Artwork/Style
1. Discuss the use of anthropomorphism (personification) in Maus, and your reaction to it. Why has Spiegleman chosen to use animals instead of people?
Spiegleman uses anthropomorphism in Maus to portray the different groups involved in the Holocaust. The main two animals used are cats used to portray Nazis and mice used to portray Jews. This use of animals instead of humans as characters helps me continue to enjoy the reading of the story as the plot is extremely dark and would otherwise leave me sadder after reading. At page 85 the frame shows three mice/Jews hanging from their necks in the middle of a street, this would be a much more horrific image if anthropomorphism had not been used. Spiegelman has chosen to use animals
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This diversity and resourcefulness give Vladek the traits of a survivor. Vladek’s resourcefulness is shown in particular when he meets young polish boys who accuse him of being a Jew, his resourcefulness keep him from running and he thinks of a logical way out of the situation. Vladek’s diversity in many different languages and skills is undoubtedly a reason why he was able to survive the Holocaust. His knowledge of all different languages can fit him in with most groups shown in the novel, the Holocaust was based off of race differences and it makes sense that if Vladek was able to speak the German’s and Pole’s language, then he would be treated differently from most other Jews. This is shown when he is able to freely communicate with polish people and is given better treatment when he teaches a pole English. The language Yiddish also gives Vladek an edge as he can essentially talk in code around others. As well as languages, Vladek works many jobs over the course of the Holocaust, showing his ability to take on new information quickly, which is a sure trait of a survivor.
Theme
2. Maus shows a family complicated by the memory of the Holocaust. Discuss how and why the relationship between Vladek and Artie is strained by memories of the past.
Art has grown up without a strong relationship with his dad. They have turned out very different people. They have both had different lives. Vladek had no choice but to take charge and be the best that
The character Vladek in Art Spiegelman’s Maus greatly changed throughout the book. Events due to the Holocaust shaped Vladek into the person he is at the end of the book. The Holocaust caused Vladek to become extremely frugal, to have an obsession with tidiness, and to not be able to trust anyone. Vladek became extremely frugal from living through the Holocaust. In the beginning he was poor and couldn’t buy extravagant things.
Vladek is depicted as a hero who shows countless acts of selflessness and generosity and a villain who is, “opinionated, tight-fisted, and self-involved”. (Brown 6) Art Spiegelman’s book Maus, tells the story of how Vladek and Anja Spiegelman survived the Holocaust. Spiegelman illustrates Vladek as a man who single-handily saved his family from starvation and Auschwitz in World War I. During Spiegelman’s interviews, we get an idea of Vladek’s darker side since the war ended. Mala to speak of her astonishment and disgust in Vladek’s character. Which leaves us to question how truthfully these stories are being told. In the end, Vladek’s unsuccessful heroism is a constant reminder of his failure; survival with Anja was always easier, after her death, Vladek pushes everyone away with his “guilt and manipulation” (Brown 7)
The tone in Maus is depression; this is shown when Vladek tells the story in his perspective and reveals what kind of events occurred during the Holocaust. This relates to survival because even though Vladek had a feeling of discouragement through his experiences, he still managed to survive. Vladek explains when he was captured as a war prisoner and what they gave them to eat. “The other prisoners get two meals a day. We Jews get only a crust of bread and a little soup.”(Spiegelman, 55) This shows how hard it was for the Jews and how hopeless Vladek’s story was. Another heartbreaking part of the story was when Vladek had to work hard and act as slaves to the
Certain relationships cannot be fixed because of irreconcilable differences. Art Spiegelman's graphic novels Maus I and Maus II retell the stories of the Holocaust through the eyes of Art’s father, Vladek. However, the novel includes a subplot of Art’s poor relationship with his father, and how they never seem to come to coincide. Vladek and Art misunderstand each other because they have had very different experiences. In addition, their relationship is distant and contentious because they cannot cope with one another. Vladek and Art’s relationship is inadequate because they cannot be of one mind.
There are many ways the Holocaust affected Vladek’s personality traits and behavior. A huge catastrophic event like the Holocaust can cause one to have emotional damage that could cause them to act a certain way after being mistreated for so long. Trauma is a result of going through a terrible experience at a certain point in your life. It is almost inevitable that there will be some type of mental issue after experiencing such a horrible event. There is no doubt that some of Vladek’s personality traits were gained from experiencing the horrible things that took place during the Holocaust and also being treated very unfairly. There is evidence that show that it can be very difficult in trying to keep a clear mind and trying to stay calm at times. Vladek seems to have some very negative personality traits.
Spiegelman uses mice, cats, pigs and other animals to portray the victims and events in the Holocaust. He uses real features of human beings such as hands, feet and emotions to give the animals the full potential to relate to. Maus reveals that the characters portrayed as mice are being seen in sharper relief as human concerns in the world of mice. Spiegelman decided on interesting but possibly offensive use of different animals to use. The first type of animal which appears in this comic is the mouse (MausI:5). The form of mice is used to represent the Jewish people during the Holocaust and as of now too. The Polish police were involved in the arrest of innocent Jewish mice (27). The Polish people were pigs and Germans were represented as cats. The Germans’ appearance as cats began to make sense in the way how cats chase, hunt and kill mice (33). This comic book was translated into an easily readable format to educate the history of the Holocaust to the younger generations.
