The early 20th century saw the development of the totalitarian form
             of government and society. This form of government appeared after World
             War I and remained for nearly 70 years. Two of the most brutal
             totalitarian regimes took place in Germany under Adolph Hitler and the
             Soviet Union and the communist block under Joseph Stalin. Because
             survivors of these regimes had the courage to create literary accounts of
             their experiences as a citizen of these regimes, we are provided insight
             into the world of the tortured "individual" and are given the opportunity
             to understand the role the individual plays in these societies. In Under a
             Cruel Star: A Life in Prague1941-1968, Heda Kovaly takes us along with her
             as she tells the story of the life of the individual in the Nazi camps
             through the development and implementation of communism in Prague. Elie
             Wiesel provides us with a detailed account of life in the Nazi camps of
             Auschwitz and Buchenwald in his book Night. Through their books, Kovaly
             and Wiesel show us how the totalitarian government strives to void all
             aspects of individuality, even the human spirit.
             According to the American Heritage Dictionary, the definition of
             totalitarian is "Of, relating to, being, or imposing a form of government
             in which the political authority exercises absolute and centralized control
             over all aspects of life, the individual is subordinated to the state, and
             opposing political and cultural expression is suppressed."[1] Both Kovaly
             and Wiesel provide the reader with haunting accounts of the brutality the
             Jewish people suffered under the Hitler and describe in detail the
             atrocities committed against humanity. From them we learn what happens to
             the individual when concepts like "freedom" and "human dignity" become
             thoughts of the past. Under a Cruel Star gives the reader insight into the
             individual's daily life in a country as it undergoes i...