is evident in the book, where the writer’s subject is humanity in extremis. (Cambridge 68).The horrors experienced by the prisoners are examined to show the disruption of humanity and also the minor triumphs. The book depicts the humanity of the inmates and that of Levi. The prisoners have to adapt to starvation, torture, abuse and hunger so as to survive and maintain their humanity. According to Levi, the ordinary world with its morals ceases to exist (Levi 86). He compares the concentration camp to a huge experiment consisting of people from different backgrounds, and are confined to live a regular, controlled life that is deficient of all needs. He notes that the camps were more rigorous as compared to what any experimenter would have set up for whatever reason necessary (Levi 93). According to Levi, the traits that govern the moral world include virtues such as goodness, justice are eroded by the harsh conditions in the camp, forcing the prisoners to resort to mental, physical and social adaptation, for example, some prisoners would resort to stealing in order to obtain some food (Levi 79).Others formed friendships that were useful in order to survive (Levi 86).This adaptation is what disrupts the line separating good from bad and as a result, humanity is distorted. Primo only gives an account of life in Auschwitz in the book; he does not take a philosophical or theological approach. He states that, he does not believe in some of the seemingly the most obvious and facile deductions that people hold, that man is fundamentally brutal, stupid and egoistic in his conducts once every civilized institution absent. He affirms his belief rather, that the only conclusion that he thinks would be drawn is that, in the need of yielding or driving necessity and physical disabilities, it is apparent that many social habits in particular circumstances, as well as instincts, are reduced to silence in the long run(Cambridge 77). Levi uses this statement as evidence of belief in humanity, and the term “reduced to silence” describes man’s fate in the harsh conditions. Silence refers to the removal of will from the prisoners, who were subjected to beatings, humiliation and the fear that comes from neither being listened to nor believed(Cambridge 78).It is, therefore, safe to say that Levi’s view of humanity was high because he had a sense of great faith in life and optimism. He did not judge people indiscriminately, as shown in his statement; he did not brand all human beings as monsters only because of the holocaust experience. He writes the book as a testimonial; so that people would remember the events and experiences that the prisoners went through (Levi, 47)

In the memoir, Levi maintains some faith in humanity; he depicts this in the tone he uses in writing. He is not bitter or accusatory. Also, he wrote his books after the holocaust and in most of his books, the author writes of optimistic fiction, praising the virtues of man (Cambridge, 78).He had faith in the inherent goodness in humanity and found humanity in the midst of horror. In the concentrated camp, the prisoners live a controlled life that is deficient of all needs. This condition leads to the struggle for life and ethical definitions of what is good or bad become irrelevant. Morality cannot be applied to this situation and acts such as stealing, which are immoral, are useful because they enabled the survivors to obtain what they need. Market places for pilfered goods are present within the concentration camp where the prisoners exchange pilfered goods. The different perspectives of what are good or bad, just and unjust are difficult to discern, and the prisoners are left to do what they must to survive.

Morality in the concentrated camp is distorted due to the acts of cruelty, dehumanization and inhumane mistreatment that the prisoners face. Justice ceases to be a realistic expectation and the prisoners are forced to do what they must to survive. Preconceived notions of morality are abandoned and acts such as stealing are practiced for the sake of survival. Two groups of people were present in the camps, the drowned and the saved. Levi accounts that in order to survive, prisoners had to adapt to extreme circumstances. It was difficult to maintain mental sanity in this grotesque conditions and one had to focus on minor distractions, for example, surviving until spring. Focusing on issues such as scarcity of food was deadly to the mental sanity of the individual. In the book, an example of an insane man by the name Elias is made. He is a survivor who is adapted to the inhumane editions of the camp because of his insanity. He does not harbor traditional, pre-conceived notions of normal morality, and this enables him to survive without deterioration of his sound mind. His insane mind does not conceive the justice which is necessary for survival in Auschwitz (Levi 97).The pain and suffering is used as stimuli for survival and reflects on how the situation could be worse. A beating by the kapo was at times considered good. He notes that there were some of them who would beat them from pure bestiality as well as violence while others would beat them when under load . he describes the later as “almost lovingly” with the accompaniment of blows and exhortations (Levi 67). In this statement, Levi contends that being beaten was a stimulant that enabled the prisoners to complete their work, this shows how a morally evil act of beating a person was considered good. It is morally unjust to make a person choose between having their feet covered in human waste or having to sleep next to a person who has endured such a fate. However, Levi states that it was preferable that they were chosen and not their neighbors to endure such a fate. (Levi, 62).Prisoners lacked basic human rights such as sleep, cleanliness and a decent meal and prisoners have to endure the inhuman conditions presented in the camp.

The society in Auschwitz embraces moral transgressions that are necessary for survival. Many people from different backgrounds and customs are enclosed within a barbed wire and face a common situation. Since morality is not universal, it becomes difficult to apply it to a concentrated society and the result of this is moral confusion. Theft is practiced for the purpose of obtaining necessary goods. Levi states that theft by civilians was considered as a normal exchange operation. The present sense of morality is for the prisoners to adapt to the definitions of right and wrong in the present conditions.

In conclusion, the book is an account of the holocaust that comprehensively and clearly depicts the harsh treatment of prisoners in Auschwitz. The book was written for the purpose of informing people of the experiences of the Jews, Russians, and Gypsies amongst others of the inhumane conditions that they had to endure. Levi brings out the horror and destruction experienced during this period and as a result, critical themes such as survival, humanity and destruction are brought out. The psychological attacks on the dignity and the demands upon traditional morality, which could never be satisfied, resulted in adaptive techniques that ensured survival. Levi compares the Lager to a great machine that is designed to reduce them to beasts. He encourages his fellow prisoners not to succumb to that fate and that they should strive to survive, so that they will be able to tell the story of what they had experienced. Levi encourages them to do their best to save at least the skeleton and the remaining bit of humanity that they have. He views himself as slaves deprived of every right, exposed to every insult and condemned to certain death. The prisoners had to do whatever they could to survive in Auschwitz. He views himself as a slave deprived of every right, exposed to every insult and condemned to certain death. The prisoners had to do whatever they could to survive in Auschwitz.

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