Maus

1. What is your first impression of Vladek Spiegelman? What does his remark about friends suggest about his personality? How does it foreshadow revelations later in the book?

In chapter one of book II Art reveals that he feels extremely guilty about not having to go through the Holocaust like his father did and says "Somehow, I wish I had been in Auschwitz with my parents so I could really know what they lived through! …I guess it's some form of guilt about having had an easier life than they did"(Spiegelman, MausII,16).

Art and Vladek have not been able to connect as much as they would like because of their contentious relationship. When discussing their relationship to Pavel, Art’s avuncular therapist, Art says, “Mainly I remember arguing with him... and being told I couldn’t do anything as well as he could” (II: 44). When Art was young, he never had a chance to truly consociate with Vladek. Vladek was too affected by the Holocaust to become close with Art, and this engendered Art and Vladek’s distant relationship. Since Art has a distant paternal relationship, it forces him to be more independent when Art could have learned a great deal from Vladek. Since they are not close, they are both losing an important part of their life, and this will have a negative effect on both of them. It also is evident that neither worked towards becoming close, as they still misunderstand each other and argue often. During an argument, Vladek says, “Always you’re so lazy! Every job we should do as to do it the right way.” Then, Art replies, “Lazy?! Damn it, you’re driving me nuts!” (II: 21). They continuously have arguments that eradicate any attempt to create a better relationship. Their irreparable differences seem to drive these arguments. When Vladek and Art approach their differences with arguments, it creates a significant burden on their relationship. This burden has caused them to become distant. Since Art is distant with Vladek, he has and is neglecting a great deal of wisdom which can be crucial for him, especially since Vladek survived an enormous genocide of the Jews. Vladek can teach Art to become resourceful, adaptive, and most of all, grateful. These traits can help Art to become a better person in a time where there is no holocaust for Art or anyone else to

Baumeister et al. (1994) describes guilt as an individual's unpleasant emotional state associated with possible objections to his or her actions, inaction, circumstances, or intentions. Baumeister et al. (1994) thought that Guilt could be understood in a relationship contexts as

What is guilt? Guilt is defined as "the fact or state of having done wrong or committed and offense." (Definition, 5) In Fifth business Guilt is considered to be a theme placed within the pages of the Novel, Fifth Business. It is shown through main events taking place, as well as being shown through the main characters of the story. For many guilt can be a powerful emotion, leaving people to question the fact on why they are feeling "Guilty". It can be considered as the "price we pay" (letting go of guilt, 4) after doing something in the wrong. "Guilt can also be considered psychological relating back to a previous childhood event or actions".(4) For most guilt is a feeling/ emotion that is completely unavoidable.

Guilt is a confusing new emotion. They may feel guilty over things that logically should not cause guilt. They may feel guilt when this initiative does not produce desired results.

“Maus: A Survivor’s Tale”, and “Maus: And Here My Troubles Began”, are hit graphic novels about World War II, and tell the fictional stories of a soldier who survived the Holocaust. These two books are both purely about survival, but not in the way that you may think. Maus I and Maus II are both essentially telling us that survival may mean that you live through something horrific, but you may be a different person by the end of it.

v Guilt (such as feeling others should have lived and he should have died, or feeling

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.

Art and Vladek’s atypical relationship showcase the division created by the holocaust various different ways. Art immediately paints a picture of a; weak, frail, old man, who had

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.

Abstract:     Guilt has physiological and psychological effects. The psychological effects can include something bad, such as feelings of worthlessness or inferiority. Guilt can also serve in a positive way as a motivator. A person may suffer physiological effects such as insomnia and physical pain.

Throughout the two volumes Art is able to understand his father and the tense relationship between them better by digging deep into his father’s memories. In a lot of ways, bringing Vladek’s memories to the present is therapeutic for their relationship, at least as far as Art’s perspective goes. Art is able to see the things that his father went through, making it easier to understand some of the actions and attitudes of Vladek in the present. It is debatable, however, whether these memories are as therapeutic to Vladek as they are to Art as on many occasions Vladek has to stop telling the story for the day because it is too much for him to handle.

According to Sigmund Freud’s law of psychodynamic theory, he states that people in some means use rational barriers as a defense mechanism to preclude the intense feeling of guilt which would be experienced upon reaching realization of one’s own intentions. Guilt can be categorized into three groups; healthy, unhealthy, and false guilt. Healthy guilt is defined as the guilt that is felt when one accepts their mistakes and is the result of one’s conscience. Unhealthy guilt is outlining the effects of feelings that every wronging is done by their own selves despite them not being at fault. The last category; false guilt, describes the guilt of being victimized of any form of abuse and then accepting the

“No way, he was forced to be friends with her. Oh well, at least it balances my day.”