Art also feels guilt for being born after his older brother Richieu, whom he describes as his “Ghost Brother”. Part of the tension between Art and his parents is caused by the invisible presence of Richieu, who Art believes his parents held him in comparison to constantly. Art creates his own sibling rivalry with his brother’s picture, seeing himself in a way as an unsuccessful replacement for Richieu. This causes Art to continue to rebel against his parents, and coupled with his conflicts with Vladek, definitely influence the path in life that he chooses.
A powerful and provocative graphic novel, Maus, generates a Jewish individual’s life of grotesque and horror. With its ability of perception and interpretation, it tackles the main points of the ominous Holocaust and delivers a spooky aura to the absorbed audience. In comparison to Schindler’s List, the graphic novel shines brightly than the pale movie due to its realism and humor that is constantly present throughout the storyline. The novel has the ability to connect to the audience; thus, it gives an in-depth look and overall comprehension of the massacre that Spiegelman is trying to communicate. The graphic novel, Maus by Art Spiegelman, brings an honest account of the Holocaust to a wide audience because of its historical truth and intriguing viewpoints and characters that shows the effect and process of the genocide.
“Biology in one personality traits that come out in some humans, the geography location is where some of them live, and the facts about one person and how they express it?” This explain the interpretation of having animals in comics and explains how humans act more like animals.
The holocaust has effected more lives than anybody could imagine, the tragedy has not only affected those who were there or primarily affected but those of every generation to come after that. This illustrated by Art and Vladek’s inability to get along, Vladek’s personality quirks, Anja’s suicide, Art’s guilt, are all factors that contributed to the rocky family relationship the Spieglemans had, and are all due to the horrors of the holocaust. The horrors of which did not end when the Nazi’s were defeated in WW2, rather continuing to have an impact on further generations, in which all of their stories will never be
When one cannot deal with guilt within oneself, the feeling of guilt can be transferred to affect another. Art struggles throughout his life to understand why he never had a great relationship with his father. After trying to write with no luck, Art heads to his regular appointment with Pavel, another Holocaust survivor. Pavel suggests that maybe “(Vladek) took his guilt out on YOU, where it was safe… on the REAL survivor.” (7, p 44) Vladek felt guilty about surviving the Holocaust, but instead of accepting it,
Art’s choice to include a 2-page prologue before the beginning of the book proper helps to very clearly illustrate the relationship that Art and Vladek have had up until the beginning of the book. Art is abandoned by his friends, and his father attempts to comfort him, however this appears to Art, and therefore the reader, as more of a comparison between Vladek’s experiences during the holocaust and Art’s childhood suffering, especially with the mention of “no food for a week”, which Art has utilised to create a sense of emotional distance, of an incompatibility between the two.
The role of epistemological uncertainty within the world of Maus comes through various sources, the first of which is Vladek himself. Throughout the narrative, as presented by Art Spiegelman, the inconsistencies in Vladek's memories, as well as the contradictions that exist between Art and Vladek's interpretation of events, create a reputation for Vladek as an unreliable narrator. Examples of these moments occur in both volumes of Maus, such as when he cannot remember how much time he spent in Auschwitz (see Fig. 1). As Vladek himself notes, keeping track of time during Auschwitz was a difficult task, coupled with a stressful environment and subsequent trauma that also could have impacted his ability to remember events correctly. Furthermore,
The graphic novel Maus by Art Spiegelman conveys many varied and powerful themes to the reader. Spiegelman has conveyed the themes Guilt and Survival by using various methods including narration, dialogue and several comic book techniques to show the expressions and feelings of the central characters. Guilt is an especially strong theme in Maus, appearing many times with Art and Vladek. Survival is another primary theme in Maus. Images are used by Spiegelman to display the ways that Vladek survived during the Holocaust.
Throughout the story of Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began, cats and mice are used metaphorically to represent Nazis and Jews. Pigs and frogs are also used metaphorically, however, due to their lack of relationship with the cat and mouse metaphor, they do not add on to the effectiveness in relaying the theme of identity being shaped by adversity. (Spiegelman 93-94) These pages are the only ones that the frog appears in with only a minor role in which he offers to share Vladek a box of food. The brief interaction does not add any significance to the cat and mouse metaphor seen throughout the graphic novel because the frog has no impact or change on Vladek, thus making the animal metaphor less effective. Another reason why the animal metaphor is also less effective is how misrepresenting the stereotypes can be. The pigs for example are usually stereotyped as self centered and lazy animals. However, (Spiegelman 92) the pig doctor who helps Vladek’s injured hand directly contradicts the stereotype that pigs are self centered. Spiegelman’s use of stereotyping and lack of other animals hinders the effectiveness of animal metaphor in the theme. One could argue that the lack of images in Night could possibly allow readers to miss information, however, pictures aren’t everything into understanding what is going on. “Dragging himself on all fours.”(Wiesel 101) This quote offers the reader a visualization on how animalistic the Jews have become, ultimately proving that Elie Wiesel's use of animal imagery is more effective than Spiegelman's animal